November 4, 2026
LSSC Volleyball Claims First Sun-Lakes Title, Enters FCSAA Tourney as No. 1 Seed
By Kyle Coppola
LSSC Volleyball Claims First Sun-Lakes Title, Enters FCSAA Tourney as No. 1 Seed
Lake-Sumter State College’s volleyball team will enter the Florida College System Activities Association (FCSAA) Division II Volleyball Championship as the No. 1 seed after capturing its first Sun-Lakes Conference title.
The Lakehawks clinched the title and the top seed by defeating Florida State College at Jacksonville and will compete Friday and Saturday, Nov. 6-7, at Billy Harrison Fieldhouse in Panama City.
As the No. 1 seed, Lake-Sumter received a first-round bye and will face the winner of St. Johns River State and Pensacola State in a 4 pm semifinal Friday. A victory would advance the Lakehawks to the championship match at 1 pm Saturday.
Sophomore outside hitter Samantha Beatty, a Tavares High School graduate, has paced the program’s historic run. Samantha became the Lakehawks’ all-time kills leader and leads the team with 403 kills this season.
Brooke Fintak, a Eustis High graduate, has contributed 259 kills. Additional local standouts include Umatilla’s Addison Seabree and Maddison Carr, a Lake Minneola High graduate, who have helped anchor the offense. Setter Giada Viti has directed the attack throughout the season.
Head coach Alisha Wintersdorf praised the group’s achievement.
“I don’t think I could be more proud of this group,” Wintersdorf says. “No matter what happens in the postseason, nothing can take away what this team has accomplished. They have made HISTORY. For the first time in program history, we are regular season conference champions!”
This has been a history-making season for Lake-Sumter State College. A few years ago, Wintersdorf became the Lakehawks’ head coach after many years at Tavares High School and with local clubs in Tavares, which she still coaches during the offseason. Since taking over, she has led the Lakehawks to new heights while recruiting a roster full of local players.
“These girls have poured their hearts into this program, and watching it all come together has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my coaching career,” Wintersdorf says.
“Our story isn’t finished, and we still have bigger goals ahead of us,” Wintersdorf says. “But I hope these girls take a moment to realize just how special this is. They have built something that will forever be a part of Lake-Sumter Volleyball history. I’m so incredibly proud to be their coach.”
Kyle Coppola was born in Newton, Massachusetts and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communications from Curry College in 2016. After traveling to Florida on a family vacation, he decided he could not get enough of the warm weather and made the move from snowy Massachusetts to central Florida 8 years ago.
For the last decade Kyle has gained valuable experience in social media content creation, marketing and sales, writing, video production, sports announcing and even broadcasting for local radio stations, such as FM 102.9 in The Villages and FM 91.5 in Massachusetts. Every year he volunteers at The Villages Charter High School as a play-by-play sports announcer for the football games as well as a public address announcer for the basketball games, including the annual Battle at The Villages Tournament.
Outside the office Kyle is a husband and father to two beautiful girls along with their cat. In his spare time he likes to spend time with his family, travel, play golf and swim. He is also a huge sports junkie and even bigger motorsports fan and loves to attend racing events when he can.
