By Rod Gipson
MaxPreps.com
Louisville (Ky.) Mercy Academy certainly knows how to make itself at home.
Just ask Tampa’s Berkeley Prep.
The top-ranked volleyball team in Kentucky and No. 3 in the country, according to this week's MaxPreps National Rankings, Mercy powered its way to the Berkeley Premier Tournament championship for the fourth-straight year on Saturday.
And Mercy did it by defeating two of the best programs in the Bay area. Mercy toppled Plant, the two-time defending Class 5A state champs, in three games in the tournament semifinals and followed that with a title match sweep of host Berkeley Prep.
“What can you say about them?” Berkeley Prep coach Randy Dagostino said of Mercy. “They’re a class act. They are so well coached and they just accelerate the speed of the game so much.
“We learn from them every time we play.’’
Mercy’s front line was dominant against the Buccaneers, killing off points with strong shots during the 25-16, 25-14, 25-19 title game. The Jaguars (26-1) added aces on jump serves that kept the Bucs off-balanced.
In the second game, Berkeley Prep (11-2) trailed only 8-10 before Mercy went on a 6-1 run to take control of the game and go on to the win. Setter Christina Theofilos had 12 digs for Berkeley Prep, who also got a 16 assist performance from Mackenzie Dagostino and a combined 22 kills from Jordan Burgess, Chelsea Parker and Lindsay Young.
Tampa Plant finished the tournament third and Tampa Prep finished seventh in the eight-team event. Theofilos, Dagostino, Plant’s Ali McCurdy and Danielle Erb were named to the All-Tournament team and Young was named the tournament MVP.
Pool or the Diamond?
Tampa Sickles Gregg Cooke answered that question last week when he accepted a baseball scholarship to the University of Central Florida.
The defending Class 3A state champion in the 50 freestyle, Cooke is swimming that event this fall for the Gryphons, as well as 100 free.
Cooke also is a standout pitcher on the Sickles baseball squad. A 6-foot-7, 190-pound right-hander, Cooke went 6-2 last season while leading Sickles to a 17-6 record last year. Also, Cooke threw a no-hitter against Trinity Mitchell last February.
Cooke ended the season with a 2.91 ERA, 59 strikeouts and five complete-game performances.
Golf
Travis Huston fired a personal best 4-under 68 to lead Dunedin to the St. Petersburg High Invitational title last weekend at St. Petersburg’s Vinoy Country Club. Huston, the son of longtime PGA player John Huston, made two bogeys to start the round before settling down to help the Falcons win the team title.
Dunedin players Justine Knox (72), Andrew Norris (72), Justin Foster (74) Westin Jensen (76) and Mark Bernard (76) all played well as Dunedin outdistanced second-place St. Petersburg Catholic by nine strokes.
In other action, Indian Rocks Christian Ryan Ashburn set a girls’ school record with a nine-hole score of 32 last week at Feather Sound Country Club in St. Petersburg. Ashburn’s round included and eagle and three birdies to finish at 4-under.
In his last three matches, Tampa Gaither’s Josh Black has had 9-hole rounds of 40, 37 and 37. More importantly, his standout play has helped the Cowboys defeat Tampa Jesuit, Tampa Hillsborough and Tampa Chamberlain to improve to 6-7.
And in a meeting of two of the top boys and girls teams in the Tampa Bay area, Berkeley Prep’s boys and girls swept Plant’s boys and girls teams.
The Berkeley Prep boys topped Plant 157-158, led by a 2-under 34 by Blake Morris. In the girls’ match, Kim Carpenter shot a 2-over 38 as Berkeley won 176-190.
