District Title Goes Green

LAKE PLACID - It was a banner night for the Lake Placid volleyball team.

The top-seeded Green Dragons stormed back to win the final two games against a tenacious Frostproof squad to win the Class 3A-District 10 championship on Thursday night.

Lake Placid, which won the title match by scores of 25-21, 23-25, 20-25, 25-17, 15-11, clinched its third consecutive district title and the championship banner that goes with it.

"I feel so good and it's so awesome to win the district for the third year in a row," said Green Dragon senior Kristen Massung. "I'm so proud of our team, because we didn't play that well the first few games and we were able to come back and win.

"It's always great to win, but this championship means more to me since it's my last year."

The dramatic win, which was aided by a raucous home crowd that stormed the court after the final point, improved Lake Placid to 16-3 on the season, and it gives the Green Dragons a home match in next Tuesday's regional quarterfinals against District 9 runner-up Fort Pierce John Carroll, time TBA.

"That was a lot more excitement than I wanted," an emotionally spent Lake Placid coach Marilyn Jones said. "I can't say enough about Frostproof, they really fought hard tonight and didn't look anything like the team we beat twice during the season. "We didn't serve well all night and made some mistakes we don't usually make, but we picked up our play at the most important time."

The Green Dragons used the energy from their vocal supporters to rally for the victory.

"I can't say enough about the crowd and how much they helped us," Jones said. "Winning the district never gets old, but this championship is very special, because it was hard-fought and the girls worked for every point."

The loss dropped Frostproof to 11-6 on the season, and puts the Bulldogs on the road to face District 9
champion Melbourne Central Catholic next Tuesday.

The first game was close throughout and the score was tied at 13.

But Massung, a powerful outside hitter who had a match-high 11 kills and 12 blocks, dominated the net and Darby Underwood unleashed two of her five aces as Lake Placid pulled away for the win.

The second game was tied at 6, before Frostproof, led by the strong serving of Stephanie Heath and the excellent net play of outside hitter Whitney DeLoach, who had a team-high eight kills, jumped out to a 16-12 lead.

The Dragons pulled even at 21 with a spike by Tiffany Bisby, who had 10 kills, but DeLoach nailed a pair of spikes, and Heath served an ace as the second-seeded Bulldogs evened the match.

The Green Dragons grabbed an early 4-0 lead in game three, but Frostproof aided by several bad serves and unforced errors, went on a tear to take a 23-16 lead.

Lake Placid made a run, but an ace by Heath and a spike by DeLoach closed out the game for the Bulldogs.

The Dragons regrouped and jumped out to an 18-12 lead in game four, and cruised to the win to force a final game for the district crown.

The final game was played at a high level, and Lake Placid took an 8-7 lead on a spike by Kaneisha Hamilton.

With the crowd screaming on every point, Massung scorched a cross-court spike and came up with a crucial block to pull the Dragons within two points of a district championship.

A spike by Frostproof sailed wide and a net violation against the Bulldogs sealed the win as the Green Dragons fans stormed the court to celebrate.

"This was a great win and I can't ask for a better way to finish up my senior year," said setter Brittany Baldwin. "I've been on three district championship teams, but this one means more because I had a lot more playing time this year and I felt like I played a part in helping us win."