DeSoto Breezes Past Avon Park Volleyball

SEBRING - The top-seeded DeSoto volleyball team played like its seeding implies, using a stifling net defense and a mixture of power and finesse on the offensive side to earn a three-game sweep (25-11, 25-16, 25-13) of No. 4-seeded Avon Park in the Class 4A-District 10 tournament on Wednesday.

Several Bulldogs were battling illness, including junior outside hitter Brittany Muse, who was noticeably off her game but still came through when her team needed it the most.

"I've been sick since Sunday," Muse said. "I couldn't breathe too well since I have asthma and I was making mistakes and missing shots I don't normally miss. I fought through it though, and I'm happy we are playing for the championship."

Red Devil senior Nataly Berrios was in disbelief after the match - not in the loss, but the way that her team lost.

"We didn't communicate and didn't really get things going until the third game, but by then it was too late," the AP senior said. "We could've done so much better. We had so much potential and I'm not satisfied.
"I'm very sad that this is my last game. I'm not ready to turn in this uniform."

Down two games to none, the Red Devils came out on fire in the third game, hoping to avoid a sweep. They scored the first five points of the game on the strength of senior Daija Barrett, who had a pair of kills during the run. A fired-up Avon Park team celebrated each point and those celebrations didn't go unnoticed.

That was all the spark that DeSoto needed, which tied the game at six moments later and never trailed again, scoring the final seven points of the game to put themselves one step closer to another district championship.

But with the win came a bit of disappointment, knowing that they wouldn't face district rival Sebring in the final.

"Both teams [Braden River and Sebring] are really good," Muse said. "Sebring and DeSoto have been both equally matched and I really get up when I play them. It is a bit disappointing not to see them in the championship final, but take nothing away from Braden River. They played a great game."

A perfect game is what the Red Devils needed to beat DeSoto, but Avon Park had no answer for the size and speed of the Bulldogs, falling behind 20-8 in the first game and was never able to mount an effective rally.

In the second game, the Red Devils were able to take advantage of several DeSoto mistakes and a beautiful block by Barrett on Bulldog junior Jodi Vessels that elicited cheers from the Avon Park fans.
But with the Red Devils down 13-10, DeSoto went on one of its patented runs, scoring six-straight points, including two aces by Vessels, to put the Bulldogs on their way to a nine-point win.