By BRENDAN HALL
Up 15-14 in the fifth set, sophomore Megan Chavalier went up for a kill against the 24-5 Lake Mary Rams and, as the ball fell to the ground, the crowd stood frozen in time before erupting into a deafening roar; the Lady Braves volleyball team was moving on to the Regional Finals.
From the opening serve the game was a constant give and take as both teams fought to take an early lead. Led by senior Jesse Collins and her solid passing, the braves edged out the 8 ranked Rams 27-25 to take the first game.
But after a positive start the team’s passing began to disintegrate as they lost the next two sets 23-25 and 19-25. Coach Mike Ladewski benched senior Taylor Menk in the third game due to poor setting. Enetering the fourth game the Lady Braves were in need of a spark.
That spark came from the front line who came up with some big kills and even bigger blocks. The team dominated the fourth game, taking it 25-15 and forcing a fifth set.
However, the girls faltered early, going down 10-2 to start the game, placing the girls on the brink of elimination as the fifth game is played to 15 points. Coach Mike Ladewski called a timeout and the team responded with a 14-4 run to win the game 16-14.
In the Regional Finals the team plays 27-2 DeLand on Saturday, Nov. 13, in the Wayne Rickman Gymnasium.