Varela took a three-set loss the last time they faced off against Palmetto, but this time they managed to keep it close and that made all the difference. The Varela Vipers sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 3-2 victory over the Palmetto Panthers on Wednesday. This was payback for the Vipers, who suffered a 3-0 defeat the last time these two teams met.
Varela was actually outscored in aggregate across those five sets (100-95), but they still managed to win. The match finished with set scores of 25-22, 25-18, 16-25, 14-25, 15-10.
Varela's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Sebastian Hidalgo led the charge by getting 21 digs and three assists. Hidalgo is crushing it when it comes to digs: he's had at least 11 every time he's taken the court this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Jose Santos, who had 26 assists and eight digs.

Vipers
| 03/12/25 @ Palmetto | 3-2 |
| 03/11/25 @ Belen Jesuit | 3-0 |
| 03/07/25 @ Homestead | 3-0 |
| 03/04/25 vs Southridge | 3-0 |
| 03/03/25 vs iMater Charter | 3-0 |
The win keeps them at an undefeated 5-0. As for Palmetto, their loss ended a four-game streak of wins at home dating back to last season and dropped them to 2-1.
Varela has already played their next game, a 3-0 victory against Coral Reef on the 14th. As for Palmetto, they also didn't take long to hit the court again: they've already played their next match, a 2-0 defeat against Timber Creek on the 14th.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps