MIA Wins PCAC Championship

The Marco Island Academy volleyball team won the Paradise Coast Athletic Conference championship for the sixth straight year Thursday night in their home gym, sweeping Mason Classical 25-12, 25-19, 25-6 in three games. On Wednesday, the Rays dominated Village School, 25-7, 25-10, 25-6 in the opening round.

The Class 2A Rays also swept Class 6A Palmetto Ridge, 25-10, 25-13, 25-18 at home. Two weeks earlier it took the Rays five games to overcome the Bears.

Head Coach Alyssa Stolinas feels her team is coming together.

“We were a lot better than when we were there,” Stolinas said, “that's for sure. We looked really good. I was pleased. It made me happy to see them finally execute the way I know they can and watching them. At some point they have to start believing in themselves. You know, they have to take that step and understand what they're capable of.”

Madison Stolinas, the coach’s niece, was honored when she earned her 1,000th assist. Quite a feat for a sophomore. Stolinas said her niece had no idea she was closing in on the milestone.

"She had no clue,” Stolinas said, "which was awesome. She didn't know what was coming. She did hit the 1,000 which is, for a sophomore, that's a huge accomplishment. She's super happy. She's super proud.”

MIA drew Evangelical Christian in the first round of the district playoffs. They swept ECS earlier in the season.

If MIA (19-5) got past ECS, they were slated to play powerhouse Seacrest, the winner of three state championships, in the second round.

“It's what we drew,” Stolinas reasons. "I told the girls, I don't care who they are. It's the game. You know, anything can happen. And we've just got to go in and play our game and stick to how we play and go from there. But I mean mentally they're in a great place. That's what happened to us last year. We pulled the four seed, played the fifth seed. Then we went and played Seacrest right away. They're a great team, there's no doubt about that."