Northeast Florida- Fleming Island remained undefeated in its strong start to the 2026 volleyball season Tuesday night, dominating Ridgeview in a 3-0 sweep. The match featured out-of-system plays, impressive digs, and powerful swings from both teams.
Ridgeview and Fleming Island are no strangers to one another. Last season, the two teams faced off twice—once during the regular season and again in the District Championship. Fleming Island swept Ridgeview in both matches.
Ridgeview finished the 2025 season with a 15-7 record behind a senior-heavy roster. Now, as the Panthers enter the 2026 season, they are relying on players who were sophomores last year to step into larger leadership roles. This season, Ridgeview’s roster is made up primarily of juniors.
Fleming Island came out with hustle and power in the first set, quickly taking an early lead behind Lille Easton and Lauren Brosky.
The Golden Eagles continued to control the first set, putting pressure on Ridgeview with their offense and forcing the Panthers into several errors.
Ridgeview’s errors ultimately helped Fleming Island take the first set, 25-8.
Despite the tough opening set, Ridgeview didn’t give up. Instead, the Panthers used the loss as motivation heading into the second set.
Miah Brandly got Ridgeview started by tipping the ball over the net and into an open spot, tying the game at 4-4.
Colette Jones brought energy to her team after blocking a swing down the middle from Zahaviah Sanders.
Building on that momentum, Gracie McMillan found an open spot on the court, swung, and recorded the kill.
However, the momentum eventually shifted back toward Fleming Island as the Golden Eagles began to pull ahead
The second set ended with a bang when Lille Easton swung and deflected the ball off the block and out of bounds, giving Fleming Island a 25-12 set victory.
Fleming Island continued to showcase its depth, diving into its bench throughout the match while still maintaining control of the game.
Zahaviah Sanders went down the middle again, this time getting her revenge as she swung hard through the block to score.
Although Ridgeview was down two sets, the Panthers refused to give up, forcing Fleming Island to continue fighting in the third.
After a long rally featuring hard swings, a great dig by Alyssa Herringdine, and an excellent back set from Zahaviah Sanders, the rally finally came to an end when Kaylee Clark spiked the ball off the top of the block for a kill.
Ridgeview eventually hit the ball out of bounds, sealing Fleming Island’s 25-17 third-set victory and completing the 3-0 sweep.
Fleming Island has shown impressive talent, power, and size on the court early in the season. With the win, the Golden Eagles improved to 3-0 after previously defeating Providence and Bishop Kenny, both by scores of 3-0. Fleming Island will travel to Mandarin on Thursday, Aug. 27, to face the 1-2 Mandarin Mustangs.
Ridgeview falls to 0-3 after opening the season with a 0-3 home loss to Wolfson and a 3-0 road loss to Trinity Christian Academy. The Panthers will return home to host the 1-2 Oakleaf Knights on [verify date—“Aug. 2” appears to be a typo].
