Regional/District Tournament Preview

Leesburg, Fla. – The moment of truth has come for the Lake-Sumter State College volleyball program with the Regional/District Tournament starting Saturday in Avon Park.

Finishing the regular season with a 6-11 record overall and a 5-5 conference record, Lake-Sumter will enter the postseason as the No. 3 seed. Gulf Coast State College took home the top spot in the tournament with an 8-2 conference record. St. John's River State College is the No. 2 seed after losing the tie breaker with Gulf Coast.

The Lakehawks will play in the second game of the opening round on Saturday and take on No. 6 seeded Florida Gateway State College. The Wolves went 0-10 in Sun-Lakes Conference play during the regular season, including two losses to LSSC. Both wins for the Lakehawks were in three sets.

A win in the first round would pit Lake-Sumter against rival St. John's River on Saturday at 7 pm in the fourth match of the day. The Vikings defeated the Lakehawks in both meetings this season winning 6 of 7 sets played. It was Lake-Sumter who knocked off St. John's in five sets last year in the second round to earn a spot in the Regional/District championship.

One notable difference for the Lakehawks will be the addition of Head Coach, Amanda Phelps courtside. "I'm excited to be back with the team," Phelps said. "This is my second family and I have missed them a lot. I am extremely thankful they were in good hands. A big thank you goes out to Coach (Nate) Camnitz and Coach (Cassady) Cook, along with the rest of my Lakehawk family for taking care of them."

When asked about the tournament, Coach Phelps had this to say. "I feel like we are right where we are supposed to be. Our conference is very evenly matched and each round is going to be a battle. Our girls are ready to fight for that shot at Nationals."

LSSC and Florida Gateway are slated to begin at 2 pm, but could have their start time pushed back if game one runs long. Updates will be put out over social media and at www.lakehawksports.com when available.