By Kyle Coppola
Mount Dora Hosts First FHSAA Volleyball Playoff Game in 20 Years
Mount Dora High’s volleyball team will host an FHSAA playoff match for the first time in 20 years when the Hurricanes face New Smyrna Beach on Tuesday night.
The Hurricanes (13-9) earned the right to host after capturing their first district championship in two decades last week. New Smyrna Beach enters the match at 16-11.
“I’m just proud of the players and coaching staff for all their hard work,” Mount Dora principal Kyle Bracewell says. “Coach Giff has worked hard to build a culture of excellence within our program. The girls are not only great volleyball players, but even better students and people on our campus.”
Senior outside hitter Kate Guthrie leads Mount Dora with 187 kills, while junior Tessa Cennamo has added 158. Senior Harper Burke has contributed 39 blocks, and senior libero Skye Douglass paces the team with 357 digs.
Head coach Kevin Gifford, whom Bracewell calls “Coach Giff,” has guided the program to previous district final appearances. Breaking through for the title marked a significant step for the staff and school community.
“Hopefully this district championship is the first of many and with that comes hosting big games on campus,” Bracewell says.
The winner will play either Bishop Moore or Lake Wales. If Lake Wales upsets Bishop Moore and Mount Dora wins, the Hurricanes would host a regional semifinal. If Bishop Moore wins and Mount Dora also wins, Mount Dora would travel to Bishop Moore for the regional semifinal on Saturday.
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.
