Apopka’s boys volleyball team leaned on energy, teamwork and senior leadership to secure a four-set win over Forest Lake Academy (2-1), defeating the Panthers 3-1 (25-15, 23-25, 25-17, 25-17) Monday night. 

“I got to give credit to Forest Lake — they always travel very deep, and they bring a lot of energy,” head coach Brian Mater said. “Honestly, our team came together tonight. I feel like they played more as a team than against each other. We limited our errors, and our serve in the first set was just killing it.” 

From the jump, the Blue Darters (2-1) showed they were ready to control the tempo. After Forest Lake scored the first point of the match, Apopka rattled off a run. Caden McGatha recorded an early block, Nathan White followed with back-to-back aces, and McGatha finished the surge with a booming kill to make it 6-1. 

Forest Lake attempted to settle in with a brief scoring stretch, but Giovanni Lubin answered with a block that shifted momentum back. White continued to distribute the ball effectively, setting up McGatha for multiple kills in the middle, while Elzie Robinson added a kill and an ace to stretch the lead. A late tip by White sealed the opening set, 25-15. 

The second set became the most competitive of the night. Apopka jumped out early again behind White’s sets and another McGatha kill, but the Panthers kept it in range. 

McGatha nailed consecutive aces to give Apopka a 12-8 advantage, and Aedyn Cruz Rosa followed with a kill to make it 14-8. However, Forest Lake followed with an 8-2 run, tying the set at 16 after capitalizing on Apopka errors and serving aces. 

After the Blue Darters went up three points again, the teams locked at 22-22 when Forest Lake strung together back-to-back aces and a block. The Panthers closed strong with a block and a kill down the left line to take the set, 25-23, and even the match at one set apiece. 

Apopka responded immediately in the third with energy. After a brief exchange of points, the Blue Darters scored four straight behind two McGatha kills and steady play. Lubin and Robinson added kills of their own on top of three more earned points from McGatha as Apopka built a commanding 15-8 lead. 

Forest Lake showed flashes of momentum with a three-point run, highlighted by a miraculous point that sailed over the referee’s head and landed in play. Lubin stopped the push with a kill for set point, and McGatha finished the frame with a deep kill to secure the 25-17 set win. 

The fourth set opened with Forest Lake jumping ahead 3-1, but Robinson quickly swung the momentum with back-to-back kills. Apopka strung together a four-point run midway through the set, capped by a McGatha kill that forced a Panther timeout at 16-10. 

Robinson continued to dominate at the net with his fifth kill of the set, followed by a block and an ace from Blake Colclasure. Apopka poured it on to take a 21-13 lead and never looked back. McGatha delivered two final kills for match point, and Forest Lake’s final serve sailed out of bounds, ending the match with a 25-17 Blue Darter set win. 

White orchestrated the offense with a standout performance, finishing with 42 assists, four kills and three aces. Senior outside hitters led the attack, as McGatha recorded 19 kills, two blocks and two aces, while Robinson added 13 kills, a block and an ace. Freshman Lubin anchored the middle with seven kills and three blocks. 

The match also featured freshman Griffin Daffron in his first start on varsity, receiving serves and kill attempts cleanly and bumping them perfectly to White.

Mater praised his senior captains for setting the tone. 

“I think today they were playing more as one unit and being great teammates,” Mater said. “Those guys are like brothers. They’re inseparable. To see them come out and play off each other’s energy, I love it.” 

Robinson echoed his coach’s words, emphasizing the energy. 

“This is a lot of fun. I like playing with my team, with my brothers,” Robinson said. “All the energy is geared toward them because I love them, and love when they bring energy to the court. It hypes everybody up and we can execute what we need to do.” 

Looking ahead, Robinson said consistency will be the key. 

“We just got to keep the energy on and off the court up,” he said. “We’ve got to execute in practice and dial it in a little more. We’re getting there, and we’re coming for everything.” 

Apopka’s next match is scheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday at Colonial High School.