SCF VB Slams Palm Beach State

Lake Worth, Fla - After overcoming a rocky first set, the SCF volleyball team (7-2, 3-1 Sun Lakes South) put it all on the floor and on the line and defeated Palm Beach State (2-10, 2-2 Sun Lakes South) 3-1 (9-25, 26-24, 29-27, 25-21) at  the Elisabeth W. Erling Gymnasium in Palm Beach.

"The team was absolutely incredible," said head coach Lynn Burnett. "The first set became our warmup after some bus issues, so we didn't have our full warmup time that we were supposed to have. When we got there, we only got 20 minutes and that cut out a part of our mental preparedness as well as physical. After that set, I told them that not to worry about the score and just started working together as a team and they did that for the next three sets."

"I felt like we had a bit of a rough start when the first set occurred," said sophomore Isabella Rebimbas. "After that, we figured it out quickly. We were very excited to beat them as one of our biggest competitors that we haven't beaten in a few years."

"Overall, I felt extremely proud of how much work my team out into this win," said sophomore Shelby Pillow. "There was a lot of long rallies and I believe we did an amazing job of putting the ball away and scoring those crucial points that we needed to score when the game became close. It just felt amazing to bring home a win over Palm beach after losing to them for three straight seasons. Everyone had their minds set on winning this game."

The first set was a result of brief miscommunication for the Manatees as the Lady Panthers took the set.

"After that set, I told them that not to worry about the score and just started working together as a team," said Burnett on the first set.

Burnett's words resined through and would wake the Manatees up heading into the second set with a fighting hunger as sophomores Katie Keefe and Caelan Cook and freshman Aleksandra Wrobel would get crucial kills that help the Manatees push to tie the set at 24 apiece. With serve possession belonging to the Manatees, Cook would put them up with an ace before sophomore Amee Beedle sealed the second set with a kill to the right front corner to tie the match 1-1.

Heading into the third set, the Lady Panthers looked as they were regaining the momentum to take the third set with a 24-19 lead and set point on the line. While the Manatees ran out of substitutions, Burnett would bring in Rebimbas and freshman Charlotte Herman to sub in and it became the crucial turning point for the Manatees as they would score four straight points thanks to a kill by Wrobel, a Lady Panther attack error, an ace by Cook and a double block by Herman and freshman Kat Tallo to bring the score to 24-23 before a timeout was called.

After the time out, the Manatees would tie the game at 24 apiece after a Lady Panthers attack error before it became neck and neck for the next few points with a key double block by Rebimbas and Tallo and a solo block by Herman being big parts of the momentum for the Manatees. With the set tied 27 apiece and the Lady Panthers with possession of serve, the Manatees would be the victor of the third set thanks to a kill by Rebimbas and a ball handling error from the Lady Panthers.

Heading into the fourth and final set, the Manatees were faced with a challenge to take it while being down briefly, but kills by Rebimbas and Pillow and an ace by Beedle would give the Manatees a three point lead before Pillow put them up by five after back-to-back kills. After the Lady Panthers earned a couple of points off of two errors, the Manatees would seal the deal off of a Lady Panther free ball attempt to no avail for the win.

Wrobel would be the offensive leader as she secured her second straight double-double with 10 kills, 10 digs, one ace, two assists and a block. Cook would follow with eight kills of her own to go along with three aces and eight digs, while Pillow rounded out the order with seven kills, one dig and one solo block. Keefe would finish with six kills and three digs, while Rebimbas added five kills and two digs in two sets.

"I felt pretty good overall playing," said Pillow. "I knew my team had my back when we decided it was time to start including the middles into scoring points offensively. Palm Beach had great coverage and it was hard not being able to score many points on the blocking side of things, but I'm glad I could be of use offensively."

In setting, freshman Morgan McGuire lead the way with her second straight double-double of 21 assists, 10 digs and one kill, while classmate Elise Bakken finished with 16 assists, seven digs and one ace.

Defensively, aside from Wrobel and McGuire's digs, Tallo lead the front row with two blocks to go along with eight digs and three kills, while sophomore Rachel Carroll lead the back row defense with nine digs and two assists.

Beedle (five kills, one ace, eight digs and one block), Herman (three digs, one assist and two blocks (one solo)) and freshmen Alanna McCaughey (one dig) and Teresa Briefender (one block) also contributed in the game.

For the Lady Panthers, three of their players had double digit kills. Patrycja Kabala lead the way offensively with 15 kills, eight digs and two blocks. Zuzanna Michalska followed with double-double of 14 kills, 15 digs and six aces, while Maria Ustick rounded out the order with 11 kills and three blocks (two solo).

Ashlyn Banton lead the Lady Panthers in passing with a double-double of 46 assists, 10 digs and six kills, while Ana Paula Fallas Cruz lead the back row defense with 19 digs and three assists and Ellianna Sawyer lead the front row defense with six blocks.

Other Sun Lakes Scores:

St. John's River State (12-7, 2-2 Sun Lakes North) shutout Lake Sumter State (6-7, 1-3 Sun Lakes North) 3-0. The Vikings will take on Webber International University JV Tuesday night, September 19 at 6 pm. The Lakehawks will take on South Florida State (2-3, 1-3 Sun Lakes South) Tuesday night, September 19 at 6 pm.

#18 Pensacola State (16-1, 4-0 Sun Lakes North) shutout Florida State College at Jacksonville (0-8, 0-4 Sun Lakes North) 3-0. The Pirates will take on Pasco Hernando State (7-5, 3-1 Sun Lakes South) Friday night, September 22 at 6 pm, while the Blue Wave take on Santa Fe College (3-7, 0-2 Citrus) Monday night, September 18 at 6 pm.

Sun Lakes Standings:

North - 

1. #18 Pensacola State (16-1, 4-0)

2. #3 Gulf Coast State (7-2, 3-1)

3. St. John's River State (12-7, 2-2)

4.  Lake Sumter State (6-7, 1-3)

5. Florida State College at Jacksonville (0-8, 0-4)

South - 

1. SCF (7-2, 3-1)

2. Pasco Hernando State (7-5, 3-1)

3. Palm Beach State (2-10, 2-2)

4. South Florida State (2-3, 1-3)

5. St. Pete (1-5, 1-3)

Up Next:

The Manatees will continue Sun Lakes Conference play back at Hal Chasey Gymnasium for crossover play as they welcome #3 Gulf Coast State Friday night, September 22 at 5 pm and #18 Pensacola State Saturday afternoon, September 23 at 3 pm.

SCF VB Wraps Up Road Trip @ Palm Beach State

Bradenton, Fla - The SCF volleyball team (6-2, 2-1 Sun Lakes will be wrapping up their four-game road trip as they travel to Palm Beach to take on Palm Beach State College (1-9, 1-1 Sun Lakes South) at the Elisabeth W. Erling Gymnasium Saturday afternoon, September 16 at 3 pm.

Sun Lakes Conference Standings:

North - 

1. #18 Pensacola State (15-1, 3-0)

2. #3 Gulf Coast State (6-2, 2-1)

3. St. John's River State (11-7, 1-2)

4. Lake Sumter State (6-5, 1-2)

5. Florida State College at Jacksonville (0-6, 0-2)

South - 

1. SCF (6-2, 2-1)

2. Pasco Hernando State (6-4, 2-0)

3. Palm Beach State (1-9, 1-1)

4. South Florida State (2-2, 1-2)

5. St. Pete College (1-4, 1-2)

Last Time Out:

The Manatees are coming off of defeating Pasco Hernando State Wednesday night on the road by a score of 3-1. The win bumped the Manatees back up to first place in the overall standings as a result.

European Nation:

Still helping the Manatees' offense and defense is sophomore Katie Keefe and freshmen Aleksandra Wrobel, Elise Bakken and Teresa Briefeneder.

Keefe is coming off of one of her best games offensively and defensively against Pasco Hernando State as she had a season-high 13 kills, nine digs, five assists and three blocks. The Londoner currently has 51 kills, 69 digs and four blocks so far.

Like Keefe, Wrobel is also coming off of one of her best outings against Pasco Hernando State as she secured her first collegiate double-double of 14 kills and 12 digs to go along with five aces. Currently, the Pole has 51 kills, 29 digs, six aces and nine blocks.

Bakken has 129 assists, nine aces and 51 digs in her name so far. The Norwegian had 12 assists and seven digs against Pasco Hernando.

Briefeneder also had one of her best outings offensively and defensively as she had a season-high 11 kills and five blocks against Pasco Hernando. The Austrian currently has 37 kills, 16 digs and 12 blocks (two solo).

The Mighty One:

Freshman Morgan McGuire is coming off of her best outings this season after finishing with a double-double of a season-high 29 assists, 12 digs and two aces on Wednesday. McGuire currently has 108 assists, 13 aces and 69 digs this season.

Blockout:

Alongside Briefender, sophomore Shelby Pillow and freshman Kat Tallo lead the way in blocking the front row. Pillow currently has 13 kills and nine blocks in her name, while Tallo has 16 blocks (four solo), 21 kills, seven aces and 35 digs. Against Pasco Hernando, Pillow had two blocks in the match while Tallo had four blocks, one kill and five digs.

Call of the Wild:

Sophomores Bailee Perry, Kloe Pinto, Amee Beedle, Rachel Carroll and Caelan Cook and freshman Charlotte Herman lead as the wildcards on the court.

Perry currently has 27 kills, 42 digs, eight aces and nine blocks so far. She had two digs and a block in her last outing.

Pinto has been some playing time as of late after rotating between libero and defensive specialist. She currently has 19 digs, three aces and four assists in her name so far.

Beedle is coming of her best offensive outings against Pasco Hernando where she had 11 kills, seven digs, one ace and two blocks. The Wheaton, Illinois native currently has 23 kills, seven aces and 28 digs so far.

Like Pinto, Carroll rotates between defensive specialist and libero. The product of Sarasota High School had seven digs and three assists in her last outing as the starting libero. Currently, she has 34 digs, seven assists and two aces so far this season.

Cook currently has 34 kills, 23 digs and nine blocks so far this season. She is coming off having three kills, five digs and two blocks in her last game.

Herman currently has 37 kills, 18 digs and seven blocks this season. She had two kills and a block in the match against St. Pete.

Scouting Palm Beach State:

The Lady Panthers are in third place in conference behind Pasco Hernando State, but are coming off of being shutout 3-0 by #6 Richard Bland College and 3-1 to St. John's River State. Prior to playing SCF, the Lady Panthers will face St. Pete College Friday, September 15 at 6 pm at home.

Leading the Lady Panthers offense is sophomore Zuzanna Michalska. Michalska, a transfer from Spartanburg Methodist (NJCAA) leads the way with 95 kills, 12 aces and 99 digs.

Defensively, sophomore Ellianna Sawyer leads the front row with 20 blocks (two solo) and 11 kills, while freshman Ana Paula Fallas Cruz leads the back row with 84 digs.

The Manatees are 9-21 overall against the Lady Panthers.

How to Keep Up:

The match against Palm Beach State will air on SCF Facebook Page. The Manatees will also provide a possible livestream on their Facebook page. Fans can also keep up with on all other social media platforms.

Livestream Link -  https://www.facebook.com/SCFvolleyball

Social Media Links - 

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SCFvolleyball

X - https://twitter.com/SCFVolleyball?s=09

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/volleyball_scf/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y%3D

SCF VB Tames Pasco Hernando

New Port Richey, Fla - The SCF volleyball team (6-2, 2-1 Sun Lakes South) got back to the winning side of things as they defeated Pasco Hernando State (6-5, 2-1 Sun Lakes South) 3-1 (22-25, 25-15, 25-19, 25-17) at the PHSC Gymnasium in New Port Richey.

"Overall, the team played fantastic," said head coach Lynn Burnett. We recovered from a lot of mistakes and setbacks so quickly. I told the team 'Pasco Hernando wants to win, but we want it more. We had a lot of fun, played loose and got the job done."

"The team did very well overall," said sophomore Rachel Carroll. "Everyone played together super well and as a whole we worked super hard and clicked on the court. Our fight was what helped our team remain super focused. We all knew what we wanted and that was to win. Everyone had so much hustle and put their bodies on the floor to get the ball up. We all had so much energy and kept each other hyped up."

"I'm very happy with how we performed and started doing their part while trusting each other on the court," said freshman Morgan McGuire. "There was never a dull moment and we played very clean with lots of energy and hustle. After how close we were in the first set, it drove us to come back more disciplined and wanting to win even more."

The first set was incredibly tight between both teams as they exchanged several ties and lead changes. Ultimately, the Lady Bobcats would secure the first set after taking advantage of a few attack errors from the Manatees. The Manatees were not going to let another set slip from them as they pushed themselves and secured the second set thanks to a kill by sophomore Katie Keefe.

The third set became all about the defense thanks to blocks from Keefe and freshmen Teresa Briefeneder and Katrina Tallo and with a final kill by Keefe, the Manatees would take a 2-1 lead,

Heading into the final set, the Manatees kept their foot on the gas with their blocks from Briefeneder and strong back row defense from Carroll and sophomore Amee Beedle before Briefeneder sealed the deal with a final kill for a Manatee win.

Four Manatees had double digit kills on the offensive end. It was freshman Aleksandra Wrobel that would lead the way as she secured her first collegiate double-double with 14 kills, 12 digs, five aces, one assist and two blocks. Keefe, who was one dig shy of a double-double, would follow Wrobel with 13 kills, nine digs, four assists and three blocks.

Briefender and Beedle rounded out the order with a 11 and 10 kills respectively. Briefender (.833 hitting percentage) added a dig and a team-leading season-high five blocks (one solo), while Beedle added one ace, six digs and two blocks.

In setting, McGuire lead the way with one of her best outings as she finished with a double-double of 29 assists (season-high), 13 digs and two aces. Freshman Elise Bakken finished with 14 assists and five digs.

"I never toot my own horn, but I was feeling it that game," said McGuire. "Even from warming up, I knew it was going to be a good day and the I was so relaxed and had so much swag going into the game. I really trusted my hitters and they made me look so good. It was nice to finally connect defensively and move as a solid unit with the blockers and other defenders."

Defensively, apart from Wrobel and McGuire's digs, and Keefe and Briefeneder's blocks, freshman Kat Tallo added three blocks of her own to go along with two kills and a dig. Carroll finished with 10 digs and three assists from the back row.

"I felt very focused and wanted to show what I could give on the court," said Carroll. "I knew I wanted to get every ball and put in 100% effort. I felt confident with how I played in today's match and the energy and positivity on the court definitely helps."

Sophomores Bailee Perry (two digs and a block), Shelby Pillow (two blocks) and Caelan Cook (three kills, one ace, one assist, five digs and two blocks) and freshman Alanna McCaughey (three aces and one dig) also contributed in the match.

Other Sun Lakes Scores:

South Florida State (2-2, 1-2 Sun Lakes South) shutout Webber International JV (0-4) 3-0 Tuesday, September 12. The Lady Panthers will take on Pasco Hernando State Friday night, September 15 at 5 pm.

#18 Pensacola State (15-1, 3-0 Sun Lakes North) upset #3 Gulf Coast State (6-2, 2-1 Sun Lakes North) 3-0 in Panama City. The Pirates will take on Florida State College at Jacksonville Saturday afternoon, September 16 at 2 pm EDT (1 pm EDT). The Lady Commodores will take on Florida State College at Jacksonville Friday night, September 15 at 7 pm EDT (6 pm CDT).

St. John's River State (11-7, 1-2 Sun Lakes North) shutout Florida State College at Jacksonville (0-6, 0-2 Sun Lakes North) 3-0. The Vikings will take on Lake Sumter State (6-5, 1-2 Sun Lakes North) Saturday afternoon, September 16 at 1 pm.

Sun Lakes Conference Standings:

North - 

1. #18 Pensacola State (15-1, 3-0)

2. #3 Gulf Coast State (6-2, 2-1)

3. St. John's River State (11-7, 1-2)

4. Lake Sumter State (6-5, 1-2)

5.  Florida State College at Jacksonville (0-6, 0-2)

South - 

1. SCF (6-2, 2-1)

2. Pasco Hernando State (6-4, 2-0)

3. Palm Beach (1-9, 1-1)

4. South Florida State (2-2, 1-2)

5. St. Pete College (1-4, 1-2)

Up Next:

The Manatees will wrap up their road trip Saturday afternoon, September 16 as they travel to Palm Beach to take on Palm Beach State at 3 pm at the Elisabeth W. Erling Gymnasium. 

SCF VB Readies for Mid-Week Conference Match @ Pasco

Bradenton, Fla - The SCF volleyball team (5-2, 1-1 Sun Lakes South) will look to wrap up their road trip for the next two matches of Sun Lakes Conference play. The Manatees will take a trip to New Port Richey to take on Pasco Hernando State (6-4, 2-0 Sun Lakes South) at the PHSC West Campus Gymnasium Wednesday night, September 13 at 6 pm. 

Sun Lakes Conference Standings:

North - 

1. Pensacola State (14-1, 2-0)

2. #3 Gulf Coast State (6-1, 2-0)

3. Lake Sumter State (6-5, 1-2)

4. Florida State College at Jacksonville (0-5, 0-1)

5. #13 St. John's River State (10-7, 0-2)

South - 

1. Pasco Hernando State (6-4, 2-0)

2. SCF (5-2, 1-1)

3. Palm Beach (1-9, 1-1)

4. South Florida State (1-2, 1-2)

5. St. Pete College (1-4, 1-2)

Last Time Out:

The Manatees are coming off of splitting on their last road trip where they defeated Ave Maria University JV 3-1 in Ave Maria before falling to St. Pete College 3-0 in St. Pete. They are currently tied for second place in the standings with Palm Beach State, but are in second place overall due to their record.

Leading the way offensively is freshmen Aleksandra Wrobel and Charlotte Herman and sophomores Katie Keefe and Caelan Cook.

Although she was held to four kills against St. Pete, Wrobel currently has 37 kills in her name to go along with 17 digs and seven blocks.

Herman ties with Wrobel with 37 kills while adding 18 digs and seven blocks. She had two kills and a block in her last outing.

Keefe is third on the team with 36 kills, 60 digs and a team-leading 12 aces. The Londoner lead the way with six kills, two aces and 11 digs against St. Pete.

Cook has 31 kills, 18 digs and seven blocks in her name so far this season. She had three kills, three digs and three blocks against St. Pete.

Set Life:

In setting, freshmen Elise Bakken and Morgan McGuire continue to lead the way for passing. Bakken has 115 in her name to go along with nine aces and 44 digs, while McGuire has 79 assists, 12 aces and 56 digs. Both reached double figures in assists as they finished with 11 and 10 assists respectively against St. Pete.

Block Party:

In the front row of defense, sophomore Shelby Pillow and freshmen Kat Tallo and Teresa Briefeneder lead the way for blocking.

Pillow, who returned back from injury, has 13 kills, five digs and seven blocks in her name so far. She had four kills, four digs and four blocks against St. Pete. The native of Athens, Georgia owns sole possession of 17th all-time in total blocks in her career with 80 so far and needs nine to surpass Sara Kartalovic (88, 2015-16) for 16th all-time.

While she did not play against St. Pete, Tallo leads team in blocking with 13 total (four solo) to go along with 19 kills, seven aces and 34 digs.

Briefeneder currently has seven blocks in her name to go along with 26 kills, 15 digs and four aces. She had three kills, three digs and three blocks against St. Pete.

Wild Ride:

As for the wildcard players, sophomores Bailee Perry, Kloe Pinto, Amee Beedle and Rachel Carroll lead the path.

Perry is coming off of a two kill, six dig, two block game over St. Pete. The Sebastian native currently has 27 kills, eight aces and 40 digs in her name.

Pinto, who earned some playing time as a libero, currently has 19 digs and three aces in her name so far. The Jacksonville native had eight digs and an ace in her last outing.

Beedle currently has 13 kills, 24 digs and six aces in her name so far. She had two digs and an assist in her last matchup. Recently, Beedle is coming off of earning her 500th career dig in the NJCAA against South Florida State.

Carroll, who rotates between defensive specialist and libero, currently has 27 digs, four assists and two aces so far this season.

Scouting Pasco Hernando State:

The Lady Bobcats are currently in first place in the south division and are coming off of split from their   two-day Pasco Hernando Bobcat Invitational last week. They would defeat Andrew College (3-1) and Morton College (3-0), but would fall to #10 Richard Bland College and Kansas City Kansas CC both by a score of 3-0.

Leading the Lady Bobcats' offense is freshman Elizabeth McDonald and sophomore Kylie Ciani as they both lead with 112 and 105 kills respectively. McDonald has 48 digs, 16 aces and 12 blocks (four solo) in her name, while Ciani has 76 digs and 12 aces.

Defensively, freshman Blake Samon and sophomores Kaitlyn Klemm and Isabella Greifenstein lead the front row in blocking. Samon has 21 blocks (12 solo) to go along with 15 kills, while with 11 and 10 Klemm has 12 blocks and 16 kills and  Greifenstein has 71 kills, 15 blocks and 12 digs. In the back row, sophomore Elena Castillo-Wetzell leads the way with 97 digs and eight aces.

Overall, the Manatees are 9-29 against the Bobcats. Last season, the Manatees swept the series winning 3-1 at home and 3-2 in New Port Richey.

How to Keep Up:

The match against Pasco Hernando will air livestream on the Pasco Hernando Volleyball YouTube channel. Fans can also keep up with on all other social media platforms.

Livestream Links - 

SCF @ Pasco Hernando: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sE7KijeSCJg

Social Media Links - 

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SCFvolleyball

X - https://twitter.com/SCFVolleyball?s=09

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/volleyball_scf/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y%3D

SCF VB Falls to St. Pete

St. Petersburg, Fla - The SCF volleyball team (5-2 1-1 Sun Lakes South) were unable to keep their winning streak moving as they fell to St. Pete College (1-4, 1-2 Sun Lakes South) 3-0 (21-25, 21-25, 20-25) at the Gibbs Campus Gymnasium. The Manatees would fall tied for second place in conference after the loss, but remain in second overall in standings.

All three sets were in tight fashion for the Manatees and they took a few leads and made rallies, but it was not enough to get past the Lady Titans to secure their second win of the season.

Sophomore Katie Keefe would lead the way offensively and defensively as she finished with six kills, 11 digs and two aces.

In setting, freshman Elise Bakken would lead the way as she finished with 11 assists and eight digs, while classmate Morgan McGuire had 10 assists and nine digs.

Defensively in the front row, sophomores Shelby Pillow and Caelan Cook and freshman Teresa Briefeneder lead the front row for blocking. Pillow finished with four blocks to go along with four kills and four digs.  Cook and Briefeneder each had three blocks and three kill apiece with Cook also adding three digs to the mix.

In back row defense, sophomore Kloe Pinto finished with eight digs, one assists and one ace.

Sophomores Bailee Perry (two kills, one ace, six digs and two blocks (one solo)), Amee Beedle (one assist) and Isabella Rebimbas (one dig) and freshmen Charlotte Herman (two kills, one dig and one block) and Aleksandra Wrobel (four kills, one ace, one dig and two blocks) also contributed in the match.

Other Sun Lakes Scores:

Pasco Hernando State (6-4, 2-0 Sun Lakes South) shutout St. Pete 3-0 on Wednesday, September 6 before splitting their hosted two-day Pasco Hernando Bobcat Tournament 2-2 defeating Andrew College and Morton College (5-7) both by a score of 3-0 and losing 3-1 to Kansas City Kansas CC (7-5) and 3-0 to #10 Richard Bland College (13-3). 

Palm Beach State (1-9, 1-1 Sun Lakes South) defeated South Florida State (1-2, 1-2 Sun Lakes South) 3-2 on Wednesday, September 6 to earn their first win of the season and in conference before falling to #10 Richard Bland College 3-0 and #13 St. John's River State 3-1 in a tri-match in Palatka. Palm Beach State will take on St. Pete Friday night, September 15 at 6 pm, while South Florida State takes on Webber International JV Tuesday night, September 12 at 6 pm.

Lake Sumter State (6-5, 1-2 Sun Lakes North) defeated Florida State College at Jacksonville 3-1 on Wednesday, September 6 before losing all four of their matches at the two-day Hillsborough CC Invitational losing 3-1 to Polk State (6-3, 1-0 Citrus) and 3-0 to #1 Florida Southwestern (12-0, 1-0 Citrus) on day one before losing 3-0 to #13 St. John's River State and #3 Gulf Coast State on day two. The Lakehawks will take on Santa Fe College (2-6, 0-1 Citrus) Thursday night, September 14 at 6 pm.

Pensacola State (14-1, 2-0 Sun Lakes North) defeated Northeast Mississippi CC 3-1 and shutout Northwest Mississippi CC 3-0 on Wednesday, September 6 before shutting out Lake Sumter State and upsetting #13 St. John's River State 3-0. The Lady Pirates will take on #3 Gulf Coast State Wednesday night, September 13 at 6 pm EDT (5 pm CDT).

Florida State College at Jacksonville (0-5, 0-1 Sun Lakes North) lost all four matches at the two-day Hillsborough CC Invitational losing 3-1 to Polk State and losing 3-0 to #1 Florida Southwestern State, #17 Daytona State (10-4, 1-1 Citrus) and host Hillsborough. The Blue Wave will take on #3 Gulf Coast State Friday night, September 15 at 7 pm EDT (6 pm CDT).

#3 Gulf Coast State (6-1, 2-0 Sun Lakes North) defeated #13 St. John's River State 3-1 on Friday, September 8 before shutting out Lake Sumter State 3-0 Saturday, September 9.

#13 St. John's River State (10-7, 0-2 Sun Lakes North) would split their hosted tri-match Sunday, September 10 losing 3-0 to #10 Richard Bland College before defeating Palm Beach State 3-1. The Vikings will take on Florida State College at Jacksonville Wednesday night, September 13 at 6 pm.

Sun Lakes Conference Standings:

North - 

1. Pensacola State (14-1, 2-0)

2. #3 Gulf Coast State (6-1, 2-0)

3. Lake Sumter State (6-5, 1-2)

4. Florida State College at Jacksonville (0-5, 0-1)

5. #13 St. John's River State (10-7, 0-2)

South - 

1. Pasco Hernando State (6-4, 2-0)

2. SCF (5-2, 1-1)

3. Palm Beach (1-9, 1-1)

4. South Florida State (1-2, 1-2)

5. St. Pete College (1-4, 1-2)

Up Next:

The Manatees wrap up their road trip for the next two matches as they travel to New Port Richey to take on Pasco Hernando State Wednesday night, September 13 at 6 pm before facing Palm Beach State College Saturday afternoon, September 16 at 3 pm.

SCF VB Takes Down Ave Maria

Ave Maria, Fla - The SCF volleyball team (5-1, 1-0 Sun Lakes South) were put on a brief swivel for non-conference play as they defeated Ave Maria University JV (0-1) 3-1 (25-8, 18-25, 25-18, 25-16) in Ave Maria. With the win, the Manatees are now 6-0 against the Gyrenes.

"The goal, even with a big confidence boost, was to give the girls an opportunity to run a 5-1 with each of our setters," said head coach Lynn Burnett. "I also wanted to give our starters a breather and rest up before our match with St. Pete. While there were some messy parts, overall the match went well. There are some spots we will work on from our attacking, but it was a good lesson for them to know that not all match are going to be easy."

"I think the team had our ups and down today," said sophomore Kloe Pinto. "Nevertheless, I'm super proud of everyone and how we bounced back so quickly because we were trying new things and adjusting to different plays and tempos. I think we did a great job keeping an open mind and trusting the process."

"Overall, despite us scrambling a lot and not playing the best, mainly in the second set while trying new lineups out, we got it together and brought home a win in four sets," said sophomore Caelan Cook. "Overall, we perceived and came together as a team and played as one."

The first set was all Manatees with a few modifications in the lineup as Pinto would earn the start as the libero. After some key kills from sophomore Shelby Pillow and freshman Charlotte Herman to push the Manatees, sophomore Amee Beedle would seal the first set with a kill.

In the second set, the Gyrenes would be the ones taking over despite a late rally by the Manatees. A final kill would tie the match a one apiece.

Heading into the third, the score would be in reverse as Cook would seal the third set with a kill to give the Manatees the lead.

In the fourth and final set, the Manatees did not want to let their focus go off the court as they managed to push for the win as Beedle sealed the deal with a final block for the win on the road.

Beedle and sophomore Isabella Rebimbas would be the leaders offensively as they finished with a season-high nine kills each. Beedle added 10 digs, one block and one ace, while Rebimbas added three digs.

Pillow, Herman and Cook would follow with seven kills each, while freshman Teresa Briefender rounded out the order with five kills. Pillow added two blocks (one solo), while Herman added an ace, two digs and one block, Cook added an ace and six digs and Briefeneder added an assist, two aces and a dig.

"I felt good being on the court," said Cook. "It was definitely a different feeling playing all the way around and with different people on the court. Nevertheless, I felt really good overall and it felt good to be playing outside and back row."

From the setting side, freshman Elise Bakken would lead the way with 20 assists, nine digs and a kill, while classmate Morgan McGuire secured her first collegiate double-double in assists and digs as she finished with 15 assists, 10 digs and one ace.

Defensively, apart from Beedle's double digit digs, Pinto lead the back row with six digs, two assists and two aces.

"I felt good out there today," said Pinto. "Not only did the energy from the court help me succeed, but also the huge amounts of support from my teammates helped too. I'm so happy I got the opportunity to play the sport that I love and I hope I get to do it again."

Sophomore Rachel Carroll (three digs) and freshmen Alanna McCaughey (one kill and one assist) and Katrina Tallo (two kills, four assists, one ace, six digs and two blocks) also contributed in the match.

Sun Lakes Standings:

North - 

1. Pensacola (9-1)

2. #3 Gulf Coast State (4-1)

3. #14 St. John's River State (7-4)

4. Lake Sumter State (5-3)

5. Florida State College at Jacksonville (0-0)

South - 

1. SCF (5-1, 1-0)

2. Pasco Hernando (3-2, 1-0)

3. South Florida State (1-1, 1-1)

4. St. Pete (0-3, 0-1)

5. Palm Beach State (0-7, 0-1)

Upcoming Sun Lakes Matchups:

9/5/23 - 

North Division

#14 St. John's River State vs Trinity Baptist College @ 2 pm

#14 St. John's River State vs Webber International @ 6 pm

Pensacola State vs Pearl River CC @ 5 pm

9/6/23 - 

North Division

Pensacola State vs Northeast Mississippi CC @ 3 pm

Pensacola State vs Northwest Mississippi CC @ 5 pm

Florida State College at Jacksonville vs Lake Sumter State @ 6 pm

South Division

Palm Beach State vs South Florida State @ 6 pm

St. Pete College vs Pasco Hernando State @ 6 pm

9/8/23 - 

North Division

Florida State College at Jacksonville vs Polk State @ 1:30 pm

Lake Sumter State vs Pensacola State @ 6 pm

Florida State College at Jacksonville vs #1 Florida Southwestern (NJCAA DI) @ 6:30 pm

#14 St. John's River State vs #3 Gulf Coast State @7 pm

South Division

Pasco Hernando State vs Andrew College @ 1 pm

9/9/23 -

North Division

Florida State College at Jacksonville vs #15 Daytona State College (NJCAA DI) @ 10 am

#14 St. John's River State vs Pensacola State @ 2 pm

Lake Sumter State vs #3 Gulf Coast State @ 2 pm

Florida State College at Jacksonville vs Hillsborough @ 3 pm

South Division

Pasco Hernando State vs Kansas City Kansas CC @ 12 pm

Pasco Hernando State vs Morton College @ 2 pm

9/10/23 - 

North Division

#14 St. John's River State vs #6 Richard Bland College @ 10 am

South Division

Palm Beach State vs #6 Richard Bland College @ 12 pm

Crossover

#14 St. John's River State vs Palm Beach State @ 2 pm

Up Next:

The Manatees head back on the road for their matchup with St. Pete College (0-3, 0-1 Sun Lakes South) Saturday afternoon, September 9 at 1 pm. This match is a makeup from August 30.

SCF VB Sweeps South Florida in Conference Opener

Bradenton, Fla - After an hour delay due to scheduling issues with officials, the SCF volleyball team (4-1, 1-0 Sun Lakes South) continued their ways on the right path as they swept South Florida State (1-1, 1-1 Sun Lakes South) 3-0 (25-9, 25-15, 25-16) in their home opener and conference opener at Hal Chasey Gymnasium.

"It was a definite adrenaline of spikes and releases," said head coach Lynn Burnett. "There were parts where we felt like we not going to be able to play and then did get to play and that was a whole lot to think about and take in. All in all, it was a really good experience because it gave the girls a required opportunity to refocus on what our goal was coming out there today and then grind it out, even with the distractions in the way. They came with a purpose and a message to send loud and clear to everyone."

"I think that our team really showed up and played really well," said sophomore Katie Keefe. "There's always going to be barriers when we play, but we stayed strong with resilience and didn't let any drama get to us. I'm happy with how everyone played and while South Florida State was good, we were able to shut them down."

"I thought the team played great," said freshman Katrina Tallo. "We came out strong and guns blazing from hitting to serving to passing. It all combined to get us this fired up win today."

"I think we did a good job with winning in three sets," said freshman Aleksandra Wrobel. "Our serving was really consistent with a lot of aces and minimized attack errors. It was really nice to play in front of our home fans, even with some issues earlier before the match. Moving forward, we need to remain focused, be consistent and keep doing well on serve receive."

The first set was all Manatees offensively as Keefe and Tallo kept the pace going on serving with four aces combined to go with kills from Keefe and Wrobel. The Manatees would take the first set after freshman Teresa Briefeneder sealed it with a kill.

The second set still remained in Manatees favor after putting sophomore Amee Beedle came in for some serving action. While the Lady Panthers tried to put some points on the board, but a final kill from sophomore Caelan Cook would give the Manatees the second set

In the third final set, the Manatees got off to a shaky start being down 3-0 until a Wrobel kill put them on the board. The Lady Panthers continued to keep the lead, even with the Manatees tying the set a couple of times. With the Lady Panthers up 10-7, the Manatees rallied together and were able to push themselves and take the lead before sophomore Shelby Pillow, who made her season debut, sealed the deal with a final kill for the win.

Keefe and Wrobel would lead the way offensively for the Manatees as they each had 10 kills. Keefe would secure her first collegiate double-double with 10 digs and four aces, while Wrobel had added two digs of her own.

"I felt good today," said Keefe. "It's a tough transition doing indoor volleyball in contrast to beach volleyball with a lot of work on the shoulder. It's really nice to have such a supportive team together with us gelling really well the last three weeks. Now with the improvements we've made,  we're performing how we wanted to perform."

"I was able to take advantage of their attacks and tool the block for a lot of points," said Wrobel. "The advice from the sideline really helped me find the the seams between the block and the defenders

In setting, the freshmen duo of Elise Bakken and Morgan McGuire lead the way. Bakken finished with 17 assists, five digs and three aces, while McGuire, who was one dig shy of a double-double finished with 11 assists, nine digs and two aces.

Apart from Keefe's four aces, Tallo also played a strong game on serving as she finished with four aces, one kill, four assists, three digs and one block.

"I felt great out there," said Tallo. "I'm glad I got to play with these girls on this new stage for an opportunity like this."

Pillow (two kills and one block), Beedle (two kills, one ace and five digs), Briefender (four kills, four digs and one block), sophomores Bailee Perry (three kills, two aces, one assist and five digs), Rachel Carroll (two assists and two digs) and Caelan Cook (five kills, one dig and two blocks) and freshman Alanna McCaughey (one ace) also contributed in the match.

Notes:

• The win at home was the first time since 2016 that the Manatees won their home opener.

Other Sun Lakes Scores:

Pasco Hernando State (3-2, 1-0 Sun Lakes South) shutout Palm Beach State (0-7, 0-1 Sun Lakes South) 3-0. The Bobcats will take on St. Pete (0-3, 0-1 Sun Lakes South) Wednesday night, September 6 at 6 pm. The Panthers will take on South Florida State Wednesday night, September 6 at 6 pm.

#14 St. John's River State (7-4) split the final day of the Owens CC Tournament in Perrysburg, Ohio losing the first match 3-0 to Vincennes University (8-1) before shutting out College of Lake County (3-6) 3-0. The Vikings would finish the tournament 3-1 and will host a tri-match at home against Trinity Baptist College (0-6) and Webber International JV (0-1) Tuesday afternoon, September 5 at 2 and 6 pm.

Pensacola State (9-1) shutout Snead State CC (8-5) 3-0 on day two of the Pensacola State Invitational. The Pirates will take on Pearl River CC (8-5) Tuesday night, September 5 at 5 pm (4 pm CDT).

Sun Lakes Standings:

North - 

1. Pensacola State (9-1)

2. #3 Gulf Coast State (4-1)

3. Lake Sumter State (5-3)

4. #14 St. John's River State (7-4)

5. Florida State College at Jacksonville (0-0)

South - 

1. SCF (4-1, 1-0)

2. Pasco Hernando State (3-2, 1-0)

3. South Florida State College (1-1, 1-1)

4. St. Pete (0-3, 0-1)

5. Palm Beach State (0-7, 0-1)

Up Next:

The Manatees head back on the road for the next four matches as they will face Ave Maria University JV (September 4 at 12 pm), St. Pete (September 9 at 1 pm), Pasco Hernando State (September 13 at 6 pm) and Palm Beach State (September 16 at 3 pm).

SCF VB Readies for Another Road Trip

Bradenton, Fla - The SCF volleyball team (4-1, 1-0 Sun Lakes South) entered into a success in Sun Lakes Conference play and will look to continue you doing so for their next road trip for the next four matches. The Manatees will begin with a trip to Ave Maria to take on Ave Maria University JV at the Tom Golisao Field House Monday afternoon, September 4 at 12 pm for a non-conference match before resuming Sun Lakes Conference play where they will travel to St. Petersburg to take on St. Pete College (0-3, 0-1 Sun Lakes South) at the SPC Gibbs Campus Gymnasium Saturday afternoon, September 9 at 1 pm. 

Sun Lakes Standings:

North - 

1. Pensacola State (9-1)

2. #3 Gulf Coast State (4-1)

3. Lake Sumter State (5-3)

4. #14 St. John's River State (7-4)

5. Florida State College at Jacksonville (0-0)

South - 

1. SCF (4-1, 1-0)

2. Pasco Hernando State (3-2, 1-0)

3. South Florida State College (1-1, 1-1)

4. St. Pete (0-3, 0-1)

5. Palm Beach State (0-7, 0-1)

Last Time Out:

The Manatees are coming off of securing their first win of the conference play this season after defeating South Florida State 3-0 in their conference/home opener. It was the first time since 2016 that the Manatees secured a win in their home opener.

Additionally, the Manatees are currently in first place in their division standings.

European Union SCF Style:

A big part of SCF's offense and defense comes from sophomore Katie Keefe and freshmen Elisa Bakken, Teresa Briefeneder and Aleksandra Wrobel. All four as noted are the first to represent their native European countries for SCF (Keefe: England; Bakken: Norway; Briefeneder: Austria; Wrobel: Poland).

Keefe came off of one of her best outings this season as she had a double-double of 11 kills and 13 digs in the win over South Florida State. The native of London, England currently has 31 kills, 52 digs and 10 aces.

Bakken, the leader in setting, currently has 84 assists, nine aces and 27 digs. In her last outing against South Florida State, the Norwegian had 20 assists, three aces and five digs in the match.

Briefeneder currently has 18 kills, 14 digs and five blocks (two solo). The Austrian had four kills, four digs and two blocks (one solo) in her last outing. Her hitting percentage (.351) ranks #1 in the state.

Wrobel is coming off of her second straight match with 10 plus kills after finishing her match against South Florida State with 10 kills and two digs. Wrobel currently has 33 kills, 16 digs and five blocks (two solo).

Returning for the Fight:

Sophomore Amee Beedle made her return to the SCF rotation recently after sitting out last season. Beedle currently has four kills, five aces and 12 digs with the Manatees so far this season. Against South Florida State, the native of Wheaton, Illinois had two kills, one ace and five digs in the match. In fact, she earned her 500th career dig in the NJCAA (486 with Vincennes University).

Beedle was not the only player that made her return as classmate Shelby Pillow also made season debut after sitting out the first four games of the season. In the match against South Florida State, Pillow had two kills and a block. Last season, the native of Athens, Georgia finished her freshman campaign with 172 kills, eight assists, 23 digs and 73 blocks (25 solo).

The Wild Ones:

Sophomores Caelan Cook, Rachel Carroll, Bailee Perry and Isabella Rebimbas and freshmen Charlotte Herman, Morgan McGuire and Kat Tallo play as key wildcard players in the rotation.

Cook currently has 21 kills, nine digs and four blocks. She had five kills, one dig and two blocks in her last outing.

Carroll had two digs and two assists in the win over South Florida State on Saturday. The former prospect from Sarasota High School currently has four assists, two aces and 24 digs in her name so far.

Perry currently has 25 kills, two assists, seven aces, 34 digs and four blocks so far this season. Against South Florida State, the Sebastian native had three kills, two aces, one assist, five digs and a block for the win.

While she did not play against South Florida State, Rebimbas currently has seven kills and 11 digs in her name.

Herman currently has 28 kills, 15 digs and five blocks in her name so far this season, despite not playing against South Florida State

McGuire, who rotates with Bakken on setting currently has 54 assists, a team-leading 11 aces and 37 digs. She was one dig shy of her first collegiate double-double as she had 11 assists, nine digs and two aces against South Florida State.

Tallo, the leader in blocking, currently has 17 kills, 10 assists, six aces, 28 digs and 11 blocks (three solo). Against South Florida State, the local product from Classical Academy of Sarasota had her best serving game with four aces, four assists, three digs, a kill and a block.

Scouting Ave Maria JV:

The Lady Gyrenes represent the NAIA Sun Conference and are coming off of finishing last season 1-7 overall. They are led by head coach Teigan McCormick, who enters her third season as head coach for the junior varsity team and as assistant coach for the varsity team.

The Manatees hold a 5-0 overall record against the Gyrenes.

Scouting St. Pete College:

The Lady Titans opened their season with three straight losses to Eastern Florida State (3-0) and Hillsborough (3-1) before dropping their conference opener to South Florida State by a score of 3-2. They are in fourth place in the division standings. Currently, they are lead by first-year head coach Grace Richmeyer, who was the assistant coach for Eckerd College in indoor volleyball.

Originally, the Manatees were scheduled to face St. Pete on August 30, but was postponed due to Hurricane Idalia. Prior to that matchup, the Lady Titans will face Pasco Hernando State Wednesday night, September 6 at 6 pm.

Freshman Madi Phillips leads the way offensively for the Lady Titans as she has 41 kills (most in the south division) and 33 digs in her name. Freshman Lamaya Fuller follows with 35 kills and team-leading 56 digs, while classmate Ahnika 'AJ' Johnston leads the front row defense with seven blocks to go along with 27 kills.

While they are currently 26-30 overall in the series, the Manatees have won the last six straight contests against the Lady Titans (dating back to the 2019 season).

How to Keep Up:

The match against Ave Maria will air of the SCF Volleyball Facebook Live page, while the match against St. Pete will air livestream on the SPC athletics page. Fans can also keep up with the Manatees on all forms of social media.

Livestream Links - 

SCF vs Ave Maria - https://www.facebook.com/SCFvolleyball

SCF vs SPC - https://athletics.spcollege.edu/broadcast/watch

Social Media Links - 

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SCFvolleyball

X - https://twitter.com/SCFVolleyball?s=09

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/volleyball_scf/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y%3D

SCF VB Readies for Sun Lakes Play

Bradenton, Fla - The SCF volleyball team (3-1) will now set their focus on Sun Lakes Conference play for the next matchup. The Manatees will welcome South Florida State College to Hal Chasey Gymnasium for the home opener/conference opener Saturday afternoon, September 2 at 1 pm.

Sun Lakes Standings:

North - 

1. Pensacola (4-0)

2. Gulf Coast State (4-1)

3. Lake Sumter State (3-2)

4. St. John's River State (2-3)

5. Florida State College at Jacksonville (0-0)

South - 

1. SCF (3-1)

2. Pasco Hernando (2-1)

3. South Florida State (0-0)

4. St. Pete (0-2)

5. Palm Beach State (0-4)

Last Time Out:

The Manatees are coming off of completing a tri-match on the road in Cuthbert, Georgia where they shutout both Andrew College and Southern Union State by a score of 3-0. The 3-1 start to their season is the best start for the Manatees since 2015.

Schedule Update:

Originally, the Manatees were scheduled to face St. Pete College Wednesday night, August 29 at 6 pm, however they were forced to make some adjustments to their schedule due to the effects of Hurricane Idalia. The following matches listed are as adjusted:

SCF @ St. Pete - moved to Saturday, September 9 at 1 pm (original date - August 29)

SCF @ Warner University JV/Florida National University JV - cancelled (original date - September 9)

SCF @ Ave Maria - moved to Monday, September 4 at 12 pm (original date - September 8)

Debut of the Architect:

The Manatees have anticipated the official debut for sophomore Amee Beedle. Beedle, who redshirted last season, made her much waited debut in the second game against Southern Union State where she had two kills, four aces and six digs. The native of Wheaton, Illinois joined the Manatees last year after transferring from Vincennes University in Indiana.

Tee Time:

Beedle was not the only one that made her official debut as freshman Teresa Briefeneder would do the same. Briefeneder played in both matchups where she had a total of 14 kills, two assists, two aces, 10 digs and three blocks combined. Additionally, she is the first Austrian to play in an SCF uniform.

Black Widow Killer:

Freshman Charlotte Herman leads the offense for the Manatees with 28 kills, five blocks and 15 digs. She finished with 11 kills and three blocks on the Georgia road trip.

Opportunist Knocks:

Freshman Aleksandra Wrobel had one of her best outings to start the season against Southern Union State where she finished with 11 kills, eight digs and two blocks. Wrobel currently has 23 kills, 14 digs and five blocks (two solo) so far.

Setting the Tones:

The setter duo of freshmen Elise Bakken and Morgan McGuire have been on a consistent path when it comes to assists. Bakken currently has 67 assists in her to go along with six aces and 22 digs, while McGuire has 43 assists, 28 digs and nine aces.

Wild Card Factors:

As far as the wildcard players, sophomores Katie Keefe, Rachel Carroll, Caelan Cook and Bailee Perry and freshman Kat Tallo play the parts.

Keefe has 20 kills, six aces and 39 digs. She had three kills and a dig against Andrew College.

Carroll currently has 22 digs in her name to go along with two assists and two aces. She had 17 combined digs on the road in Georgia, which included a season-high 12 against Southern Union State.

Cook currently has 16 kills, eight digs and two blocks this season.

Perry, who returns from limited playing last season, currently has 22 kills, five aces, 29 digs and three blocks. In the match against Andrew College, Perry had a double-double of 10 kills and 11 digs.

Tallo, a local who has played strong defense in the front and back rows, currently has 16 kills, six assists, two aces, 25 digs and a team-leading 10 blocks. While in Georgia, Tallo had three kills, seven digs and five blocks (one solo).

Scouting South Florida State:

The Lady Panthers finished last season 8-12 overall with a 5-8 record in conference play for a third place finish. They are lead by head coach Kim Crawford, who enters her 21st season as head coach.

They will open their season with their conference opener against St. Pete on Friday afternoon, September 1 at 3 pm prior to playing SCF.

Key returners for the Lady Panthers include Jayleen Santiago (150 kills, 121 digs and 18 blocks), Rachel Skyles (81 kills, 53 digs, 32 blocks), Allie Shaffer (126 kills, 154 digs and 13 blocks) and Danica Metcalf (109 kills and 27 blocks).

The Manatees hold a 28-11 overall record against the Lady Panthers. Last season, both teams split their conference series with the Manatees taking the first match 3-2 in Avon Park, while the Lady Panthers took the second match 3-0 in Bradenton.

How to Keep Up:

The home opener will air on the SCF Sports Network. Fans can also keep up with the Manatees on social media.

Livestream Link -https://portal.stretchinternet.com/scf/

Social Media Links - 

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SCFvolleyball

X - https://twitter.com/SCFVolleyball?s=09

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/volleyball_scf/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y%3D

SCF VB Sweeps in Georgia

Cuthbert, GA - The SCF volleyball team (3-1) wrapped up a successful road trip in Georgia as they swept host Andrew College (0-4) 3-0 (25-12, 25-9, 25-13) before sweeping Southern Union State CC (2-5) 3-0 (25-13, 25-8, 25-17) at Jinks Gymnasium. 

"We knew that these were two teams that we have never played before and expected them to be smaller teams," said head coach Lynn Burnett.  "We expected them to be scrappy and out of system techniques. My focus for them was before we came to the gym that they are mindful of them, but be ready to expect what they have on the court and they managed that extremely well, even after the match while seeing every player play at least one set to see how they managed and they managed really the sets really well."

"The team's mindset was amazing," said sophmore Bailee Perry. "Everyone had great energy and was smiling on and off the court every single second."

"I thought the mindset after both matches was very focused," said sophomore Amee Beedle. "We came in ready to do our jobs, didn't play to the other teams' level and kept it positive throughout each set. There was a lot of good teamwork and trust on the court today."

"I thought the team did a great job with being consistent and staying focused," said freshman Teresa Briefeneder. "Even though there were times in the games where we were ahead of our opponents in points, we kept playing our game and didn't let our opponents get us out of our rhythm,"

"It's always hard to play against someone you never had played before," said freshman Elise Bakken. "I think we did a great job with staying focused on doing the job. I think we had a lot better connection with each other on the court than before and started to get used to playing together. I really had a great time on the court in both matches with my team."

SCF vs Andrew College:

Starting in the first set, the Manatees kept in control even after a couple of setbacks and were able to seal the first set after a Tiger ball-handling error. Heading into the second set, the Manatees found themselves up 7-5 until Perry came in to serve. While she was serving, the Manatees went on a 13-0 run thanks to three Tiger errors, two blocks each by sophomore Emily Lyons and freshman Katrina Tallo, kills by Perry, Lyons, Tallo and sophomore Caealan Cook and three Perry aces. The Tigers secured their next four points before Cook and freshman Teresa Briefeneder sealed the set with back-to-back kills.

Heading into the third set, the Manatees faced a little bit of a rut by being down 8-5, but once again they turned it around with an 8-0 run thanks to two Tiger errors, kills by Perry and freshman Charlotte Herman and three straight aces by freshman Morgan McGuire before Herman sealed the final set with a kill for the sweep.

Perry would lead the way in the first match as she finished with a double-double of 10 kills, 11 digs, three aces and a block.

"I felt like the energy was completely different," said Perry. "We all are playing for each other and I honestly had so much fun laughing on the court and getting so hyped up when we had monster blocks, kills and digs."

Cook and Herman followed with seven kills each. Cook added two digs and a block, while Herman added two blocks (one solo), one assist and six digs to the mix. Briefeneder, who made her debut, rounded out the order with five kills, two aces, seven digs and two blocks (one solo).

In setting, McGuire lead the way with 14 assists, four aces and six digs, while freshman Elise Bakken had 12 assists, four aces and four digs.

Sophomores Kloe Pinto (five digs), Isabella Rebimbas (five digs), Katie Keefe (three kills, two digs and one block), Rachel Carroll (six digs) and Emily Lyons (one kill, one ace, two digs and three blocks) and freshmen Aleksandra Wrobel (three kills and two digs), Katrina Tallo (one kill, one dig and four blocks (one solo)) and Alanna McCaughey (one assist and one dig) also contributed in the match.

For the Tigers, sophomore Kyla Snowden and freshman Katelynn Brannan lead the way in offense with four kills each. Snowden added two digs and Brannan added four assists, one ace, four digs and a block.

Freshman Jordynn Allen had nine assists and eight digs to lead the back row defense, while redshirt sophomore Haylie Poole, a former SCF Manatee, lead the way in front row defense with three solo blocks.

SCF vs Southern Union State:

In the second match against Southern Union State, the results in the sets were similar in the way compared to the match against Andrew and with a 8-0 run in the second set. In the end, the Manatees were able to seal the deal with the sweep.

Wrobel would be the leader offensively as she finished with a match-high 11 kills, eight digs, one assist and two blocks (one solo). Briefeneder would follow with nine kills, two assists, three digs and a block, while Rebimbas rounded out the order with six kills and six digs.

In setting, Bakken lead the way with 21 assists, one ace and five digs, while McGuire finished with seven assists, one ace and eight digs.

Defensively in the back row, Carroll lead the way with 11 digs and two assists, while Beedle added seven digs to go along with two kills and match-leading four aces.

Herman (four kills, four digs and one block), Keefe (four kills, one assist and three digs), Tallo (two kills, one assist, one block and six digs), Cook (one kill and two digs) and Lyons (one ace and six digs) also contributed in the match.

For the Lady Bison, freshmen Abbie Mitchell and Hannah Roa lead the way with four kills and two digs each. Freshman McKenzie Tolbert lead in setting with 14 assists and six digs, while classmate Kate Maule lead the back row defense with eight digs.

After SCF's matches, Southern Union State defeated Andrew College 3-1.

Notes:

• The 3-1 start for the Manatees is their best outing to start the season since the 2015 season.

"My thoughts for that are 'get ready because there is more to come'," said Burnett. "It was a good opportunity for different attackers to connect with their setters and start to run the things we did in practice and had a chance to implement that very. There were some monster kills and monster blocks today to go along with crisp, clean passes and clean play on defense. I'm glad we started it off this way."

"It's always nice to have a great preseason and start with victories, but it doesn't mean that it will be easy," said Bakken. "We need to play each match, each set and each point step by step. I can't wait to see what this team can do for this season."

"I am very impressed on how we are doing in the beginning of the season," said Perry. "Our team this year is full of talented young women who are vey competitive. We are all playing because we love this sport with a passion and that's what I think is different about this year. Nobody is playing because they are forced and even when things get rough we find a way to make it back up."

"I think it's awesome we are setting the tone for the rest of the season positively," said Beedle. "It's always a good sign when the team has good chemistry this early on and hopefully it only grows stronger throughout the rest of the season."

"We have a really strong team this year and are able to play at a really high level which contributed to two amazings wins today," said Briefeneder. "Now we are going to build up on that and keep going in the right direction."

• This was the official season debuts for Briefender and Beedle. Briefeneder was unable to play the first two matches, while Beedle, who transferred from Vincennes University, sat out last season.

"It feels amazing to finally be able to play and be on the court with my team," said Briefeneder on her debut. "It feels even better to attack now and give everything I have on the court."

"It felt really great to be on the court with my teammates," said Beedle on her season debut. "I've grown a lot of love for SCF since I've been here and it's awesome to be able to put my jersey on and represent the school finally on the court as well as off the court. I put a lot of work in over the summer and playing right away after a few weeks off was a little nerve racking, but I felt the support and love from my girls, so that's what helped me get through and do well today."

"Teresa was fantastic and did an amazing job in both matches," said Burnett on Briefeneder. "Her prowlness on the net was amazing to watch and coach. She knows how to read the scramble plays and take the trickle shots that would come to the net. She proved over and over again that she brought value to the team and putting it up for us to help us get the wins today. It was exciting that she got to make her debut that we have been anticipating."

"Amee worked really hard this whole summer, pushing herself hard in each aspect of the game," said Burnett on Beedle's debut. "She gives 110% of her effort in volleyball. She stepped back onto the court with a passion and leadership with no hesitation, played extremely well and gelled quickly with her teammates on the court. I expect big things from her this season."

Other Sun Lakes Scores:

Pasco Hernando State (2-1) opened their season with 3-1 loss to Indian River State (4-0) before defeating Santa Fe College (1-4) and Lurleen B. Wallace CC (1-2) both by a score of 3-1 at the two-day Best Western Gateway Grand Santa Fe College Classic in Gainesville (August 25-26). The Bobcats will wrap up the second day of the classic with a match against Enterprise State CC (4-0).

Lake Sumter State (3-2) swept Spartanburg Methodist (0-2) and USC Union (0-2) both by a score of 3-0 on the first day of the two-day Cape Fear Invitational in Wilmington, North Carolina (August 25-26). The Lakehawks will take on host Cape Fear CC (1-1) and Walters State CC (3-1) on day two of the invitational.

Pensacola State (4-0) defeated Lurleen B. Wallace CC 3-0 on day one of the Best Western Gateway Grand Santa Fe College Classic in Gainesville (August 25-26). The Pirates will take on Enterprise State CC on day two of the invitational.

St. John's River State (2-3) defeated Spartanburg Methodist and upset #1 Richard Bland College (1-1) both by a score of 3-1 on the first day of the two-day Cape Fear Invitational in Wilmington, North Carolina (August 25-26). The Vikings will take on USC Union and Walters State CC on day two of the invitational.

Palm Beach State (0-4) fell to #1 Florida Southwestern (6-0) and Daytona State (6-2) both by a score of 3-0 on day one of the two-day Adventures in Paradise Battle at the Beach Tournament (August 25-26). The Panthers will take on Hillsborough (5-2) and Polk State (0-2) on day two of the the tournament.

Sun Lakes Standings:

North - 

1. Pensacola (4-0)

2. Gulf Coast State (4-1)

3. Lake Sumter State (3-2)

4. St. John's River State (2-3)

5. Florida State College at Jacksonville (0-0)

South - 

1. SCF (3-1)

2. Pasco Hernando (2-1)

3. South Florida State (0-0)

4. St. Pete (0-2)

5. Palm Beach State (0-4)

Up Next:

The Manatees wrap up their five-match road trip with their Sun Lakes Conference opener against St. Pete College Wednesday night, August 30 at 6 pm before hosting their home opener against South Florida State College Saturday afternoon, September 2 at 1 pm.

SCF VB Set for Out of State Trip

Bradenton, Fla - After a modest start to their season, the SCF volleyball team (1-1) will look to the momentum with another bang on the road. The Manatees will travel to Cuthbert, Georgia for their next road trip as they will play Andrew College (0-2) and Southern Union State CC (0-5) in a tri-match Friday afternoon, August 25 at 2 and 4 pm at Jinks Gymnasium. This will be the first time the Manatees play both teams.

Last Time Out:

The Manatees are coming off of opening their season on the road with a split in a tri-match against Warner University JV and Webber International University JV. They would defeat Webber 3-0 before falling to Warner by a score of 3-2. The opening win against Webber was the first time since 2016 that the Manatees started the season with a win.

Debuts:

Seven of the newcomers for the Manatees made their official on-court debuts. Those players are sophomore Katie Keefe and freshmen Alanna McCaughey, Charlotte Herman, Katrina Tallo, Elise Bakken, Aleksandra Wrobel and Morgan McGuire.

Keefe joined the Manatees after playing beach volleyball her freshman year at Stetson University. The native of London, England currently has 13 kills, five aces, two assists and 42 digs, which included a 25 dig game against Warner that earned her a spot in the FCSAA 25 Dig Club. Historically, she is the first player from the United Kingdom to play for the volleyball program and the first transfer from an NCAA DI university.

McCaughey only played in the first match against Webber International where she had nine digs, three aces and five assists.

Herman has 16 kills, six digs and five blocks (two solo) in her debut. The native of Memphis, Tennessee joined after graduating from Venice High School.

Tallo, a local from Sarasota, has 14 kills, 20 digs, five assists, three blocks (two solo) and two aces from both matches.

Bakken, who hails from Norway, currently has 36 assists, one ace and 16 digs in her name. In the second match against Warner, Bakken almost secured her first collegiate double-double where she had 22 assists and eight digs. She is the first Norwegian to play for SCF.

Wrobel, a native of Poland, currently has nine kills, five digs and three blocks this season. She is the first Polish to play for SCF.

McGuire has 22 assists, 18 digs and four aces. Like Bakken, McGuire also almost secured her first collegiate double-double in the match against Warner where she finished with 15 assists and nine digs.

From the returners standpoint, sophomore Bailee Perry, Caelan Cook, Isabella Rebimbas and Rachel Carroll were the only returners that played in the season opener.

Perry has 12 kills, 28 digs, two aces and three blocks, while Cook had 10 kills and five digs, Rebimbas had one kill and one dig and Carroll had two aces and four digs.

Scouting Andrew College:

Andrew College hails from Cuthbert, Georgia and represents NJCAA Region 17 (Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association). They are lead by second year head coach Cara Tafoya and are coming off of finishing last season 5-17 overall. They are the only community college in Georgia that has a volleyball team.

The Lady Tigers have opened their season on the road for the first two matches with 3-0 losses to Coastal Alabama - East and Reindhart University JV.

Key returners for the Lady Tigers include Kyla Snowden (47 kills, four aces, nine digs and four blocks), Skylar Paul (16 kills, five aces and 20 digs), Zarria Smith (44 digs, four aces, two assists and three kills) and former SCF Manatee Haylie Poole (16 kills and 19 blocks [15 solo]).

Scouting Southern Union State:

Southern Union State hails from Wesley, Alabama and represents the Alabama Community College Conference (NJCAA Region 22) and are lead by head coach Ametrice Jackson. The Lady Bison are coming off of finishing last season 7-24 overall with a 4-20 record in the ACCC.

The Lady Bison have already opened their season at Roane State Tournament in Harriman, Tennessee where they lost the first three matches for their four matches. They would fall to USC Lancaster (3-1), Wallace State (3-0) and host Roane State (3-0) before defeating Bevill State (3-2) in the final match of the tournament before losing 3-1 to Snead State.

The majority of the Lady Bison roster are freshmen. with the only player returning being Morgan Godwin. Godwin finished her freshman campaign with 259 assists, 86 kills, 94 digs, 25 aces and 26 blocks. 

How to Keep Up:

All three matches will air on the Andrew College Digital Network YouTube Page and fans can keep up the Manatees on all social media platforms.

Livestream Link - https://www.youtube.com/@AndrewCollegeDigitalNetwork/featured

Social Media - 

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SCFvolleyball

Twitter - https://twitter.com/SCFVolleyball?s=09

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/volleyball_scf/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y%3D

SCF Splits First Two Matches

Babson Park, Fla - The SCF volleyball team (1-1) opened their season with a split in their season opener as they shutout Webber International JV (0-1) 3-0 (25-19, 25-20, 25-20) before falling to Warner University JV (1-0) 3-0 (22-25, 25-18, 25-21, 24-26, 13-15). With the split, the Manatees are now 7-1 against the Lady Warriors and 0-1 against the Lady Royals.

SCF vs Webber International JV:

The first set between the teams was nearly neck and neck. The Lady Warriors went up by as much as six points, but the Manatees refused to be down and fought their way back to the lead as they took the first set off of a tip kill by sophomore Caelan Cook.

Heading into the second set, the Manatees experienced nearly the same, but key digs from Keefe and an ace by Perry gave the Manatees the second set.

Going into the final set, the Manatees started off slow in the first three points after being down 2-1, but a 5-0 run thanks to a Warrior service error, a solo block and kill by Perry and back-to-back kills from freshman Kat Tallo, the Manatees took the lead 6-2 before a timeout was called. The Lady Warriors continued to creep up on the Manatees' lead, but the Manatees remain stubborn towards them as freshman Alanna McCaughey would seal the deal with a final ace to give the Manatees the first win of the season.

Perry and freshman Charlotte Herman would lead the way for the Manatees offensively as they each had six kills. Perry added nine digs, an ace and a block, while Herman added a dig.

Tallo and sophomore Katie Keefe followed with five kills each. Tallo added a dig and four blocks (two solo), while Keefe added nine digs, three aces and one assist.

Freshman Elise Bakken lead the way in setting as she finished with 12 assists and five digs, while classmate Morgan McGuire finished with seven assists, five digs and an ace.

Defensively, apart from Keefe and Perry's digs, McCaughey had eight digs, three aces and four assists.

Cook (one kill, one block and two digs) and freshman Aleksandra Wrobel (four kills and three digs) also contributed in the match.

SCF vs Warner:

All five sets were non-stop neck-and-neck with both teams exchanging leads. In the end, the Lady Royals emerged victorious in the fifth set.

Herman would lead the way offensively in the second match as she finished with 11 kills, one assist, four digs and two blocks. Keefe and Tallo would follow with eight kills each. Keefe added a team-leading 25 digs and three aces, while Tallo added five assists, two aces, one block and 17 digs. In fact, both were two kills shy of their first collegiate double-double.

Cook finished with seven kills and two digs while Perry rounded out the order with six kills, nine digs, one ace and one block and Wrobel added two digs and two blocks.

Both Bakken and McGuire were one and two digs shy of securing their first collegiate double-doubles in assists and digs. Bakken finished with 22 assists, eight digs and an ace, while McGuire finished with 15 assists, nine digs and three aces.

Wrobel (five kills, one dig and three blocks (one solo)) and sophomores Isabella Rebimbas (one kill) and Rachel Carroll (two aces and five digs) also contributed in the match.

Notes:

The Manatees opened the season with a win for the first time since 2016.

This was the debuts for McCaughey, Herman, Bakken, Wrobel, Tallo, McGuire and Keefe. Keefe joined as a transfer from Stetson University.

Keefe's 25 digs put her on the FCSAA 25 Dig Club.

Other Sun Lakes Scores:

Palm Beach State (0-2) opened their season in Fort Pierce as they fell to Indian River State (2-0) and Hillsborough (2-0) both by a score of 3-0. The Panthers will head to Fort Myers to take on #1 Florida Southwestern (NJCAA DI), Daytona State (3-2), Hillsborough and Polk State for the two-day Adventures in Paradise Battle at the Beach Tournament (August 25-26).

St. Pete (0-1) opened their season with a 3-0 loss to #18 Eastern Florida State (NJCAA DI) (1-0). The Titans will face Hillsborough Monday night, August 21 at 6 pm.

#15 Gulf Coast State (3-1) opened their season in Rockford, Illinois with the three-day NJCAA Opening Weekend Tournament. They would upset #10 Kirkwood CC (3-1) 3-2 and #3 Parkland College (3-1) 3-1 on day one before splitting day with a 3-1 loss to #4 Johnson County CC (4-0) 3-1 and a 3-1 upset win over #6 Grand Rapids CC (2-2). The Commodores will return to Panama City to welcome Coastal Alabama - Bay Minette Thursday night, August 24 at 6 pm EST/5 pm CDT.

Pensacola State (3-0) opened their season with a tri-match at home before heading on the road. In the tri-match, they would sweep Northwest Mississippi CC (0-4) and Coastal Alabama - East (0-1) by a score of 3-0 before defeating Pensacola Christian 3-1 on the road. The Pirates will travel to Gainesville to take on Lurleen B. Wallace CC, Enterprise State CCand Santa Fe (1-1) in the two-day Best Western Gateway Grand Santa Fe College Classic (August 25-26).

Lake Sumter State (0-2) opened their season in Fort Pierce with two 3-1 losses over Indian River State and Hillsborough. The Lakehawks will welcome Santa Fe for their home opener Tuesday night, August 22 at 6 pm.

Sun Lakes Standings:

North - 

1. Pensacola State College (3-0)

2. #15 Gulf Coast State (3-1)

3. Florida State College at Jacksonville (0-0)

4. St. John's River State (0-0)

5. Lake Sumter State College (0-2)

South - 

1. SCF (1-1)

2. Pasco-Hernando State College (0-0)

3. South Florida State College (0-0)

4. St. Pete College (0-1)

5. Palm Beach State (0-2)

Up Next:

The Manatees remain on the road for the next two matches as they travel to Cuthbert, Georgia to take on Andrew College and Southern Union State College (0-4) in a tri-match Friday afternoon, August 25 at 2 and 4 pm (2 pm vs Andrew; 4 pm vs Southern Union State).

SCF Volleyball Opens Season on the Road

Bradenton, Fla - The SCF volleyball team look to kickoff the 2023 season with a bang on the weekend. The Manatees will travel to Babson Park for a tri-match against Webber International University JV and Warner University JV Saturday afternoon, August 19 at 12 and 2 pm (12 vs Webber International; 2 pm vs Warner University).

Last Time Out:

The Manatees are coming off finishing last season 12-15 overall with a 5-8 record in the Sun Lakes Conference - South Division. They would finish second in conference play and secure a spot in the FCSAA DII Region 8 State Tournament as the #7 seed where they fell in three sets to Gulf Coast State. It was the Manatees' first playoff appearance since 2014. Additionally, this was their first year in division two.

The Manatees are lead by head coach Lynn Burnett. Burnett enters her fourth official season as head coach for the Manatees after being named the interim head coach during the 2019 season.

Burnett is assisted by second year assistant coach Craig Wolfe and first-year assistant coach Amanda Black.

Wolf, who joined the Manatees last season, was a high school head coach for Out-of-Door Academy and Riverview High School in Sarasota. He brings over 40 years of coaching experience to help Burnett out.

Black joins the Manatees after spending the last two seasons as the head coach for Amarillo College in Amarillo, Texas. A native of Georgetown, Texas, Black, the wife of former MLB pitcher, Vic Black, began her collegiate coaching career at Hill College in Hillsboro, Texas. After coaching for Adidas 15 junior volleyball club, she would become the head coach for Frank Phillips College in Borger, Texas before taking the head coach position at Amarillo College.

Prior to coaching, Black began her playing career as a setter at Temple College in Temple, Texas where she was an All-American honorable mention during her sophomore year and piled together over 1,600 assists to help lead the Leopards to the NJCAA National Tournament (2011). She then transferred to Stephen F. Austin University where she finished her collegiate career there.

Last Season Sun Lakes Standings:

North - 

1. #19 Gulf Coast State (22-3, 10-3)

2. RV Pensacola State (24-7, 10-3)

3. St. John's River (20-14, 9-4)

4. Florida State College at Jacksonville (9-7, 7-6)

5. Lake Sumter State (10-15, 3-10)

South - 

1. Palm Beach State (11-6, 9-4)

2. SCF (12-15, 5-8)

3. South Florida State (8-11, 5-8)

4. St. Pete (8-11, 4-9)

5. Pasco-Hernando State (8-16, 3-10)

Passing the Torches:

With a new season comes a new team as the Manatees will lose six players from last season: Lana Sandanom, Lison Stoffel, Shelby McGee, Haley Rhoads, Kendall Steinert and Katarina McCall. McGee, Steinert and McCall have all transferred to the university level to continue playing collegiate volleyball.

Sandanom, a native of Toulouse, France, finished her sophomore campaign with 191 kills, 24 digs and 16 blocks before ending her season early due to a knee injury.

Stoffel graduated in the fall and will be attending Lunex University in Differdange, Luxembourg. The Alsace, France native finished her third season of volleyball with 43 aces, 42 kills and 86 assists. She finished her career with 534 assists (224 with SCF; 310 with Independence CC), 65 aces and 538 digs (336 with SCF).

McGee will be transferring to the Nicholls State University in Thibadoux, Louisiana with two years of eligibility remaining. McGee finished her sophomore campaign with 345 digs, 23 aces, 43 assists and 12 kills.

Rhoads departed from the team due to personal reasons. She lead the way offensively and defensively with 211 kills, 12 aces, 75 digs and 54 blocks (14 solo) in her lone season for the Manatees. Additionally, she was named a member of the All-Sun Lakes Second Team.

Steinert transferred to Webber International University to play indoor and beach volleyball with three years of eligibility for both. Steinert lead the way in assists in her lone season on the indoor team with 866 assists, 38 aces, 65 kills, 288 digs, 41 blocks and 17 double-doubles (assists and digs). Additionally, she was named a member of the All-Sun Lakes First Team and earned FCSAA DII Setter of the Week three times as well as earning NJCAA Offensive Player of the Week on one occasion.

McCall, who joined the Manatees after spending her freshman year at Penn State University - Beaver (USCAA), has transferred to Ave Maria University (NAIA) to play for both indoor and beach volleyball. She will two years of eligibility remaining. McCall played in six matches with the Manatees where she had 10 aces, 13 digs and four assists before parting ways.

Welcoming the New Bloods:

Despite the departures, Burnett was able to bring in 10 newcomers to join the indoor team. Five are international, three are transfers and four are local products.

Jaycie Sheean:

A middle blocker/right side hitter/setter from Rockford, Illinois, Sheean joins the Manatee as a transfer from Purdue University - Northwest (NCAA DII). She will have one year of eligibility remaining and will be the first NCAA DII player to join the Manatees' volleyball team. Sheean will sit out and redshirt for the 2023 season.

As a member of the Lions, she played in five matches (two starts) where she produced five kills, two digs and eight blocks. 

Prior to Purdue Northwest, Sheean played at Lutheran High School in Rockford, Illinois where she played all four years on varsity for the Crusaders and finished her career with 394 kills, 112 aces, 136 digs and 93 blocks (57 solo). Additionally, she helped the Crusaders to two appearances in the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) State Tournament, which included a fourth place finish during her sophomore year and was named a member of the All-Big Northern Second Team. Her senior year was her most productive as she finished with 163 kills, 23 aces, 54 blocks (14 solo) and 40 digs.

Katie Keefe:

An outside hitter from London, England, Keefe joins the Manatees for the fall semester after transferring from the beach volleyball team at Stetson University. She will then be transferring to Grand Canyon University spring 2024 to play for their beach volleyball team. Historically, she will be the first English-born volleyball player to play for SCF as well as the first NCAA DI transfer in program history to join the team.

As a freshman for the Lady Hatters beach team, Keefe played majorly in extra matches, but played one match at the #5 pair. Despite only playing that the one sanctioned match, she was named a member of the ASUN Academic Honor Roll while being a part of the Lady Hatters' run of winning the ASUN Conference Beach Volleyball Tournament and qualifying for the NCAA Beach Volleyball Championship as the #18 team in the nation.

Prior to Stetson, Keefe was enrolled at the London Oratory School. While doing that, she has competed in several indoor volleyball tournaments in Europe. She was named the best outside hitter at the 2019 NEVZA U17 Tournament and MVP three times for indoor while winning four gold and silver medals. 

In beach volleyball, Keefe and her partner, Isabelle Tucker, have competed in five beach volleyball tournaments in Europe where they won a gold and silver medal in the European Championship and a gold in the NEVZA U19 Beach Volleyball Tournament. 

Earlier this year, Keefe competed in the FIBV World Tour in Madrid, Spain (May 17-May 21) with Tucker with a 13th place finish, the CEV Beach Volleyball Nations Cup in Budapest, Hungary where they finished in fifth place and recently U22 CEV European Championship in Romania where finished ninth.

Aleksandra Wrobel:

A left-handed opposite hitter from Sosnoweic, Poland, Wrobel joins SCF after recently playing for her U20 club team, Trans-Ann Ptomein Sosnowiec in Sosnowiec, Poland. She will be the first Polish player for SCF volleyball.

With Trans-Ann Ptomein, she helped them to a 21-10 record in club play.

Elise Bakken:

A setter from Oslo, Norway, Bakken joins the Manatees after playing club volleyball for Koll IL II and Oslo Volley. She will be the first Norwegian to play for SCF volleyball.

During her tenures with Oslo Volley, she has competed in the Norwegian Cup and the Norwegian league Tournament during the 2020-21 year where her team finished in the top 10.

Theresa Briefeneder:

A middle blocker from Seekirchen, Austria, Briefender joins the Manatees after playing club volleyball for UVV Seekirchen. There, she helped them to a 7th place finish at the Austrian League II Tournament.  Briefender will be the first Austrian to play for SCF volleyball.

Alannah McCaughey:

McCaughey, a local product and libero from Punta Gorda, joins the Manatees after graduating from Charlotte High School. As a member of the Tarpons for her last two seasons on varsity, McCaughey finished with 42 aces and 287 digs. During those last two seasons, she helped the Tarpons to two straight appearances in the regional semifinals of the FHSAA 5A State Tournament.

Additionally, she played on Charlotte High School's beach volleyball team and helped the Tarpons to the FHSAA Beach Volleyball Championship State Tournament in the program's second season.

Charlotte Herman:

Herman, a middle blocker from Memphis, Tennessee, joins the Manatees after graduating from Venice High School. She played her last two seasons on the Indians' varsity squad where she accumulated 21 kills in her career. 

During her senior year, despite playing in only four sets overall due to injury, Herman was still a part of Venice's run in FHSAA 7A as they went 22-4 overall a 3-0 record in districts. They were named the 7A District 12 Regular Season Champions before winning the FHSAA 7A State Volleyball Tournament after defeating Hagerty High School 3-1 to take the title for their fourth time in 7A.

Herman also plays beach volleyball and helped the Indians to two straight appearances in the FHSAA Beach Volleyball State Tournament.

Katrina Tallo:

A middle blocker and local product from Sarasota, Tallo joins the Manatees after playing her last year at the Classical Academy of Sarasota. As a member of the Patriots, Tallo finished her lone season with 101 kills, 27 aces, three blocks and 92 digs, while helping them to the the FHSAA 2A District Tournament. One of her best matches was in a 3-2 loss to Sarasota Christian where she finished with a double-double of 23 kills, 13 digs and eight aces.

Prior to Classical Academy, Tallo played her freshman year with the Gulf Coast Heat where she had four kills and 10 digs.

Like McCaughy and Herman, Tallo also plays beach volleyball for the Patriots in which she helped the them to an appearance in the FHSAA Beach Volleyball State Championship Tournament.

Morgan McGuire:

A setter from Dover, Florida, McGuire joins the Manatees after graduating from Strawberry Crest High School. As a member of the Chargers, McGuire played her last two seasons on varsity where finished her career with 813 assists, 207 digs, 71 aces, 62 kills and 10 blocks. During her junior year, she helped the Chargers to an appearance in the FHSAA 6A State Volleyball Tournament. Her senior year was the most productive year as she finished with 526 assists, 146 digs, 43 aces and 55 kills.

Mailyenid Vazquez:

A defensive specialist and local product from Bradenton via Puerto Rico, joins the Manatees as a walk-on after transferring from Johnson University - Florida (NCCAA) in Kissimmee. She will have one year of eligibility remaining and will be the first transfer from an NCCAA university, but will sit out for the 2023 season.

As a member of the Suns during the 2021 season, Vazquez finished her lone season with 43 kills, 15 assists, 14 aces and 206 digs before leaving the team due to personal reasons. She did help the Suns to the 2021 NCCAA DII Volleyball National Championship that they hosted.

Prior to Johnson University, Vazquez played at Braden River High School (2020) where she helped them to the semifinals of the FHSAA 6A District Tournament.

Bringing Back Experience:

With the 10 newcomers joining the team, Burnett was able to bring back eight sophomores to rejoin the team: Bailee Perry, Rachel Carroll, Amee Beedle, Isabella Rebimbas, Caelan Cook, Kloe Pinto, Emily Lyons and Shelby Pillow.

Perry, who has been limited on playing due to injury, finished her freshman campaign with 48 kills, eight aces, 110 digs (sixth most on the team) and 11 blocks. She produce her first collegiate double-double against South Florida State (9/17/22: 10 kills and 18 blocks) and set a career-high 28 digs against Gulf Coast State (11/4/22) in the NJCAA Region 8 DII State Tournament.

Carroll, who rotated as starting libero and defensive specialist off the bench, finished her freshman campaign with 178 digs (fifth most on the team), 21 assists and 19 aces. She produced 10 plus digs in seven of her matches, which included 15 against Palm Beach State.

Beedle returns to the Manatees after redshirting last season. The native of Wheaton, Illinois joined the Manatees after transferring from Vincennes University (NJCAA) in Indiana during the 2022 season.

Rebimbas, the hybrid of the Manatees, finished last season with 190 kills (fourth most on the team), 16 aces, 292 digs (second most on the team) and 22 blocks. She was named a member of the All-Sun Lakes Second Team.

Cook finished her freshman campaign with 192 kills (third most on the team), 92 digs and 17 blocks, which included her first collegiate double-double against Moraine Valley CC (8/19/22).

Pinto finished her freshman campaign with five kills, three assists, two aces and 15 digs.

Lyons finished her freshman year with 14 kills, seven digs and two blocks.

Pillow, the leader in blocking, finished her first year with 172 kills (fifth most on the team), 23 digs and 73 blocks (23 solo). During the middle of the season, the native of Athens, Georgia was ranked in the top 100 in the nation kills and blocks.

Scouting Webber International JV:

Webber International represents the Sun Conference in the NAIA and are lead by first-year head coach Justin Dee. Dee joined Webber after spending his previous season as an assistant coach for Rollins College (NCAA DII)

The Lady Warriors are coming off of finishing their previous season 2-11 overall with a 2-4 record in the Sun Conference.

The Lady Warriors will look to bring back all 15 returners from the previous season. Additionally, they will have key returners which include former SCF Manatee Bailey Sikkema (2019-20). Former Manatees Kendall Steinert (2022) and Anna Chechelynska (2021-22) have also joined the Lady Warriors.

Scouting Warner University:

Like Webber International, Warner represents the Sun Conference in the NAIA. They are lead by head coach Linda Pai, who enters her second season as head coach.

The Lady Royals are coming off of finishing last season 4-21 overall with a 1-13 record in the Sun Conference.

Possible key returners include Karla Rodriguez (294 digs, 13 aces and 48 assists), Maja Auer (286 assists, 19 aces and 82 digs), Leah Cooley (122 kills, 104 digs and 19 blocks), Emily Via (100 kills and 53 blocks), TarriAnne Henry (124 kills and 19 blocks) and Talia Gonzalez (62 kills, 32 digs and 38 blocks).

Series History:

While it is the first time the Manatees play the Lady Royals, they are no strangers to the Lady Warriors as they hold a 6-1 record overall.

How to Keep Up:

All three matches will likely air on the Sun Conference Digital Network and fans can keep up with the Manatees on all forms of social media.

Livestream Link - https://thesundigitalnetwork.com/webberinternational/?B=547711

Social Media - 

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SCFvolleyball

Twitter - https://twitter.com/SCFVolleyball?s=09

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/volleyball_scf/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y%3D