NEW SMYRNA BEACH — Two New Smyrna Beach duos made their comebacks at the same time to polish off another playoff victory.
The second-seeded Barracudas beat No. 3 Satellite 4-1 in the Region 2-2A beach volleyball semifinals on April 30. It was a flip of the March 11 result between the two clubs, when the Scorpions edged the Barracudas 3-2.
And it pushed New Smyrna Beach (15-5) to the region finals. It will travel to top-seeded Merritt Island on May 5.
“To see it come out in a game like that and for them to play at their peak against a really, really good Satellite team, that’s what it’s all about,” coach Jonathan Cunningham said. “That’s why you put in the work. That’s why you work all offseason. That’s why you practice for moments like that. The moment wasn’t too big for them.”
The Barracudas split the first two matches in two sets apiece. Freshmen Della McLaughlin and Avery O’Brien lost at Line 5, but juniors Kate Collins and Laila Parnell triumphed at Line 4.
O’Brien and Collins each jumped up a line due to the absence of usual Line 4 starter Jasmine Mahoney.
Then, New Smyrna Beach’s top pairing, seniors Bailey Jones and Teagan Lux, made quick work at Line 1. That put the Barracudas up 2-1, needing just one more point to seal the victory.
“To, right away, get their point and make it 2-1, that’s huge,” Cunningham said. “It takes a lot of pressure off everybody else. They played well.”
Cue the comebacks.
On the Line 2 court, seniors Savannah Toler and Unity Buker trailed 14-11 in the third set.
In Line 3 action, senior Paige Taylor and junior Mollie Hale claimed the first set but fell behind 14-7 in the second.
With Hale serving, she and Taylor rattled off six consecutive points to get back into it.
Two courts over, Toler and Buker rallied back to knot the score at 14 and force overtime in the win-by-two tiebreaking set. Buker put down the clinching kill.
“I was definitely really nervous, but I was confident in me and my teammate,” Toler said. “I knew we had improved so much throughout the season, so I was just confident in our abilities and all our hard work.”
Moments later, Hale served an ace for a Line 3 win and a cherry on top.
“I was just hyperfocused,” Taylor said. “I didn’t know (Toler and Buker) went to a third set at all.”
She added: “I think we really have improved a lot since March, whenever it was that we played them. We’ve gotten a lot more consistent. That’s what we’ve been trying to practice on, is consistency. I think everybody came out today and was really consistent.”
New Smyrna Beach certainly has been steady as a program. Its showdown with Merritt Island will be its fifth straight regional finals appearance. The Barracudas are vying for their fifth state tournament berth in a row.
“I’m just so proud of them,” Cunningham said.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: New Smyrna Beach comes up clutch in beach volleyball region semifinals
Reporting by Chris Vinel, Daytona Beach News-Journal / The Daytona Beach News-Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
