Verot handed 3-2 loss
It took five grueling games and the final few points for Tampa Berkeley Prep to separate from host Bishop Verot in a Region 3A-3 semifinals volleyball match Tuesday night.
Long before the end came, both teams earned the respect and admiration from those in attendance for the back-and-forth exchange and all-out hustle.
The Vikings (22-1) came out firing in winning the opening game. After falling behind two games to one, they rallied to win game four and took an 8-4 lead in the final game.
Berkeley Prep (26-2) regrouped, though, and eliminated the Vikings 15-25, 25-20, 25-20, 21-25, 15-12.
“That was the strongest team we’ve played all year, they knew that coming into it,” Vikings coach Wynn DePasqule said. “It was a fantastic match, rock and roll, back and forth. I was very proud of the way we played.”
The Vikings seemed to feed off their home crowd, which included a large student section which created a sea of black near midcourt and cheered wildly on every point.
In game one, the visiting Buccaneers appeared to be tight and perhaps rattled by the environment as the Vikings controlled play, offensively.
After the Vikings took a 19-14 lead, sophomore Sarah Toggweiler hammered three kills in a four-point stretch, putting them in command.
“It’s always nice to start sharp and we didn’t start sharp at all,” Berkeley Prep coach Randy Dagostino said. “We were so tight.”
The Buccaneers, who had faced premiere competition throughout the season, made some adjustments and played much better all around in games two and three.
The Vikings fell behind 7-3 in game two and the deficit stayed between three and six points the rest of the way, but were unable to string together a run to close the gap. They also struggled finding openings in the Buccaneers’ defense.
After not playing a five-game match all season, the Vikings needed to prove their resiliency by winning game four to send it to a fifth game.
“We played at our prime in game four,” junior Ciara Brown said. “We had the fan support and the coaches support behind us.”
The teams exchanged points through most of the fourth game. Senior Christine Dearden’s ace gave the Vikings a 22-19 lead, and after the Buccaneers closed to within one, Brown recorded a block and Stephanie Manone came back with a kill. Toggweiler scored the final point, tying the match at 2-2.
Toggweiler recorded 19 kills. Dearden tallied 15 digs, 13 kills and three aces, and Brown had 28 assists.
“All year we never really dug trenches for ourselves to have to get out of (until this match),” DePasquale said. “That was the sign of a very mature team.”
Before game five began the crowd gave each team a standing ovation. The Vikings carried the momentum from the previous game early on and took an 8-4 lead.
After a timeout, Berkeley Prep charged back and the score remained even at 9-9, 10-10, and 11-11. Jordan Burgess had a kill and an ace to give the Buccaneers a 13-11 lead and they closed it out from there, advancing to the regional finals.
Boys Soccer
Bishop Verot 8, Evangelical Christian 1: Will Goss knocked home three goals Tuesday night to help guide Bishop Verot to a season-opening victory at Evangelical Christian.
Andrew Palumbo and Brendan Abernathy each contributed two goals while Nathan Weisberg added one goal for the Vikings. Goalkeeper Ryan Linder made three saves to seal the win.
Verot (1-0) hosts Barron Collier Thursday night.
Girls Basketball
Bishop Verot 65, Golden Gate 19: Cici Ward pitched in 22 points and Allie Mitchell added five to lead Bishop Verot to a preseason victory over Golden Gate.
Ward also had seven steals to go with her game-high point total and Mitchell handed out five assists.
Verot faces Immokalee Thursday in another preseason matchup at Goledn Gate.
Sports editor Jim Linette contributed to this report.