Manatee High falls short in state volleyball semis

For half a beat, Manatee's volleyball team was one point away from stealing the first set from Winter Springs.

Haley Coulter sprung toward the net as the ball gently tumbled toward the Hurricanes' side. The outside hitter tilted her wrists forward, knocking the ball back to the Bears' floor.The Canes started to celebrate until they looked toward the umpire perched above the court. She said Coulter went over the net. Instead of Manatee moving a point away from an early advantage in the Winter Springs High School gymnasium, the Bears went back to serve.

Winter Springs setter Jenna Smith batted a ball to the ground on the Bears' first try and the sweep was in motion for Winter Springs. After a narrow win in the first set, the Bears pulled away to win each of the next two and beat the Hurricanes 3-0 (25-23, 25-19, 25-17) in the Class 8A state semifinal.

"I think if we win that set it's a different ballgame. I think it takes a little bit of air out of their sails," head coach Tony Cothron said. "We could have been more relaxed."

Each of the final two sets in Winter Springs was close for a time before the Bears were able to climb away and end the Canes' quest for back-to-back 8A state titles just shy of the championship match.

Winter Springs, which reached the Class 7A state final a year ago, will play Jupiter in the state championship next Saturday in Orlando.

Manatee (25-5) gave the Bears an imperfect test.

The second set was tied as late as 16-16 before the Bears (29-2) scored nine of the final 12 points. The third was knotted at 11-11, but the Hurricanes only managed to string together consecutive points once down the stretch of their final match of the season.

The Canes came slightly derailed, though, when the call against Coulter swung the opening frame in Winter Springs' favor. Manatee's passing was already a bit of an issue and the Hurricanes tightened up even more as the match went on.

"The second game was definitely our shutdown," said Coulter, one of three senior starters for the Canes. "People didn't really want to play anymore and it really showed. No energy."

Coulter led Manatee with 11 kills, and senior middle blocker Jacqui Armer added five kills and a team-high three blocks. Saturday was the end of illustrious careers for both. Last year, they led the Hurricanes to their first state title and along the way the duo captured a pair of region championships and three district titles.

Next year, Coulter will play at Tulsa and Armer will move on to Louisiana State.

"I'm really proud of us since basically our volleyball team came out of nothing," Coulter said. "Not winning everything to going really far last year and going to the final four this year. I'm still really proud."

They will leave behind two starting outside hitters, one starting middle blocker, a starting setter and a starting libero. Gabby Coulter, Haley's younger sister and the starting setter, dished out 23 assists Saturday and sophomore libero Kara Saylor led the Hurricanes with 12 digs.

Cothron and the Canes will have work to do to replace their two most productive players. One era at Manatee is over. They leave the program with an imprint of unparalleled excellence.

"They did a great job," Cothron said. "I feel sorry for them. My heart goes out to them. I really wish they could've got back to a state final. It just didn't happen today."

This story was originally published November 7, 2015 at 4:37 PM with the headline "Manatee High falls short in state volleyball semis ."