The Niceville Eagles will head out to take on the Choctawhatchee Indians at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The two teams each escaped (but just barely!) with wins against their previous opponents.
Niceville was handed a three-set defeat in their previous outing, but that didn't affect their clutch gene on Monday. They had just enough and edged out South Walton 3-2. The home team had taken home the W every time these teams have met since September 12, 2023, but that streak is no more.
Niceville took South Walton into a fifth set where they got it done with a two-point win. The final score came out to 22-25, 25-16, 18-25, 25-23, 16-14.
Meanwhile, Choctawhatchee sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 3-2 win over Fort Walton Beach on Thursday.
Choctawhatchee wouldn't go down easily and took Fort Walton Beach into a fifth set where they got it done with a four-point win. Once all was said and done, the final score wound up at 23-25, 25-10, 20-25, 25-18, 15-11.
Choctawhatchee's win came from a few key players Niceville will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Avery Thigpen, who had 21 assists and 11 digs. She has been hot recently, having posted 13 or more assists the last four times she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Nevaeh Deal, who had six digs and three aces.
Choctawhatchee's victory bumped their record up to 11-12. As for Niceville, their win bumped their record up to 14-6.
Niceville took their victory against Choctawhatchee when the teams last played back in September by a conclusive 3-0 score. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Eagles since the squad won't have the home-court advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
