Vero Beach blanks Fort Pierce Central, advances to regional semifinals
· Yahoo Sports
VERO BEACH — The Vero Beach High School football team extended a number of streaks with its latest victory.
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But given how close his team’s last two games were against Fort Pierce Central, longtime Vero Beach coach Lenny Jankowski walked off the field less concerned about a string of wins and more focused on being 1-0 in its most recent game.
“Each game is independent of the other. But we knew we were in for it tonight,” Jankowski said. “(The Cobras) are a very well-coached team with some really good players. And obviously, we’re familiar with each other being in the same district. We were really just concerned with tonight and pleased with the outcome.”
Vero Beach struck first with a surge late in the first half, tacked on a pair of second-half scores and never looked back en route to a 24-0 victory over Fort Pierce Central in a Region 2-6A quarterfinal Friday, Nov. 13, at Billy Livings Field at the Citrus Bowl.
Vero Beach collected its eighth consecutive victory this season. The team also extended both its winning streak against the Cobras and its regional quarterfinal winning streak to 14 games.
“It’s a big win and a lot of good things happened,” Jankowski said.
Latravious Woods finished with two touchdown receptions, the first of which broke the ice in what was a scoreless first half to that point. The junior wide receiver got free on a corner route and hauled in a pass from Makai White for a 58-yard touchdown with 1 minute, 39 seconds remaining in the second quarter.
After forcing a punt on the next Central possession, Vero Beach marched 59 yards in a matter of seconds. Synder Arbelaez capped the drive with a 26-yard field goal to put the home team ahead 10-0 at halftime.
Vero Beach added to its lead late in the third quarter.
Following an interception by Jeromie King, White connected with Sebastian Cabrera on a 57-yard reception down the sideline to put Vero Beach on the doorstep. Three plays later, Woods notched his second touchdown of the night after taking a wide receiver screen 10 yards into the end zone.
On the previous play, Woods showed some frustration after White did not look his way. But the ball found the junior on the next snap, and he did what he does best after the catch.
“Playing with Makai is great. I love playing with him,” Woods said. “He’s young, so I know I got to stay on him and keep his preparation right. I’m happy to see him grow and he’s been growing the whole season.”
Woods finished with four receptions for 104 yards and four carries for 17 yards. White completed 11 of 19 passes for 214 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.
With Vero Beach in command, Marc Johns put a bow on the victory in the fourth quarter. The senior athlete took a handoff to the right, cut back to the left and crossed the goal line as he was tackled for a spectacular 16-yard touchdown run with 8:44 remaining.
Johns finished with 10 carries for 47 yards. Fellow senior Jayden Lockhart handled the majority of the workload out of the backfield, rushing for 113 yards on 22 carries.
Meanwhile, the defense continued to be Vero Beach’s strength, forcing three turnovers en route to its fourth shutout of the season. As a result, the Cobras suffered their first shutout loss since a regional quarterfinal defeat to Palm Beach Central in 2024.
“We just couldn’t punch it in. We had some opportunities,” Fort Pierce Central coach Mike Watkins said. “I was proud of our effort. Our kids played hard. Overcoming some injuries, we got a lot of young guys out there. They got some great experience tonight.”
Vero Beach (10-1), the top seed in the region, will face another familiar foe in the next round when it hosts No. 5 Dr. Phillips on Friday at the Citrus Bowl. It will be the third consecutive postseason meeting between the teams, with each side earning one victory.
This story will be updated.
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 [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Vero Beach blanks Fort Pierce Central, advances to regional semifinals