FHSAA high school beach volleyball: Fletcher, Episcopal previews

Call it a breakthrough on the beach.

Fletcher and Episcopal are set for the next step in their postseason adventures, traveling to the sands of Tallahassee for the Florida High School Athletic Association state final four in girls beach volleyball.

Episcopal tips off the Class 1A semifinals against Westminster Christian from Miami at 8 a.m. May 9, followed by Fletcher’s Class 3A semifinal against Winter Haven at 6 p.m. Both matches take place at Florida State University’s beach volleyball complex.

Before this week, Bishop Kenny was the only team to qualify for a state final four since the FHSAA began the sport in the 2021-22 school year. Now, the Crusaders have some company.

Class 3A No. 2 seed Fletcher is no stranger to volleyball on the actual beach, playing numerous matches in the regular season within a few spikes’ distance of the Atlantic Ocean.

The first-ever regional champions to come from the Gateway Conference, they enter the final four with pairs of Ashton Kirton and Elina Adhikari at No. 1, Leila Brummel and Emilia Thorpe at No. 2, Karsyn Smith and Lila Waite at No. 3, Sofia Ventimiglia and Ramsey Langton at No. 4 and Amelia Richter and Addison Hilton at No. 5.

Episcopal, meanwhile, reached the final four with a pair of next-level players as its No. 1 pair: Caelan Chesser has signed with the University of North Florida and Elle Steiger is set for Stetson.

The Eagles’ lineup includes Quinn Edwards and Alexis Galani at No. 2, Fenley Almond and Kailyn Ryals at No. 3, Wren Tiedeberg and Claire Caserta at No. 4 and P.G. Chupp and Amelia Walthour at No. 5.

How does FHSAA beach volleyball work?

Five pairs from each school contest the semifinals in a best-of-3-sets format. The winning pair in each match scores one point, so the possible final team scores are 3-2, 4-1 or 5-0.

The first two sets are played on a first-to-21 basis, while the deciding third set (if necessary) is first to 15. As in indoor volleyball, a two-point margin is needed to win a set.

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