Kowboys come from No. 3 seed to topple host Gateway for another championship
While Osceola claimed its fifth consecutive Orange Belt Conference volleyball tournament title, it wasn't exactly "rinse, repeat, win".
Host Gateway played point-for-point with the Kowboys for most of Thursday's championship match, including 15 kills and three aces from freshman hitter Anaya Reyes, but Osceola pulled out the 28-26, 18-25, 25-20,
Senior West Virginia University signee Brooklyn Sippio, the lone returning starter from a senior-led group that reached the state semifinals last season, teamed with freshman sister Maddy to tally 34 kills, many keeping momentum squarely on the side of the now five-time defending champs.
"We're banged up, and it's the end of a long week," OHS Coach Carrie Palmi said, noting her Kowboys were 4-1 on Friday and Saturday in an event at Gamepoint in Orlando. "We may have sort of limped our way to this, so I'm proud of the girls.
"You could tell Brooklyn was hungry to win again, and Maddy really stepped up. We're still finding our feet a little bit as a team, so winning something like this can build a lot of confidence for us."
Osceola (12-5) held the largest lead of the...