Sharks Chomp Hurricanes in District Semifinal

The Sharks advance! Nature Coast Tech rode a hot start enroute to a 3-1 victory over Citrus in the 4A District 8 semifinal on Wednesday night. The Columbia Blue and Black (14-8, 5-4 District) downed two seed Hurricanes (13-11, 6-1 District) at Hernando High thanks to an incendiary first frame followed by close victories in sets three and four.

“The first set was like the tide turned,” Sharks Head Coach Emily Gore said. “I think it was tied 9-9 and we subbed our freshman [defensive specialist] in, JV call-up Gabby Larocca, and she went on a run. It was great […] So, that was huge momentum going into set two for us. Then, set two was super close, 26-24. So, that was an exciting match for sure.”

After a tight few opening minutes, Coach Gore’s call to sub in Freshman Gabby Larocca helped spur the “home” team onto a furious run of 12 straight points. She would serve 11 times in a row thanks to strong defensive play by Gore’s entire squad and a litany of miscues for the Hurricanes.

Before the visitors knew what hit them, they trailed 20-9 with little hope of coming back. Senior S Amanda Tirado took over from there as she scored 4 of her team’s final 7 points including being responsible for the entire final trio in set one.

The second set would be back and forth throughout, but Citrus would gut out their only victory 26-24 that night. While this set saw the home team make a couple of mistakes, the rest of the night was largely clean, especially in the realm of serving.

“Our serving was so on point tonight,” said Coach Gore. “So consistent, just very few errors. Everything you needed to do to win, they did tonight. So, I’m really proud of that group.”

After the close loss in the second stanza, Nature Coast’s outside hitters took over from there. Senior Addison Carpenter (5 points) and Sophomore Jalena Hathorn (7) combined for 12 total scores in a 25-22 victory in the penultimate period.

Their strong play continued into the final frame, as the pair combined for double digits yet again with Carpenter besting Hathorn this time around. It was not just them, though, as Coach Gore noted that every player contributed significantly to Wednesday’s win.

“I think Addy and our other outside hitter, Jalena, they had great games,” said the Sharks’ coach. “Then, every single other player on that court, at different moments, had just huge plays. Our libero did a great job. Our setter, that dump she had late in set four was just amazing. No one saw that coming.”

Leading 20-17 late in what would be the final set, Tirado took a pass and looked to be setting up Carpenter or Hathorn for a kill. Instead, just as she was setting the ball, Tirado quickly flicked the ball over the net and between defenders before the visitors had a chance to react. This gave the home team the cushion needed to finish the match strong to the tune of 25-18.

Nature Coast will look to surprise people yet again when they face off against the true home team of the tournament on Thursday. They will face the top-seeded Hernando Leopards in the district championship at 6:30 pm.

“Honestly, I don’t think anyone expected us [in the championship match] after the way we played Citrus earlier in the season and lost to them […] I know the girls are super excited, so hopefully we can carry that momentum with us,” Coach Gore said. “Hernando is a great team, so we’re going to have to show up and play flawless against them.”