Beach volleyball has only been a FHSAA sanctioned sport for three years.
But in that short time, one thing has been made clear: when district-tournament time arrives, Vero Beach is money in the bank.
The Indians captured their third consecutive District 25-1A title after sweeping past Jupiter 3-0 on Thursday from Vero Beach High School. They entered as the bracket's No. 1 seed and did not drop a single set in three district tournament matches.
“It feels awesome. I’m really proud of how the team has developed and maintained its play and competition within the last few years,” Vero Beach head coach Wes Hawkins said.
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The two teams met with the district title on the line last year, with the Indians prevailing 3-2. They also battled during the regular season, a 4-1 score line in favor of the eventual district champions on April 2.
“Vero is a really tough team, they have an incredible program,” Warriors head coach Lilly Fink said. “They’ve had it going for a lot of years, they have a lot of full-time beach players. It’s a tough team.”
With the No. 2 and 4 pairings on the sand to open the day, Jupiter (11-3) captured the first set of each match before Vero Beach (15-1) responded. The No. 2 Indians duo of senior Ella Minton and junior Ara Sanchez jumped out to 9-2 and 9-3 starts over the final two sets en route to closing out Elaina Avila and Kate Guarneri. Mere seconds after that match ended, the No. 4 team of seniors Marley Massey and Kaleigh Becton finished off their comeback against Sophia Chapman and Sophia Rodriguez.
At the top of the lineup, Vero’s No. 1 pair of sophomore Cora Darling and senior Ava Lilliquist didn’t need three sets to take care of their business, as they swept the duo of Macy McAmis and Islie Lounsbury to seal the championship.
Vero's top unit
Lilliquist, who is one of six seniors on her team, has been a part of the Indians’ run since it started in 2022. She also a veteran of the sport, having been coached by Hawkins since she was 10 years old. At year’s end, she’ll take her talents to the other side of the state and compete collegiately at Florida Gulf Coast University.
Since the beginning this season, Lilliquist has been paired with Darling, a 6-footer who’s long wingspan makes her a lethal blocker at the net. Additionally, that allows the 5-7 senior to play behind, cover ground and seek digs. Highlighted most recently on Thursday, the unit has meshed in their first year together.
“It’s so nice to have someone tall and at the net because I’m used to a different style of volleyball,” Lilliquist said of Darling. “It just feels so much better and it’s honestly easier. She just has so much fun and she’s fun to play with.”
Next player up
While the top of the lineup has been secure, Minton is playing with her third different partner at the second spot. She’s only been with Sanchez for two weeks, but the senior believes the players’ collective bond off the sand creates a smooth connection, with Sanchez and others, on it.
“Our team, we’re all best friends. So we can mix and match, it’s so easy,” Minton said. “That’s how our coaches coach us. We’re good as individuals and we can go with anyone.”
The ability to change and adjust lineups also speaks to Vero Beach’s strength this year: depth. The team has suffered injuries to two of its top-10 players in junior Paige Keen (knee) and 6-4 freshman Ella Gravlee (hand). However, with the rest of the roster stepping up, the Indians haven’t lost a beat.
Hawkins credits Matt Heath, an assistant coach who also serves as the director of Vero Beach Volleyball club, for the depth and player development.
“He coaches a lot of our girls in club, too,” Hawkins said of Heath. “We have a lot of youth in the area. And I think between that, having a junior varsity program to help build our varsity and having some girls that have been doing it for a long time and are committed to beach and also not doing it indoor plays a factor.”
“We want that ring”
Entering districts ranked sixth overall in the state, Vero Beach is in line to receive the top seed in Region 7-1A bracket. Regionals begin next week while the state championships are slated for May 10-11 from the Florida State University Beach Volleyball Courts in Tallahassee.
Hawkins has seen his team qualify for states each of the previous two years. He says simply qualifying for states and “putting yourself in a position to be successful” are the Indians’ end-goals. Meanwhile, the players aspire to have some jewelry at year’s end.
“We want that ring,” Minton laughed.
Lilliquist added: “It’d be our third time there, so we’re hoping to secure a ring, for sure.”
Patrick Bernadeau is a sports reporter for Treasure Coast Newspapers. He can be reached at (772) 985-9692, on X at @PatBernadeau or via email at pbernadeau@gannett.com.
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