Green Dragons blank Red Devils

After a sluggish start, the Lake Placid girls soccer team found its offense in the second half and splashed its way to a 3-0 win over Avon Park on Friday night at a rain-drenched Joe Franza Stadium.

The match was played in a steady downpour, which made the footing treacherous for both teams and made it hard to pass or control the ball with any consistency.

The Class 3A-District 9 win improved the Green Dragons to 7-4 overall and 4-2 in district play.

"The weather was a big factor in our slow start," said veteran Lake Placid coach John Merlo. "It was cold and wet and that's all I heard from the girls for a while.

"We finally got warmed up, adjusted to the wet conditions and put the ball in the back of the net for a good district win on a tough night to play."

The loss dropped the scrappy Red Devils to 0-5-2 on the season.

"I was really pleased with our defense," said first-year Avon Park coach Jordan Dancer. "The girls gave a good effort, never gave up and it looked like we were having fun playing in the rain. We've held our own in every match and the girls just need to start believing in themselves and we'll be fine."

Both teams had several good scoring opportunities go for naught in the sloppy conditions during the first half of play.

Lake Placid, which finished with 11 shots on goal, finally broke through when freshman forward Michelle Hunter gathered in a rebound off a corner kick and found the back of the net to give the Green Dragons 1-0 lead with 3:44 remaining in the first half.

"We came out slow but got more aggressive as the first half progressed and controlled the pace of play," Merlo said. "We've got several new players, we're using a system that's only in its second year and we're still working on a lot of things.

"Heather is only a freshman, but she has good instincts for the game and has become a solid scorer for us."

Lake Placid midfielder Yuribia Terrones tacked on a goal in the opening minutes of the second half with a nice run and laser shot into the bottom-left corner of the net to give the Green Dragons a 2-0 lead.

The goal was the 12th of the season for the high-scoring Terrones.

"Yuribia is an outstanding player and does a great job in the middle of the field for us," the Green Dragon coach said. "She is a complete player and could score more if I put her at forward, but she is a force for us at midfield."

Brittany Collison tallied the final goal with 24:55 remaining to seal the district win for the Green Dragons.

"The girls have been working hard and it's showing up on the field," Merlo said. "A district win is always good and I was able to get all of the girls some playing time, which is important.

"Our goal is to continue to improve and be playing our best soccer when the district tournament comes around and we're on the right track."

Lake Placid is back on the pitch Monday with a road match at DeSoto, while Avon Park travels to Mulberry on Monday night.

"The girls never quit on any ball and I was glad to see that," said Dancer. "I'm trying to build this program and our goal is to improve with every match we play."