The 2023 boys’ volleyball season got underway earlier this month, and defending champion Celebration will be among the favorites when the Orange Belt Conference Championship Tournament is contested April 10-13.
Under Coach Pedro Davila, the Storm is coming off an outstanding 21-3 season and advanced to the second round of the FHSAA state playoffs where they lost to eventual state Final Four participant Tampa Bay HEAT.
Davila returns a lot of firepower from that team, including senior Libero Keith Harrison, the 2022 OBC Player of the Year, as well as All-OBC selections senior outside hitter Darion Graham and senior middle blocker Victor Binet. All three have already inked letters-of-intent to play at the college level.
Oliver Binet (Setter) was a freshman starter last season and returns with a full year of experience in managing the Storm offense. Fellow sophomore Danny Santiago is expected to be an impact player at outside hitter. Alex Aparicio and Jahazel Rivera are capable defensive specialists, while Julio Tova and Noah Ferman will handle middle blocker duties.
Celebration’s 3-4 start is misleading — two losses in five sets and came against a tough schedule that’a included Lake Nona, Lake Mary, Winter Park and Bartram Trail.
“We fully expect to establish ourselves as OBC and District favorites and make a strong run in the FHSAA post-season,” Davila said.
Coming off a 12-8 campaign, Coach Eric Capestany believes this could be the best Tohopekaliga team in the school’s brief five-year history. Early results back that notion up as the team gotten off to a 7-2 start, including an impressive 25-22, 25-18, 25-16 sweep of rival St. Cloud Tuesday.
Top players include Eliel Salva (Sr., outside hitter, 198 kills, 65 blocks, 34 aces in 2022); Elijah Foster (Sr., setter, 438 assists, 73 kills, 32 blocks, 94 digs); and Jevon Andrew-Brown (Sr., middle hitter, 65 kills, 37 blocks). Against the Bulldogs, Silva had five kills and three aces. Andrew-Brown, the defending county long jump champion, had six kills and a block against St. Cloud; while Lucas Nieves had a huge game against St. Cloud with nine kills, three aces and a block. Newcomer sophomore hitters Aniel Soto Boschetti and Jayden Barthelemy will also factor into the Tigers lineup.
“Lucas helps solidify an already potent offense with Salva and Foster. Track-Star Jevon Andrew-Brown has been a force in the middle and has provided speed and power to our lineup,” Capestany said. “Recording 15-plus wins, challenging for the OBC and District titles and making a run into the post-season are certainly reachable goals for this team.”
The win against the Bulldogs was Tohopekaliga’s 100th career volleyball win (boys and girls combined), something Capestany said means a lot coming against St. Cloud.
“To reach the milestone against a big-time rival and outstanding team means a lot,” he said. “St. Cloud has been coming on strong in the last year or two and they have some really talented players. Obviously this is the type of game that will give us some confidence heading into the OBC tournament.”
The Tigers, ranked No. 21 in the state by Maxpreps, take on No. 19 Lake Nona on the road — around the corner — on Friday March 31 at 8 p.m.
St. Cloud is 5-4 after getting off to a 4-0 start. Like Celebration, Coach Ettie Singleton’s Bulldogs have played a tough schedule with losses last week in a tournament to state-ranked teams Lake Brantley (5-2), Dr. Phillips (9-1) and Tampa SLAM (8-2).
The squad is led by junior hitter Will Sutphen, who had a big game at Tohopekaliga loss 12 kills, three blocks and an ace. The Bulldogs attack opponents from different angles, as Jeremiah McCard and Grady McCoy each had more than 70 assists in the first eight games; while Nick Holbrook had 34. Senior defensive apecialist Peyton Collins will be another key player for Singleton. Hitter Skylar Taylor has recorded 12 aces through 10 matches.
“We hope to make a run for the OBC and District Championships as well as a successful overall season. I am excited to see the potential these boys have to offer,” Singleton said of her squad that has won 18 matches in each of the last two seasons.
Harmony has new leadership in head coach Randy Schafer, who coached a successful middle school program prior to this season. The team returns experienced players, senior hitters Collin Paoli and Bryson Holl ,off of last year’s 8-12 squad. Schafer is hopeful that interest in the sport at Harmony continues to grow.
Fellow seniors Brayden Adams (right side) and Nate Butler (blocker) return after missing last season with injuries. Sylus Cory (hitter), Ethan Rodriguez (setter), and Cesar Gandia move up from the junior varsity and will be counted on.
“We definitely have some work to do in our own building,” Schafer said. “With the creation of a boys’ volleyball club program and increased interest in the sport, I believe our future is bright.”
Gateway head coach Nicole Martinez continues the rebuilding process of the Panthers program. Junior outside hitter Chris Russo, middle hitter Vladimir Vazquez and senior Libero Will Geiger are the top returning Panthers players; while Janiel Flores – a former baseball player – is the top newcomer.
“The majority of our team last year was first-time players who gravitated to volleyball from other sports and we had a rough year,” Martinez said. “We have seven returning players and several promising newcomers. Our goal is to improve each week and hopefully win more games this season.”
