Who's moving on? Inside 9 Northeast Florida second-round high school volleyball playoffs
High school volleyball regional semifinals
Start times subject to change
CLASS 1A-4A: All matches 7 p.m. Friday unless noted
REGION 1-4A
North Bay Haven (16-9) at Bishop Kenny (21-7)
The last time Bishop Kenny exited the playoffs before the third round? Try 2004. This year, Crusader setters Lizzy Austin and Cat Haen have combined for 849 assists. North Bay Haven's attack centers on Allison Wit and Lily Hayward, who combined for 30 kills against Baker County.
How they got here: Tuesday v-ball wrap Bishop Kenny sweeps Yulee, Trinity and Bolles win
Bolles (15-13) at South Walton (20-5)
Bolles encounters the foe that eliminated them in both 2021 and 2022. The Seahawks are officially red-hot, winning 10 in a row, with senior Hannah Mary Herrick (210 kills) and freshman Maci Jones (202 kills) leading a balanced attack. Bulldogs setter Gracie Arnett is above 2,100 career assists.
REGION 1-3A
Providence (13-12) at Trinity Christian (23-3), 6 p.m.
Trinity stopped the Stallions in a Sept. 7 sweep, with 19 kills and 11 digs from Mari King. High-scoring sophomore Isabela Lopez and Providence are attempting to reach the third round for the first time since 2018. The winner will play Tuesday against Florida High or Ocala Trinity Catholic.
REGION 1-2A
St. Johns Country Day (15-7) at Gainesville Oak Hall (23-4)
A major challenge for the Spartans against the top seed in Region 1-2A. Pene Moser, Ave Scorpio and Cassidy McDonald all have more than 200 kills for Oak Hall, which swept the Spartans in the 2021 regionals. St. Johns junior Hadley Dantzler is coming off a 13-kill, 10-dig double-double against Countryside.
Harvest Community (21-6) at Christ's Church (18-7), 6 p.m.
The rubber match. Harvest won a sweep on Sept. 14, and Christ's Church returned with its own sweep on Oct. 10. Keep an eye on the setters, Sydney Kambach for Christ's Church and Peyton Cooper for Harvest, both among the assist leaders for Jacksonville.
REGION 3-1A
Mayo Lafayette (12-7) at Union County (11-12)
The Fightin' Tigers have reason for confidence after beating Lafayette in four on Aug. 24. Sophomore Jailyn Simmons has a chance to hit the 100-block mark soon. The winner plays Tuesday night against Branford or Aucilla Christian.
CLASS 5A-7A: All matches 7 p.m. Saturday unless noted
How they got here: Beachside wins first-round match, sets up Ridgeview clash
REGION 1-6A
Ponte Vedra (14-13) at Gulf Breeze (23-2)
Gulf Breeze has dropped only seven sets all year and remains unbeaten against Florida foes, led by SMU commit Sarah Frazee (294 digs) and Arizona State commit Bella Satterwhite (257 kills, .349 hitting percentage). Watch for the battle-tested Sharks to attack through 6-4 Tennessee-bound middle Chelsea Sutton (254 kills). The winner plays Tallahassee Chiles or Gainesville on Nov. 1.
REGION 1-5A
Beachside (22-5) at Ridgeview (19-7), 3 p.m.
Youth against experience: Ridgeview's nine seniors were playing high school volleyball before Beachside even opened its doors. The Barracudas' Adriana Jeanpierre scored 18 kills when Beachside won best-of-3 play on Sept. 22, but Ridgeview won an October sweep on 10 kills each from Brianna Adams and Katie Cole. Middles Lainie Stapleton and Haley Robinson are bound for Division I.
Tallahassee Lincoln (18-10) at Middleburg (23-5)
Just how consistent is Middleburg senior Connor Rahn? She's hit double-digit kills in every best-of-5 match in 2023, helping the Broncos to within two matches of the final four. They can't overlook Lincoln, though: Ashlyn Koerner (704 assists) and Allison Tawney (322 kills) lead a Trojans team that struggled in midseason but has won six straight.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: FHSAA volleyball second-round playoffs: Jacksonville-area previews
