St. Edward's boys soccer goes back-to-back in District 8-2A triumph

Despite a two-goal halftime lead, the St. Edward’s boys soccer team knew it would be a challenging dash to the finish line.

A determined Jupiter Christian cut the 2-0 deficit in half not long after the break, causing anxiety on the home team's sideline.

The Pirates weathered the storm and didn't give up any more goals, grinding out a 2-1 victory to win their second district championship in a row in the 8-2A final on their home field in Vero Beach.

Wednesday was a rematch of the season opener for both clubs, which also resulted in a one-goal St. Edward’s victory.

St. Edward’s got on the board in the 19th minute as freshman Reed Sternberg danced around a Jupiter Christian defender along the Eagles goal line and sent in a cross that was put home by his brother, Drew Sternberg, for the opening goal of the night.

The Pirates (13-2-1) had an opportunity to score again just three minutes later after they were awarded a penalty kick. Senior Jack Zoltak laced a strong effort but Jupiter Christian goalkeeper Angel Canon was able to stop it to keep the score 1-0.

Zoltak would get redemption in the 37th minute when his pass to the middle was met by Reed Sternberg, who booted the ball past Canon to give St. Edward’s a 2-0 lead.

First-year Pirates head coach Esteban Rosano was wary of a lead like that leading into halftime and in his mind knew the next goal would be the most important one.

“We were nervous. A 2-0 lead can be a lying score in soccer because you see them put one in to start the half and they can take all the momentum right back,” Rosano said.

That was exactly what happened 12 minutes into the second half as Mateo Colamarco got on the end of a low, driving corner kick from Jace Gardner and deposited it into the back of the net to bring the Eagles (7-4-1) back within a goal with plenty of time left on the scoreboard.

Jupiter Christian saw more possession in the Pirate half with St. Edward’s struggling to string passes out into space.

Relief for the Pirates was theirs upon the final whistle, accomplishing one of the goals they set at the start of the year.

“We were talking about it today back to our first practice, we talked about our short-term and long-term goals, and the short-term goal was to win a district championship,” senior Drew Sternberg said. “We just hit the mark and now we’re in the long game. I really think this group of boys, we can take this far into regionals and hopefully further.”

St. Edward's next challenge starts with a home match in a regional quarterfinal Wednesday.

“I can’t express how proud I am of those kids, how things turned out to be,” Rosano said. “We’ve connected real well since day one, we set our goals and this was one of them. Now we have to get ready for the next one which is not going to be easy.”

Wednesday's scores

Boys Basketball

Vero Beach 63, Central 31: Almando Cyrius scored 13 points and added six rebounds and three steals to lead the Fighting Indians (16-4) to Friday’s District 9-7A final. Carl Monplasir added 10 points for Vero Beach, who will take on Dwyer in the championship at 7 p.m..

Jensen Beach 59, Fort Pierce Westwood 56: Jeremiah Denaud hit a step-back 3-pointer at the buzzer to send the Falcons (8-7) to the District 13-5A championship game, where Jensen Beach will take on Suncoast Friday night at Okeechobee High School at 7 p.m.

Martin County 44, West Boca Raton 24

Lincoln Park Academy 73, LaBelle 39

Olympic Heights 53, South Fork 49

Suncoast 46, Okeechobee 44

West Shore 58, John Carroll Catholic 49

Dwyer 77, Centennial 54

Boys district championship schedule

9-7A

(3) Dwyer at (1) Vero Beach, 7 p.m.

13-6A

(3) Olympic Heights at (1) Martin County, 7 p.m.

13-5A

(4) Suncoast vs. (2) Jensen Beach at Okeechobee High School, 7 p.m.

12-4A

(2) Glades Central at (1) Lincoln Park Academy, 6 p.m.

Boys Tennis

South Fork 5, Fort Pierce Central 2: Singles: Bryan d. Huber 8-2; Singh d. Bloomfield 8-3; Paluzsek d. Shultz 8-5; Degaetano d. Patterson 8-2; Tatum win via forfeit; Doubles: Bryan/Bloomfield d. Huber/Singh 8-6, Paluzsek/Degaetano d. Shultz/Patterson 8-2

Girls Tennis

Fort Pierce Central 4, South Fork 3: Singles: T. Piccoli d. King 8-3; Stoyanova d. B. Piccoli 8-1; L. VanMoorleghem d. Deckard 8-6; Burton d. Scammel 8-3; Paluzsek d. Morris 8-1; Doubles: T. Piccoli/B. Piccoli d. King/Stoyanova 8 (2-7), L. VanMoorelegham/Burton d. Deckard/Scammel 8-1