2023 brought about another season of Palm Beach County girls lacrosse teams bringing the heat in Florida.

From underrated Division III prospects to players bound for Power Five and Division I, the recruiting hotbed only grew this spring as seven area squads ranked among the 50 best programs in the state.

According to MaxPreps, this spring’s Class 1A state champion American Heritage-Delray bested every team in the country.

The names below are finalists for The Post's Player of the Year award and will be invited to the Palm Beach County High School Sports Awards Show in downtown West Palm Beach on June 9. The show is produced with support from Baptist Health Orthopedic Care.

Winners and the three finalists will be announced live at the show.

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Check out this season’s contenders!

Player of the Year nominees

Winnie Amelung, Sr., Boca Raton

The multifaceted middie was one of the biggest contributors across the stat sheet for the Bobcats. She had 88 controls on the draw and recovered a team-high 67 ground balls, forcing 10 turnovers. Her 80 goals, 22 assists and 102 points not only ranked No. 2 on the roster but propelled Boca to a district championship and 15-4 region final finish.

The women’s lacrosse program at the University of South Florida will be happy to have Amelung as one of its charter members next year.

Alex Dorr, Sr., American Heritage-Delray

In the circle or on foot at midfield, the speedy Denver signee was near impossible to beat.

138 draw controls from Dorr locked the Stallions in for a 22-win season, taking only one loss to defending North Carolina state champion Cardinal Gibbons. She also had 29 goals, three assists, 16 ground balls and six caused turnovers on Heritage-Delray’s route to the 2023 state championship for her second title win.

Brooke Goldstein, Jr., American Heritage-Delray

Clemson womens lacrosse proved to be the perfect fit for the junior attack who was ”all in” all season long. Goldstein’s hard shot style helped her lead the team offensively with 69 goals. Her 41 assists and 110 points ranked among Florida’s top 20.

In the field, she had 20 ground balls and 10 caused turnovers, rounding out a dominant comeback season after injury limited her to just 13 games on last spring’s trip to the final four.

Olivia Meehan, Fr., St. Andrew’s

Meehan’s skill level makes it hard to believe Meehan is only a freshman. Her stat line makes her young age that much more unfathomable.

The Under Armour Top 150 selection for the Class of 2026 won 89.3% of draws for 201 controls. An additional 24 goals, 24 assists, 34 ground balls and 16 caused turnovers helped playoff contender St. Andrew’s improve to 13-4 — a team that would have been district champion if not for meeting No. 1 in the nation Heritage-Delray.

Nicole Nicklaus, Sr., Benjamin

With starting attacks Ella Hayes and Lily Valentini graduated and defensive standout Grace Tighe available for just 10 games, Nicklaus stepped up to do the dirty work in transition and be the quarterback of the offense.

The captain completed 87% of shots on goal and contributed 12 ground balls, plus three caused turnovers to help Benjamin on an unlikely roll to the district championship and region finals against the Stallions.

Gabriella Palomba, So., Jupiter

A 57-goal, nine-assist performance for Palomba saw the Warriors flip from 6-10 to 15-6 for the program’s best complete season since 2010.

Thanks to the attack’s efforts, 2023 also marked the district championship’s return to Jupiter before the squad exited Class 2A playoffs against the forces of St. Thomas Aquinas.

Emma Ring, Sr., St. John Paul II

Ring was one of three seniors on the roster critical to navigating a gritty schedule for the Eagles. The draw specialist went out on a high note, as district semifinalist St. John Paul II posted its first winning record, 12-7, since she was a freshman on the team in 2020.

Chiara Scichilone, Jr., American Heritage-Delray

Sitting at No. 4 in the state with 101 goals as a sophomore to carry Palm Beach Central girls lacrosse last spring was a crucial step in Scichilone’s journey to becoming a state champion.

Now on a Stallion squad known for sharing the scoring love across a loaded roster, the University of Florida commit was the No. 2 scorer with 53 goals and posted 13 assists, 34 ground balls, nine caused turnovers, as well as 57 draw controls.

Ava Schulties, Jr., Benjamin

The Lehigh commit was Benjamin’s top-billed ”upset queen.” Schulties led the stat sheet with 42 goals, 25 assists and 67 points to catapult the Bucs from a four-seed berth for the district title to an underdog run for region championships. Netting 93.3% of scoring attempts, she was the team’s most accurate shooter.

She also registered 25 ground balls, nine caused turnovers and 18 draw charges.

Harper Throop, Jr., American Heritage-Delray

Heritage-Delray’s return to Naples wouldn’t have been quite as easy — or as fun — without Throop’s abilities to decimate offenses who hoped to score on the Stallions.

The defender is still searching for her college home, but her collection of offers is certain to grow after her junior season. Throop had one goal and a team-leading 45 ground balls and 26 caused turnovers.

Brianna Valdivieso, Sr., American Heritage-Delray

If the ball managed to get past Throop, attacks and middies got the pleasure of facing Valdivieso in the cage.

Playing the toughest schedule in the state, rated 15.21, the senior allowed just 81 goals for an average of 5.0 goals per game, blocking 55.4% of shots for 101 saves.

Mia VanAlstyne, Sr., King’s Academy

A 13-3 run to district semifinals against St. Andrew’s was charged by 72 goals, six assists, 83 ground balls, 11 caused turnovers and 52 draw controls for the Palm Beach Atlantic midfield signee.

Coach of the Year

John McClain, American Heritage-Delray

McClain’s honors extend beyond his push to win Heritage-Delray’s third state championship and make the Stallions the No. 1 girls lacrosse team in the nation for the second year in a row.

Also the coach for Florida Select, the state’s “premier travel HS girls lacrosse program,” McClain has a hand in crafting the skills for the majority of The Post’s Player of the Year nominees and All-County selections.

Emilee Smarr is the high school sports reporter for The Palm Beach Post. She can be reached via email at esmarr@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Palm Beach Post Spring All-County 2023: Girls lacrosse