By Henry Weitz
On Jan. 13 the Ponte Vedra High School (PVHS) Sharks boys’ soccer team took on the Clay High School (CHS) Blue Devils. Prior to the match, PVHS stood at a commanding 9-0-3 after going 2-0-1 in their matches last week. The Blue Devils record was 8-4-1 before they hosted the Sharks. Before the match PVHS celebrated their seventeen seniors on the team. The Shark seniors include goalkeepers, Keegan Cornett and Joe Serino, defenders, Alec Ranford, Alec Perry, JP Laverde, Owen Zimmerman, Samuel Camacho, Eric Hanel, Charlie Itkoff, midfielders, Brayden Sandoval, Pascal Rocha, Marcus Warren, Connor Smith, Jake Romano, and forwards, Oliver Minch, Antonio Mahfuz, and Nick Churchill. After the senior ceremony finished, the boys warmed up and prepared for the first whistle.
The match began and CHS came out very intense from the first whistle and seemed to catch the Sharks off guard. No matter, after a foul in the Blue Devils box, PVHS was granted a penalty kick for the lead. Zimmerman stepped up and the senior froze the opposing goalkeeper with a shot to the right. Zimmerman’s first goal of the season. The Sharks went up 1-0 early. Right before the half, Warren cleared the ball from the Sharks box and Churchill took it from the Sharks fifteen yard line all the way to the Blue Devils twenty five yard line where Churchill buried the goal. The Sharks went up 2-0 before half. The second half was slow for the most part with the two teams splitting possession. Serino subbed in as the goalkeeper and Cornett switched jerseys and played the second half as a forward. With eight minutes left of play, Minch dribbled upfield on the left and found Rocha outside of the box. Rocha’s cleat slipped in the turf and he fell to the ground trying to recover the pass, but Rocha regained control and dropped his defender for an open look. Rocha placed the ball high above the Blue Devil keeper so that the keeper could not reach the shot. Rocha’s shot from nearly thirty five yards from the goal stunned Stanton and soon after the referee blew the final whistle. The Sharks take the win on senior night with a dominant 3-0 shutout and improve to 10-0-3. Sandoval stood out with a commanding five steals which raised his regular season total to forty-four. PVHS will travel back to The Shark Tank on Jan. 15 where the Sharks will host Stanton.
“Being the first undefeated team in a decade means a lot to all of us because it shows how hard we’ve worked and how far we’ve come as a team.”
Brayden Sandoval (12)
“It means everything. It was a great feeling for sure. I’ve put a lot of work into trying to be a better player and to see the results come was a blessing. Having not scored a single goal my entire PV career and then getting a goal on senior night and having all my teammates run and celebrate with me was very heartwarming. I think that’s why we have been so good this year. The team is so good at the little things and having each others backs”
-Senior defender, Owen Zimmerman
PVHS hosted the Stanton College Preparatory School Blue Devils on Jan. 15 for the Sharks regular season finale. The undefeated 10-0-3 Sharks team took on a 3-9-3 Stanton team and hoped to cap off an amazing regular season with a statement win. The game began and almost immediately it seemed the Blue Devils were able to hang around with the undefeated Sharks. PVHS got things going with an incredible sequence from Sandoval, Churchill, Perry and Mahfuz. Sandoval crossed the half and shot the ball to Churchill on the right wing. Churchill chipped the ball into the box for a Perry header. Perry’s header found Mahfuz and the senior connected for the goal 1-0. Plays like that demonstrate the chemistry between this team of mostly seniors and that chemistry is the reason for their success this year. The referee whistled for half time and both teams retired to the sidelines. After the break, the Sharks came out with new energy and stayed on attack for most of the second half. Ranford fired a missile from nearly thirty yards out but the Stanton keeper climbed the ladder to deny th defender his first goal of the year. Romano squared up for a free kick and crossed the ball into the box hoping to find a Shark somewhere in the mix. Itkoff rose above the Blue Devil defenders and found the back of the net with a header to make it Sharks 2-0. In a moment of disarray, a Stanton player booted the ball and goalkeeper, Serino could not get back to the net in time to save it. The Blue Devils made the score 2-1 and suddenly Stanton seemed to have life with little time to play. Tensions rose near the end of the game and multiple yellow cards were distributed by the officials. PVHS played lights out defense for the remainder of the match, which led them to victory over Stanton 2-1. With this win over the Blue Devils, this 2025-2026 team is the best regular season team since the historic 2015-2016 boys who went 27-0 and won the state championship. This is also the first time since that year that the Sharks went undefeated. Senior captain, Sandoval said,
“Being the first undefeated team in a decade means a lot to all of us because it shows how hard we’ve worked and how far we’ve come as a team. Everyone showed the same determination and grit throughout the whole season, even showing adversity from the times we were down and had to come back. So finishing with the best record in a decade is something we’re really proud of. Going into the postseason, the key for us will be staying disciplined, playing for each other, and keeping the same intensity and focus that got us here. If we stay locked in and play our style of soccer, we like our chances of going far.”
PVHS will play in the district semi-finals against an opponent to be determined on Tuesday Jan. 20.
Pictured: Nick Churchill (12) taking a quarter kick
