FORT PIERCE – They had the toughest schedule in the entire Treasure Coast area.
And with that, the Fort Pierce Central Lady Cobras fielded the area’s best overall flag football player and in quarterback Adrienne Rivera (2025) and head coach Nick Clements.
With their success on the field, they led Fort Pierce Central (12-8 final record) to its most successful season in school history.
As a result of winning the Class 2A-District 10 title – one of the state’s toughest districts – and earning a 13-6 win as the No. 8 seed over No. 1 seed Martin County (12-2 final record) in the Class 2A-Region 3 quarterfinal round, the Lady Cobras earned a season-ending awards sweep.
Here is what they won:
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
QB Adrienne Rivera (2025)
COACH OF THE YEAR
Nick Clements (Fort Pierce Central)
TEAM OF THE YEAR
Fort Pierce Central Lady Cobras
Let us start with Rivera, who was also the Treasure Coast’s best overall team leader this past season.
END OF QUARTER 3: Fort Pierce Central scores a TD and takes the lead 7-6 against Martin County pic.twitter.com/FIua9CEABp
— July Sanchez (@JulySanProd) April 26, 2023
The sophomore signal caller finished with 37 passing touchdowns and added six rushing touchdowns for 3,302 yards in 20 games played.
Right below, you can watch one of Rivera’s signature scoring plays of this spring season.
6:42 2nd: @cobraflag takes a 12-0 lead over @pbcathletics
— New Era Prep (@EraPrep) March 2, 2023
TD pass here from @Adrienne_358 to @WhitneyyD1 on fourth and goal 👏@CoachNClements @FlaHSFootball pic.twitter.com/jrh5cwBQgJ
Clements spoke on Rivera’s amazing sophomore spring campaign.
“Adrienne entered Year 2 as a starting quarterback with more poise and confidence,” Clements said. “Most impressive was her increased maturity in the pocket. She kept her eyes downfield while evading the rush. Her ability to consistently deliver the ball and extend drives made the difference down the stretch. She developed a level of trust with her receivers, which led to her finishing with the tenth most passing yards in the state.”
Clements did not stop there.
“Off the field, she demonstrated increased leadership,” Clements said. “But like most young quarterbacks, it will be her biggest area of growth heading into the offseason. I look forward to her fully taking on that leadership role next year and elevating the program to new heights.”
Rivera spoke on how Clements helped her and the entire program reach a new level of success.
The sky is the limit @cobraflag @FPCentralCobras @FHSAA @EraPrep @JulySanPhoto pic.twitter.com/Ss0NoEsVTx
— Whatthomassays Media (@Whatthomassayss) April 27, 2023
“We all put in the work in the offseason and throughout the season, we all worked together and motivated each other to consistently be our best,” Rivera said. “Throughout the offseason, I look for opportunities to grow through training, skills camps and conditioning. My head coach Nick Clements is amazing. He always puts the team first and always pushes us to our potential, always finding opportunities for us to continually get better. He really is the best coach we could ever have. He has just as much passion as us for the sport and will give his everything for us.”
Clements summed it up by highlighting the team concept and how it all came together.
“When you consider all the work we did this offseason, we always thought the district championship was an obtainable goal. Midway through the season we faced some adversity, but the girls really believed in themselves and kept fighting,” Clements said. “Going out with an eight-game winning streak, the district championship, and then defeating Martin County for our first regional victory was the culmination of all that hard work and dedication. It was great to be able to show the girls that hard work truly pays off. Plus, an amazing way to send the seniors off. In their first two years at Central, the program only had three wins. Now they get to go out as the best in the area. I was happy to see that happen for them.”
PHOTO CREDITS: Thomas Allen
VIDEO CREDITS: July Sanchez
