The tradition-rich Merritt Island volleyball program added more hardware on Thursday at Satellite High School as the Mustangs earned the Cape Coast Conference beach volleyball championship after wins over Satellite and Viera.
“For a program, it gives us a lot of confidence,” said Merritt Island head coach Angie Patrick. “We’ve worked very, very hard for it. The girls have worked hard for it so we know it’s been a battle all season with these three schools, with Viera, Satellite and us so it’s just really cool to come out on top.”
Merritt Island (12-3 in the regular season, per MaxPreps) first defeated Satellite 3-2 in a close best-of-five semifinal matchup prior to the final.
Each winning Mustang tandem earned 2-0 victories in wins over Satellite (11-5). The pair of Delaney Petit and Reece Loggins won by a 21-11, 21-19 score while Bella Becker and Amber Ives won by a 21-10, 21-16 count. Finally, Peyton Riordan and Whitney Wisniewski tallied wins of 22-20 and 21-19 in their matchup.
Immediately following that, the Mustangs defeated a Viera team 3-0 that had previously defeated them 3-2 on March 2 in a regular season contest.
The pair of Khloe Horton and Gena Walters registered a 21-17, 21-15 win over Viera (10-3) while Becker and Ives won 21-16, 21-16. Riordan and Wisniewski were victorious by a 21-12, 21-18 margin to complete a sweep for the Mustangs.
“It means a lot ‘cause we’ve gone through a lot as a team,” said Becker on winning the championship. “We’ve lost some players to injury and it was just really cool to see everybody come together and defend our crown.”
Two other matches that had the first two sets split were not concluded once the best-of-5 had been clinched for Merritt Island as per an agreement between MIHS and Viera prior to the matches.
The CCC win was the latest in a myriad of victories over the last several years for Merritt Island in volleyball. The Mustangs advanced all the way to the Florida High School Athletic Association’s Class 4A state championship game in the fall.
“I feel like most players coming from indoor to beach, we’re already all so close,” said Delaney Petit, the team’s lone senior.
Patrick also discussed what her team she felt her team showed during the victories.
“In one word, grit,” Patrick said. “That is the most grit I’ve seen them just dig through. It’s hot. You’re trying to be strategic and there’s frustration and all these kind of things but they really dug in and super proud of them.”
Becker also offered praise for the MIHS coaching staff.
“We just have an amazing bond and we have great coaches that not only train us on the court but also off the court and just create a family chemistry on our team,” Becker added.