CRYSTAL RIVER – Hernando and Weeki Wachee have met in a district championship match the past three seasons. But each time, the losing team could rest easy knowing it had a trip to regionals in its back pocket.
There was no such safety net on Tuesday night, when the county rivals squared off in the postseason for the fourth year in a row, but this time in the Class 6A, District 7 semifinals at Crystal River.
The Lady Leopards had captured both regular-season meetings, yet the Lady Hornets won when it mattered most, collecting a 25-18, 25-27, 25-10, 25-20 victory.
“During the season I guess it was just one of those things, just didn’t get that rhythm going, mistakes happened at the wrong time,” Weeki Wachee head coach Kelly Werkmeister said. “But this was the game that we practiced hard for, we knew that this was the team that stood in our way and the girls executed very well.
“It was just the play, the teamwork, everybody talking. It was not just one, but the whole team that played tonight.”
The third-seeded Lady Hornets (17-8), district champions a year ago, will face top seed and host Crystal River on Thursday at 7 p.m. They’ll also head to regionals for the fourth consecutive season.
“It feels great. We feel blessed. We worked for this because we knew we would be playing (Hernando),” senior setter Sarah Asbury said. “I think we were more spirited tonight. We were really feeling it.”
A tight opening game was won by Weeki Wachee when libero Amber Paulsen served the final four points, and the Lady Hornets were poised to go up 2-0 leading the second game 24-21.
However, Hernando (16-6) forced a side-out, and ended up tying the score at 24 on an ace by Ashley King. After Miranda Werkmeister’s kill put the Lady Hornets back in front, 25-24, the Lady Leopards managed to stave off game point again.
Ali Bronson’s kill gave Hernando a 26-25 advantage, and her block ended the set and knotted up the match.
That momentum would vanish in a heartbeat. Weeki Wachee forced a side-out to start the third game, followed by 12 points served by Asbury, featuring two aces, to open up a 13-0 lead.
“I was just serving. The rhythm was there for us,” Asbury said. “Just keep going, get as many as I can, get the lead as fast as I can.”
“That was pretty big. We kept the pressure on them and that’s what we had to do. We had to just keep on pouncing, keep the pressure on them, keep the pressure on them. That’s where they prevailed from there,” Coach Werkmeister said. “Even though a 13-point lead, they knew that they didn’t have to stop. They had to keep on pushing, they had to finish.”
In the fourth, the Lady Hornets scored 7-of-8 points to turn a 17-17 tie into a 24-18 edge. A block by Taylor Miller concluded the contest.
“We looked at this game as if it was going to be a very good game. It was like to us it was a final no matter what, because both teams were very competitive, and it was a great game either way,” Coach Werkmeister said. “Both teams, especially with Hernando, they played awesome. They played with a lot of heart.
“But in the end, just mistakes that happened both ways, but we just kept on pushing. It was one of the games that these girls did not want to give up on.”
Bronson had 20 kills for the Lady Leopards. Miranda Werkmeister tallied 16 kills and 22 digs, and Brooke Sereda had 13 kills. Paulsen totaled 21 digs, while Asbury posted 44 assists.
“We’re going to go practice hard (Wednesday) and be ready and go from there,” Coach Werkmeister said. “Whether we take first or second, we’ll take it and we’re going on to regionals. That’s the way we look at it.”
In the second semifinal, fourth-seeded Nature Coast lost to Crystal River, 25-23, 25-22, 25-20. The Lady Sharks (14-9) were led by Faith Williams with 13 kills and Madison Clark with 12.
Follow Chris Bernhardt Jr. on Twitter @cpbernhardtjr.