Calvary Christian lost its first match in the FHSAA’s new Open Division. It did not lose another.
The Warriors (29-2) are in the final four. They face Winter Park in a state semifinal Friday, Nov. 6, at 4 p.m. at Polk State College’s Winter Haven Health Center. The winner plays for the first Open Division title Saturday, Nov. 7, at 7 p.m. against Plant or Orangewood Christian.
The Open Division pulls the state’s eight highest-ranked teams out of their classifications and puts them in one bracket. They split into two pools of four. The top two in each pool advance.
Calvary, the No. 2 seed, opened Oct. 21 at home against No. 6 Beachside of St. Johns. The Barracudas won the first two sets 25-18, 25-16. The Warriors answered 25-12 and 27-25. Beachside took the fifth 15-11.
It was Calvary’s first home loss of the season. Senior Sophia Puleo had 24 kills. Senior setter Noelle Sarigumba had 44 assists and 13 digs. Freshman Lola Mogridge added nine kills and 15 digs.
Three days later, Calvary went to Naples and swept No. 7 First Baptist Academy 25-13, 25-19, 25-21. The Lions had won 17 straight at home. Sarigumba had 37 assists. Senior libero Olivia Badyna had 17 digs and three aces.
That left Plant, the No. 3 seed, on Oct. 28 in Clearwater. Calvary won 25-20, 25-23, 19-25, 25-14. Puleo again had 24 kills, plus three blocks. Sarigumba had 41 assists and 13 digs.
The win made a mess of Pool B. Beachside beat Calvary. Plant beat Beachside in five sets Oct. 24. Calvary beat Plant. All three finished 2-1.
The FHSAA’s original tiebreaker was fewest points allowed. Calvary allowed 237, the fewest of the three. Coaches argued that points are a poor measure in volleyball, where matches run three to five sets. The FHSAA switched to set percentage.
Calvary still came out on top. It won eight of 12 sets. Beachside won eight of 14 and Plant seven of 13. Plant then advanced over Beachside on its head-to-head win.
Either way, the Warriors moved on.
Winter Park (23-7) is the defending Class 7A champion. The Wildcats went 2-1 in Pool A, beating Santa Fe and Gulliver Prep before losing to Orangewood 3-0.
Calvary won the Class 3A title last fall, going 31-1. The Open Division kept it from defending that crown. Now it has a shot at a bigger one.
Puleo, a Baylor commit, reached 1,500 career kills during the district tournament.
A win Nov. 6 could set up a rematch with Plant in the final. Calvary has beaten the Panthers twice this season.
Tickets are $14 in advance and $17 on match day through GoFan. Parking is included. The NFHS Network will stream the match.
Quick hits
St. Petersburg rolls into final four
St. Petersburg High is two wins from a state title.
The Green Devils (19-6) swept Gulf Coast of Naples 25-16, 25-19, 25-17 in the Class 4A, Region 3 final Oct. 28. It was their ninth straight win.
Abigail Buffington had 14 kills, nine digs and four aces. Annika Xenakis had 29 assists.
St. Petersburg, the region’s top seed, dropped one set in three region matches. It swept Lemon Bay 25-17, 25-7, 25-14 on Oct. 21. Buffington had 19 kills and Xenakis 38 assists and five aces. The Green Devils then beat Estero 25-16, 25-22, 23-25, 25-19 on Oct. 24.
The streak includes a four-set win over East Lake for the Pinellas County Athletic Conference title.
Next is Bishop Moore of Orlando in a state semifinal Thursday, Nov. 5, at 1 p.m. at Polk State College’s Winter Haven Health Center. The Hornets won the state title in 2024. This is their 11th state semifinal in 17 years.
The winner plays for the 4A title Saturday, Nov. 7, at 10 a.m.
Tickets are $14 in advance and $17 on match day through GoFan. The NFHS Network will stream the match.
Northside Christian beats the champ again
Northside Christian has beaten the defending state champion twice in 12 days. Now the Mustangs are in the final four.
Northside (26-5) outlasted Tampa Prep 23-25, 25-18, 25-18, 16-25, 15-11 in the Class 2A, Region 2 final Oct. 27. It was the Mustangs’ sixth straight win.
Aaliyah Cancellari had 25 kills. Freshman setter Brinley Temperton had more than 50 assists and 12 digs.
Tampa Prep swept Northside in last year’s playoffs on its way to the 2A title. The Mustangs returned the favor by sweeping the Terrapins in the district final Oct. 15.
Northside, the region’s top seed, swept Holy Trinity Episcopal Academy and Carrollwood Day before the rematch. Cancellari had 19 kills and 19 digs against Carrollwood Day.
The Mustangs played Westminster Christian of Miami in a state semifinal Nov. 3 at 4 p.m. at Polk State College’s Winter Haven Health Center. The winner played for the 2A title Nov. 4 at 4 p.m.
Tickets are $14 in advance and $17 on match day through GoFan. The NFHS Network will stream the match.