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Lady Broncos dumped by No. 1, Prewitt gets 600th

MHS vs. RHS: Fireworks Sept. 23

By Randy Lefko Sports Editor
Posted 9/15/21

MIDDLEBURG - In area high school volleyball action, Middleburg High’s Lady Broncos had the double-edged sword of playing the top-ranked Clas 4A team in Florida, the fourth ranked team in the nation …

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Lady Broncos dumped by No. 1, Prewitt gets 600th

MHS vs. RHS: Fireworks Sept. 23


Posted

MIDDLEBURG - In area high school volleyball action, Middleburg High’s Lady Broncos had the double-edged sword of playing the top-ranked Clas 4A team in Florida, the fourth ranked team in the nation and the stress of winning the 600th game for Broncos’ coach Carrie Prewitt.

Against Ponte Vedra on Thursday, the Lady Broncos got whacked 3-0 against the top-ranked Lady Sharks (10-0, 1st in FL, 1st in Class 6A), less than a week after taking a hike to Santa Fe High (10-2, 5th ranked in Florida, 1st ranked in Class 4A)) and getting zipped there 3-0. Santa Fe is a top ranked Class 4A program that, at the time, Prewitt commented that they may have been the best team she has seen in a while (prior to Ponte Vedra).

The Lady Broncos, no strangers to tough schedules, rebounded back home against Episcopal with a 3-0 win that became the 600th win for Prewitt.

“It’s the last win that is the special one,” said Prewitt, now 4-2. “I’m just honored to be a part of a program that gets kids willing to work hard to chase their dreams.”

The hill stays uphill with Bishop Kenny on the docket on Thurs., Sept. 16.

At Ridgeview, in the same district as Middleburg, the Lady Panthers (4-3) got dissed by Santa Fe also; 3-0 on September 9, and will have a trip to Ponte Vedra on Tues., Sept 14 to look forward to. Ridgeview had a road win against Oakleaf early in the week after 3-0 wins over Fletcher and Clay.

Ponte Vedra offers the first of five straight massive games for coach Stephen Henry with Fleming Island, Middleburg, Leon and Bartram Trail all on the docket.

The Middleburg vs. Ridgeview showdown is a biggie for district 3-5A with the three of the top scorers in the districts; Elaina Reynolds (RHS, 67 kills), Haley Robinson (RHS, 59), Teeya Desgoutte (RHS, 55) and Connor Rahn (MHS, 43) on both sides of the net.

“It’s always going to be a battle, it always is,” said Henry, an assistance under Destiny Brightman for the Panthers six year district title run. “This year, we have more fire power and bigger blockers then we have in the past. We will be hard to beat. Middleburg hasn’t been able to take a win from us since I’ve become part of the Panther program.”

Orange Park freshman Ryanne Robinson has sliced in for 36 scoring shots for the Raiders and coach Scott Conklin.

In Maxpreps.com rankings, Choctawhatchee is top ranked in Class 5A with Middleburg seventh and Ridgeview 10th. In the rankings, Middleburg has the highest strength of schedule rating at 12.5 with Mosley second at 12.0. Ridgeview is at 6.8.

In district 4-6A, by the way, the home of Ponte Vedra High, the Golden Eagles rattled off wins over Flagler, Clay and Spruce Creek to push to 3-3 with Creekside on the immediate horizon and Ridgeview to follow to heighten the rivalry clicks around north Florida.

Spruce Creek is a traditional volleyball powerhouse program that has fallen to 1-3, but Creekside is 3-2 and held strong against Middleburg earlier in the season and Ridgeview is Ridgeview with a 3-1 win over the Golden Eagles earlier in the season.

The September 21 Ridgeview contest could be a good barometer for the improvement of the tough Golden Eagle squad under new coach Jamie Reed with fireball assistant Sara Dandridge getting some good results from their high intensity approach.

Fleming Island big swiper is Samantha Rupert with 58 scores.

Clay High is 3-4 with tough losses to Fleming Island and Ridgeview last week, but a win over Flagler Palm Coast to end the week. Myla Boswell and Sydney Erstad lead the Lady Blue Devils scoring with 33 and 31 kills apiece.

Keystone Heights is holding strong at 6-1 with a four game win streak pending with wins over Orange Park, Interlachen, Bradford and West Nassau in the last two weeks. On Tuesday, a trip to Baker County (3-2) will be a good test of district prowess with Eastside on Thursday. Kamryn Eatmon leads with 35 kills for Lady Indians.

Oakleaf is winless in five games with Lailah Hester top hitter with 14 kills.

St. Johns Country Day School is 4-2 with Ashlyn Anderson pounding 51 scores to lead Lady Spartans. Soccer ace Lauren Mateo adds 29 scores to the roster with Brynn White hitting for 31 scores.