Hit or Miss: Jen Blanco

The largest collegiate sand volleyball competition in the United States is heading back to Siesta Key for the seventh time. 

On April 8 through April 10, 30 of the top beach volleyball programs in the nation will converge on America’s No. 1 beach for the annual Fiesta on Siesta. Once recognized simply as a recreational beach activity for teens and young adults, beach volleyball, formerly called sand volleyball, has since become a nationally recognized sport. 

Last summer, the NCAA named beach volleyball its 90th championship sport with the inaugural championship slated for May 6 through May 8, in Gulf Shores, Ala. 

With the inclusion of beach volleyball in the NCAA championship format, this year’s Fiesta on Siesta will span three days, focusing primarily on dual competition, as programs look to fulfill their NCAA scheduling requirements. 

Florida State University senior Annie Montgomery, a 2012 graduate of the Cardinal Mooney, will return to her hometown looking to defend her Fiesta on Siesta title. Montgomery posted a 6-1 record with teammate Vanessa Freire during last year’s tournament to win the Team Cup Gold Bracket. 

Jacksonville University junior Hanna McMahon, a 2013 graduate of Cardinal Mooney, also will return home to compete in the collegiate tournament for the third-consecutive year. 

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Five Sarasota Christian seniors didn’t waste any time closing out the regular season April 4. 

Cheyenne Miller, McKenzie Lantz, Audra King, Anikka Jensen and Nicole Miller only needed three innings to power the Blazers to a 15-0 victory versus St. Petersburg Catholic on Senior Night. 

Pitcher Cheyenne Miller hurled a one-hitter with five strikeouts to earn the win on the mound. She also went 2-for-3 at the plate with a pair of RBI. 

Lantz went 1-for-2 with five RBI. Nicole Miller went 3-for-3 with two RBI. Jensen went 2-for-2 with two RBI; and King went 2-for-3 with three RBI. 

The girls will return to the diamond in the Class 2A-District 6 championship April 14. 

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A trip to the plate in the sixth inning proved to be the perfect warm-up for Cardinal Mooney senior Christian Maglich. 

Maglich launched a home run over the fence at Taylor Emmons Field to propel the Cougars to a 2-0 victory against Calvary Christian in the semifinals of the Second Annual Taylor Emmons Memorial Classic March 30, at ODA. 

It was only the beginning for Maglich who represented the Cougars in the home run derby that same evening. 

Maglich hit 24 home runs over the three rounds. He hit seven in the first round and 12 in the second round before defeating Tyler Shuck of Fort Myers Canterbury in the finals by a score of 5-4 to win the trophy. 

It was the first of a pair of trophies Maglich, who will play for Florida Southern College next years, brought back to Cardinal Mooney after helping the Cougars top Estero 4-1 in the championship game March 31.

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On the heels of its best season in recent years, the Riverview High girls basketball team can add another accolade to its list of accomplishments: Academic Team Champion. 

The Rams posted a cumulative team grade-point average of 3.526 this season to finish first in the Florida High School Athletic Association Winter Academic Team Championship standings for Class 8A. Riverview was the lone Sarasota area team to finish atop the standings with the boys basketball team finishing second (3.074). 

Riverview now sits fourth in the overall class standings with 41 points. Spruce Creek leads Class 8A with 64 points.