There were several volleyball playoff matchups on Wednesday kicking off action on the road to the championship. Several classifications featured several prominent teams. Mandarin defeated Nease while other teams rolled on to the next round. Here’s the rundown.
Bartram Trail defeated Sandalwood 3 games to 0, to advance to the sweet 16 of the Class 7A State Volleyball playoffs. In straight sets 25-23, 25-15, 25-11 , the Bears overwhelmed the Saints after a close first game. Lauren Marien led the Bears with 14 kills, while Jenna Otts was second with 12 kills. Sydney Lewis led the Bears with 4 serving aces and 24 digs. Bartram (13-7) now sets its sights on Mandarin (11-9) on 10/28 in the sweet 16.
Creekside (17-2) got the best of Chiles (4-4) in the first round of the playoffs. Now Jaeden McBride (240 kills), Jessica Lary (47 aces), Izy Collier (51 blocks) and company will take on another team from the Big Bend area Leon (8-0).
Coach Amy Walker’s Fleming Island Golden Eagles (14-8) fell to Leon (8-0) in five sets, 25-23, 23-25, 25-21, 22-25, 14-16. On the season, senior Sydney Rupert led her team with 122 kills. Senior Mollie Lawrence led the team with 41 aces and freshman Rauly Eason led the team with 34 blocks.
Ridgeview (14-9) took care of business against Seabreeze (5-11) in the regional quarterfinal. Elaina Reynolds 15 kills, and 4 serving aces. Freshman Haley Robinson led the team with 5 blocks.
Ponte Vedra remained undefeated at 23-0 defeating Orange Park. Winning in 3 straight sets 25-8, 25-13, 25-8, Ponte Vedra got great effort from its team, defeating Orange Park handedly. Now Ponte Vedra will welcome back a familiar foe in Ridgeview. Ponte Vedra defeated Ridgeview 3-0 earlier in the season.
