Are FHSAA soccer rankings pitch-perfect for Palm Beach County teams?
The Florida High School Athletic Association updated its winter sports rankings on Jan. 3, but they still look a little out of date. At least for a couple of Palm Beach County teams.
Ideally, the FHSAA's rankings will be pitch-perfect come time for playoff seeding, which will set the stage for February's boys and girls state championships in DeLand.
Spanish River hosts the area's top-ranked boys squad, somehow topping district neighbor Boca Raton despite two of its three losses coming at the paws of the Bobcats.
Boca boys took down the Sharks 2-1 in November and again one last time in December to cap 2022.
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Reigning Class 4A girls state champion Bishop Moore in Orlando is 8-1-3 with schedule strength of 13.35, ranked seventh overall.
Coming off a 13-2-2 run to the 4A title matchup, the girls of American Heritage-Delray are 4-0 in 2022, touting a strength rating of 13.37 and haven't played since Dec. 16. This time last season, the Stallions were 4-1-2.
Still, the odds — or the algorithm — seem to be in Heritage-Delray's favor.
Take a look below to see where the rest of Palm Beach County's soccer scene stands after the first rankings of the new year.
Girls
Three Palm Beach squads highlight top 20
3. American Heritage-Delray (4-0)
Rankings: No. 1 in Class 4A, Region 4, and district
Stallions stunning competition
Ciara Alarcon, Jr. : Team leader in assists
Nyela Calnek, Sr. : Vanderbilt commit
Isabella Larriu, Jr. : Tops roster in goals and points, scoring six and 12, respectively, through three games
6. Benjamin (5-0)
Rankings: No. 2 in Class 3A behind No. 4 overall Montverde (5-0-2), No. 1 in Region 3 and district
Bucs to bank on
Sofia Balistreri, Fr. : Second on roster in assists
Sienna Barboni, Fr. : Second on roster in goals with three through five games
Emily Simon, So. : Team-high seven saves on the season in the goalie's box
Lily White, Jr. : Benjamin's leader in goals, assists and points, tallying five, three, and 13 respectively through five games
20. Jupiter (8-0-1)
Rankings: No. 4 in Class 7A, No. 1 in Region 3 and district
Warriors to watch
Updated stats unavailable: Sloan Bello, Fr., Angelina Clark, Sr., Malloy Mauch, Sr., Valentina Vryonides, Fr., Meren Patton, Jr., Carson Proctor, So.
Teams to 50
31. Boca Raton (8-3)
Rankings: No. 10 in Class 7A, No. 2 in Region 3, No. 1 in district
Top performers: Junior forward and midfielder Laine Willis, midfielders Ava Kooker and Sarah Coelho, and goalie Kelly White
37. Cardinal Newman (5-1-1)
Rankings: No. 8 in Class 3A, No. 3 in Region 3, No. 2 in district behind Benjamin
Top performers: Sophomore leader in points Lola Cannova and assist leaders Sophia Webber and Miae Canales
46. King's Academy (8-2-1)
Rankings: No. 10 in Class 3A, No. 4 in Region 3, No. 3 in district behind Newman
Top performers: Eighth-grade leader in goals, assists and points Mia MacKrey, freshmen Sophia Cueto and Lola Hathorne, junior Mackenzie Meunier
48. St. John Paul II (4-2-1)
Rankings: No. 11 in Class 3A, No. 5 in Region 3, No. 1 in district
Top performers: Freshmen-led crew highlighted by Adrianna Gonzalez, Mary Hartofilis, Julianna Liguori
Top 100
51. Seminole Ridge (8-0-2): No. 12 in Class 6A, No. 2 in region behind Oviedo (10-1), first in district
56. Somerset Academy-Canyons (8-2-1): No. 7 in Class 4A, fourth in Region 4, No. 2 in district behind Heritage-Delray
69. Dwyer (6-3-1): No. 14 in Class 6A, No. 2 in Region 2 and district behind Seminole Ridge
71. Spanish River (7-3): No. 25 in Class 7A, No. 4 in Region 3, No. 2 in district behind Boca
81. Wellington (4-2-2): No. 29 in Class 7A, No. 5 in Region 3, No. 1 in district
On the fringe
112. Jupiter Christian (6-2)
115. St. Andrew's (3-3-2)
Boys
Above the rest
Spanish River (8-3)
Rankings: No. 66 overall, No. 19 in Class 7A, No. 2 in Region 3 behind No. 20 overall Celebration (6-1-1), first in district
Shark stars on the pitch
Michael Capille, Sr. : State stat leader ranked No. 21 in assists and No. 23 in points, touting 10 and 36 respectively through 11 appearances, tops Sharks roster with 13 goals
Justin Ibrahim, Jr. : Scored six goals and made four assists for 16 points through eight games
Ethan Schweiger, Sr. : Second on roster with eight goals and five assists and 21 points
Top 100
Palm Beach Central (8-0-2)
Rankings: No. 68 overall, No. 20 in Class 7A, No. 3 in Region 3, first in district
Boca Raton (9-4)
Rankings: No. 74 overall, No. 21 in Class 7A, No. 4 in Region 3, second in district behind Spanish River
Olympic Heights (6-3-3)
Rankings: No. 97 overall, No. 25 in Class 7A, No. 5 in Region 3, third in district behind Boca Raton
On the fringe
128. West Boca Raton (4-3-1)
Emilee Smarr is the high school sports reporter for the Palm Beach Post. She can be reached by email at esmarr@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Palm Beach County high school soccer: First rankings of 2023
