By Kyle Coppola
Mount Dora High Volleyball Finishes District Runner-Up
The Mount Dora High Lady Hurricanes Volleyball team finish as FHSAA Class 4A District 6 Runner-Up. They move to 13-5 overall after a 3-0 loss to Bishop Moore in the District Championship. For the Mount Dora High Hurricanes they have built this program into a winning and successful one the past few years. Head coach Kevin Gifford has done a fantastic job at getting this team to championship games as well. While it was the second straight year that Mount Dora High lost to Bishop Moore in the District Championship, the fact that they made it there again speaks volumes to what the program is accomplishing.
Mount Dora High has been led by senior Sydney Guthrie this year. Guthrie has been fantastic and she will certainly be missed next year. Guthrie has led the team kill shots but another player junior Jaeda Branham has been very impressive in 2024. Blakely Kite, Giorgia Brocchiero have anchored the back line while Lillie Bruehl leads the team in aces. Sadie Pruett leads the team in total blocks.
This has been another successful year for the Lady Hurricanes program. As they continue to build the program, they are in good shape for the future. Despite the loss to Bishop Moore the Lady Canes should secure a playoff spot in the FHSAA Playoffs. We love to see the continued success of our Lake County & Sumter County programs. This is a good thing for the county. To have teams like Mount Dora staying consistent and getting to district championship games is a big thing. We are so happy for the girls for bringing home another trophy to Lake County! Well done Lady Canes!
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.
