Cocoa Beach High School is building its Boys Lacrosse program from the ground up. And this year the team is starting to show major gains. Our Despina Barton sheds light on the programs historic run and why junior goal keeper Cole Steiger was critical in delivering the team’s first district crown:  

Four years ago Cocoa Beach High School’s Boys Lacrosse team only won three games.

“We kept getting a little bit better, little bit better and then last year we were winning some games,” Junior goalkeeper Cole Steiger explained. “And this year we just like started winning.”

Now they’ve got 12 “W’s” next to their record with their biggest one coming last Thursday when the team defeated Viera, 13-9.

Steiger registered 17 saves to help deliver the Minutemen’s first ever District Title.

“(There were times where) I thought it was a goal and I kind of just counted us out because there were high level saves that you really don’t expect a goalie to make,” Cocoa Beach assistant coach Stephen Fogle said of the saves Steiger made.

“They are not usually expected to make those (types of stops), he just did amazing things in the goal.”

For Steiger he was focused in on the game and his mind set was to deliver a win for all the seniors.

“I was just happy to be at the district championship and I really wanted to win because we have never gotten this far before,” Steiger added.

And he’s doing it alongside a band of brothers who have weathered the tough years and are now building up the program together.

Steiger’s  job gets easier when you count the fact that there are three senior forwards—Luke Hughes (139) Hudson DeBoer (130) and Jonah Fogle (171)-- on the outside that have combined for over 440 career goals at the school.

“Having like good shooters makes me so much better,” Steiger said of going up against them at practice every day. “Without them I would not be anywhere near as good as I am now.”

So Steiger welcomes the extra target practice as his team has more lacrosse in front of them as they will compete in their first ever playoff game.

“It was always in the back of our minds kinda—Districts, Districts, Districts—because this is the best team we’ve ever had before and just now MCC is in our scope and we just have to get it.”

Cocoa Beach will match up against Melbourne Central Catholic next in the regional quarterfinal round on Friday.