It’s one down, one to go on the revenge tour for the Santa Fe High volleyball team.

On Saturday afternoon in the Region 2-4A semifinals, the host Raiders swept Bishop Moore (Orlando), who had eliminated Santa Fe in the 4A region final in 2023.

Now No. 2 seed Santa Fe gets another shot at top-seeded Merritt Island, the team that knocked the Raiders from the 4A playoffs a year ago, with a spot in the Final Four on the line.

Santa Fe took care of business on its home court against the defending 4A state champion and third-seed Hornets, winning 25-21, 25-22, 25-18.

Senior Brooke Findley had nearly a perfect match, with 18 kills, no errors and an other-worldly .720 hitting percentage. Junior Ella Schneider set up Findley with a team-high 20 assists and senior Gracyn Marshall added 18 assists.

“Crazy. Unstoppable,” Santa Fe coach Eric Marshall said of Findley’s game. “She hit a couple of balls in a one-step approach that went straight down. She was just in a zone. I thought the setters put the ball in a lot of good spots for her. But I thought she was aggressive no matter where the ball was.”

In the opening set, Santa Fe (20-9) took a 3-2 lead and never looked back. A 6-1 run gave the Raiders their largest lead of the set at six points at 9-3, and when Bishop Moore got back to within one a few times, Santa Fe answered. A 7-1 run made it 22-15 Santa Fe and they closed out the first set from there.

The return of sophomore Emarie Carlisle this week has helped Santa Fe play some of its best volleyball of the season.

The second set went back and forth throughout. Bishop Moore (15-14) led 20-19, but a 6-2 Santa Fe run gave them a 2-0 lead in the match. 

And the third set saw Santa Fe take an 8-7 lead and never look back, finishing off the sweep with an ace.

“We’ve worked so hard in practice. I think today everything just clicked today, hitting, passing, serving, everything,” Findley said.

Now comes a trip to Merritt Island on Wednesday in the Region 2-4A final. Merritt Island swept the Raiders in the region semifinals a year ago.

“We figured we’d be going to Merritt Island,” Eric Marshall said. “They are 22-2 and they are playing really good volleyball. I’m proud of these kids because we’ve been really up and down this year.”

GHS 3, Gateway 0 – No. 2 seed Gainesville swept No. 6 seed Gateway (Kissimmee) on Saturday at The Purple Palace in the Class 5A-Region 1 Semifinal round.

Sophomore Jacey Carter-Mitchell led the Hurricanes with 9 kills and 5 blocks and senior Rowan Kage added 9 kills and 4 blocks. Junior Jordyn Barnard and sophomore Jorryn Dye had 7 kills each and junior Kenzie Carter-Mitchell had 5 kills and 2 blocks

“I’m proud of my team’s dominating performance today,” said GHS coach Jerica Carter-Mitchell. “We were laser-focused and we are all so excited to keep playing for our seniors.”

GHS will host No. 4 seed Legacy (Port St. Lucie) on Wednesday, Oct. 29, in the regional final.

FHSAA Volleyball Regional Tournaments

Saturday, Oct. 25

Rural-Region 3 Semifinals

1 Branford def. 4 Aucilla Christian (Monticello), 25-11, 25-13, 25-14

3 Union County (Lake Butler) def. 2 Lafayette (Mayo), 25-17, 25-22, 25-22

Rural-Region 4 Semifinals

1 Williston def. 4 Trenton, 25-16, 25-22, 20-25, 26-24 (Tigers finish 12-14) 

Class 4A-Region 2 Semifinals

2 Santa Fe (Alachua) def. 3 Bishop Moore (Orlando), 25-21, 25-22, 25-18

Class 5A-Region 2 Semifinals

2 Gainesville def. 6 Gateway (Kissimmee), 25-14, 25-12, 25-16

Class 6A-Region 1

2 Oviedo def. 3 Buchholz, 25-23, 25-14, 25-11 (Bobcats finish 20-6)