We Speak Volleyball

Pine Crest Dethrones North Broward Prep 3-2 in Five Set Regional Final

Published

59 minutes ago

November 2, 2026

The Pine Crest volleyball team and coaches pose with the regional championship trophy at North Broward Prep.

Photo courtesy of Pine Crest Athletics.

The defending state champions are out. Pine Crest went on the road Tuesday night and beat North Broward Prep 3-2 in the Class 3A Region 4 final, winning 20-25, 29-27, 15-25, 25-20 and 15-12 in Coconut Creek.

The upset flipped the script of the season series. North Broward Prep had beaten Pine Crest twice this fall without dropping a set, winning 2-0 on October 7 and 3-0 on October 15. Both of those meetings were also played in Coconut Creek, which means Pine Crest lost all five sets it played on this court this season before Tuesday night. The Eagles entered the final at 25-4, carrying the target that comes with a state title, and they looked in control early.

This time Pine Crest answered every push. After dropping the first set, the Panthers survived a marathon second set 29-27 to even the match. North Broward Prep answered with a 25-15 win in the third set, but Pine Crest took the fourth 25-20 to force a fifth set, then finished the job 15-12 to complete the dethroning.

Setter Isabella Collado directed the offense all night, finishing with 46 assists and 14 digs. Collado accounted for 46 of the Panthers’ 54 assists, running nearly every ball through her hands across five sets. Mathews delivered 17 kills and four blocks at the net. As a team, the Panthers totaled 54 kills, 54 assists, 64 digs and 12 aces in the win.

For North Broward Prep, the loss ended the season one win short of a return trip to the state semifinals and a chance to defend the championship. The Eagles’ only home loss of the entire season came in the last match they played.

Pine Crest improved to 19-10 with the regional championship. North Broward Prep, the defending Class 3A state champion, finished its season at 25-5.

The Panthers are not done. Pine Crest advances to the Class 3A state semifinal against Merritt Island on Tuesday, November 3 at 1 PM at Polk State College in Winter Haven, one win from playing for a state championship.

We Speak Volleyball

Cardinal Newman Rallies From Two Sets Down to Beat Saint Mary’s 3-2 and Reach the NCS Semifinals

Published

3 minutes ago

November 2, 2026

We Speak Media

A Cardinal Newman player attacks against the Saint Mary's block during the NCS quarterfinal.

Photo courtesy of Cardinal Newman Athletics.

For the second time in four days, Cardinal Newman erased a two-set deficit on the road to keep its season alive, rallying past Saint Mary’s 3-2 on Saturday afternoon in the North Coast Section Division 2 quarterfinals. The Cardinals dropped the first two sets 25-22 and 25-23, then stormed back to win 25-18, 25-20 and 15-7 at Saint Mary’s in Albany.

Newman actually built a 20-15 lead in the second set before Saint Mary’s rallied to take it, leaving the Cardinals one set from elimination for the second straight match. On Wednesday, the fifth seeded Cardinals had done the same thing to Granada, winning 3-2 after trailing 2-0 in the first round.

Junior outside hitter Emma Donnelly led the comeback with a team high 21 kills after a slow start in the first two sets. Freshman Kensi Grover delivered 18 kills and 18 digs, and junior Gracie Acosta added 13 kills. Junior setter Addison Smith ran the offense with 55 assists and 12 digs, while Sabina Walsh had nine digs and three aces and senior Jordan Espinosa served five aces.

Head coach Daryl Kapis credited the serve receive passing of Adeline Brockett, Walsh, Teneli Galli and Grover for turning the match. “The four of them were the main stars of the game because of how well they passed in serve receive,” Kapis said.

The win improved Newman to 19-10 and avenged two losses to Saint Mary’s over the past year, including last season’s section semifinal. Across their first two playoff matches, the Cardinals have won all six sets they have played while facing elimination. Newman now travels to face top seeded Branson in the semifinals on Wednesday, November 4.