MIA Loses First Match to Big School Palmetto Ridge

The young but talented Marco Island Academy volleyball team put their unblemished 4-0 record on the line against big school Palmetto Ridge before falling in four sets Tuesday night at the Marco gym. The Class 2A Rays, starting four freshmen, went toe-to-toe with Class 6A Palmetto Ridge before falling in four sets.

Rays Head Coach, Alyssa Stolinas, has built a strong volleyball program at MIA. She expects a lot from her young team.

"Palmetto is a great team,” said Stolinas, who played at MIA, "but I know what my girls are capable of. They cracked under pressure. We have a lot to work on.”

There’s no question that Palmetto Ridge is a step up in competition for the Rays, compared to their first four wins. Stolinas realizes that she has a team with a high ceiling.

"This is my most talented incoming freshman class,” Stolinas said, “it only gets better from here. Our future is bright.”

The Rays fell 18-25, 23-25, 29-27, 25-13 to Palmetto Ridge. All the games were tight except for the finale. On Wednesday, August 31, the Rays got back in the win column with a 3-0 win over Mason Classical Academy, 25-18, 25-9, 25-14. The Rays (5-1) have won five matches by shutout, surrendering only the three games to Palmetto Ridge (1-3).

Stolinas recognizes the Rays’ shortcomings against bigger, more powerful opponents. The competition in the Paradise Coast Athletic Conference doesn’t present such challenges. 

"I learned that we need to work on our serves and serve receive,” Stolinas said. "Unfortunately for us, we don’t get challenged enough in our PCAC schedule so when we face strong teams like this it exposes areas we need to improve. By improving in those areas it will help set us up for the tougher district schedule that we have.”

The Rays compete in one of the top Class 2A districts in the state, with powers Seacrest, First Baptist Academy and Community School.

The Rays host Mason Classical Academy Monday, September 12 at 6:00 PM. The games are open to the public.