After a sluggish opening set, Montverde Academy girls volleyball found its rhythm, battled through a back-and-forth night and saved its best volleyball for the finish.
The Eagles earned a thrilling five-set victory over Winter Park High School on Tuesday evening, prevailing 3-2 (16-25, 25-23, 20-25, 25-18, 15-9) at The Nest to improve to 3-1 overall this season.
The match featured 31 ties and 15 lead changes, but when the deciding fifth set arrived, the Eagles made sure there would be no more back-and-forth.
MVA grabbed the lead at the start of the fifth and never surrendered it, closing out the Wildcats 15-9 to secure the victory.
The finish was a dramatic turnaround from the opening set, when the Eagles struggled offensively, hitting -.103 in a 25-16 loss. From there, however, MVA steadily found its attack, hitting .209 over the final four sets and finishing the night with a .152 attack percentage.
Natalia Baquerizo was at the center of the turnaround.
After being held without a kill in the opening set, she erupted for seven kills in the second as MVA evened the match with a 25-23 victory. She added four kills in the third and seven more in the fourth on her way to a team-high 19 kills while also recording three total blocks.
Winter Park regained the advantage with a 25-20 victory in the third set, but MVA responded again. The Eagles controlled the fourth, winning 25-18 to force a decisive fifth set.
Once there, MVA took control from the opening points and never trailed.
Baquerizo was one of three Eagles to reach double figures in kills. Suhmer Henriques finished with 12 kills and five digs, while Eva Bardales added 10 kills and six digs.
Kristina Vargas posted a double-double with a team-high 27 assists and 13 digs, while Leticia Cordeiro added 13 assists. Rosabella Palanti led the Eagles defensively with 15 digs.
From the service line, reigning Student-Athlete of the Week Janiyah Miller continued to make an impact, delivering a team-high six service aces while also recording three total blocks.
The competitiveness of the match was reflected throughout the stat sheet. The opening set featured five ties and three lead changes, followed by nine ties and three lead changes in the second. The third was the most tightly contested set of the evening with 11 ties and five lead changes, while the fourth featured six ties and four lead changes.
Then came the fifth.
No ties. No lead changes. MVA from start to finish.
Junior Varsity Suffers First Loss of the Season
Earlier in the evening, the Junior Varsity team suffered its first loss of the season, falling to Winter Park 0-2 (16-25, 13-25). The Eagles are now 3-1 overall. Zaylie Zeman led MVA with four kills, three service aces and seven digs.
Montverde Academy returns home on Tuesday, September 8, when the Eagles host Mount Dora High School. The junior varsity match is scheduled for 4:30 p.m., followed by the varsity match at 6 p.m.
