Thursday’s Volleyball News
Today brings us a story on the increased focus on serving, which hasn’t always been the focus of volleyball coaches judging by the poor serves I’ve witnessed over the years. Undoubtedly, a strong serve is a huge bonus. Just ask Spruce Creek senior KaLee Duggan, who served up four straight aces Tuesday night in a match against Deltona. Duggan says she’s going for the school’s single-season aces record.
Anyway, Florida Today has a story this morning regarding the new focus on serving. It’s an interesting take on a fundamental part of the game that is changing.
On the Suncoast, meanwhile, the Sarasota Herald Tribune tells us just how well DeSoto County is playing this season. The Bulldogs are 12-0 after defeating Lemon Bay 25-20, 23-25, 25-22, 25-19 on Monday behind a 20-kills night from Brittany Muse, the team’s top middle hitter. Lemon Bay left the court at 12-3, so they’ll be just fine with a lineup that features middle hitter Becca Toor, who also had 20 kills in the match.
Those two teams have had a lot press early in the season, but that hasn’t been the case for another highly successful team. Nova High has started 8-0, and that’s quite an accomplishment for a team that won only three games last year. The South Florida Sun-Sentinel has the story on Nova.
Also undefeated is Tallahassee Leon, which fought off a good Maclay team Tuesday. The Tallahassee Democrat has the inside story on this one, which Leon won 25-21, 20-25, 26-24, 25-15 to improve to 9-0. Maclay fell to 11-3. Lindsey Dee and Molly Pearce are two of Maclay’s best. Leon, meanwhile, is led by Kelsey Aley and Alex Johnson, who had a combined 26 kills in the win.
The Orlando Sentinel has this story today about Lake Highland Prep’s continued dominance on the court. The Highlanders are ranked No. 1 in their class again this week by the Florida Sports Writers Association poll. The Orlando Sentinel also has some insight into Timber Creek, which is also No. 1 again this week.
For good measure, here’s a game story from Pine Crest’s win Tuesday against North Broward Prep. Also, Hollywood Hills defeated Northeast 26-24, 25-21, 25-18 on Wednesday. Here’s another holdover from Monday’s action: North Miami defeated Hialeah American 17-25, 24-26, 25-19, 25-21, 15-5. In case you’re not good with numbers, that’s a comeback from 0-2 for North Miami, which improved to 7-4 with the win. The Miami Herald has the scoop on that game and several others, including Miami Christian improving to 12-1, Dr. Krop improving to 9-0, Redland Christian improving to 7-0 and Archbishop Curley winning to stand at 6-1.
Berkeley Prep is also playing well as the 9-3 team prepares for this weekend’s tournament, one it’s hosting. The Bucs defeated the Academy of the Holy Names 25-16, 25-18, 25-20 to drop Holy Names to 6-4 on the season.
