Winter Park is undefeated and undisputed as the No. 1 ranked high school boys volleyball team in Florida.
But the Wildcats (26-0) are still three wins away from winning a state title and head coach Jesse Day isn’t counting his championships before they’re clinched. He knows his squad has to be on its game when Winter Park plays at Metro Conference rival Freedom (26-2) in a region final on Friday night. The best-of-five match is scheduled to start at 7 p.m.
Winter Park topped Freedom 25-21, 25-23 in the final of the Orlando Classic on April 10 and prevailed again in straight sets, 25-20, 32-30, 25-16 in a home match 10 days later. Those are the only losses for Freedom, which was the 2019 state champ.
The 2020 finals were cancelled in the midst of the COVID-19 outbreak so Freedom stands as the reigning champion.
“It’s hard to beat a really good team three times in one year in any high school sport,” Day said of Freedom. “We know we have to perform. We’re looking to get to that state title game. Everyone on our staff believes it’s definitely doable.”
Four region winners advance to next week’s FHSAA final four in South Florida. The state tournament will be played Friday and Saturday, May 14-15, at Archbishop McCarthy of Southwest Ranches.
Winter Park is ranked No. 1 in the state and No. 2 nationally by MaxPreps. Freedom is rated No. 3 in Florida but managed to win on the road against No. 2 Tampa Bay HEAT on Tuesday. The Patriots were down two sets to one before pulling out a gutsy 22-25, 25-23, 19-25, 25-22, 15-13 victory.
This story was first published at OrlandoSentinel.com. Varsity Content Editor Buddy Collings ccan be reached by email at bcollings@orlandosentinel.com.
