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Pasco ready for parts to make team whole

By JOHN C. COTEY
Published September 21, 2006

LAND O'LAKES - Three coaches - Heidi Castelamare of River Ridge, Linda McQuade of Hudson and Mitchell's Keith Paulk - don't seem to have a problem with theirs, but they are the exception.

The rule, however, is this: No one seems terribly happy with their volleyball team's consistency, a common refrain throughout Pasco County.

No one, however, seems to be having a bigger problem with it than Pasco's Ramiro Tejada.

The Pirates coach thought at the beginning of the season he had a pretty good team. Early losses to Hudson and River Ridge did not deter him. "I thought we played them tough," he said.

Then came the injuries, and a practice schedule so disjointed that consistency became as implausible as a state title.

Because Pasco's gymnasium is a multi-purpose facility, Tejada has had to yield to a number of events, even canceling a few practices. He even had to switch a match against South Sumter to Pasco Middle School.

And a series of minor injuries led to a multitude of starting lineups. Tejada estimates he hasn't started the same six players any two straight games.

It's hard to be consistent on the court when you can't be consistent off it.

"I think that really hurt," Tejada said. "After those close matches against Hudson and River Ridge, I think we took a step backwards. It took until now to get back into the flow of things."

Tejada is still convinced he has a team that can make a run at a postseason spot. Megan Barthle has been a consistent hitter and saved the day on many occasions with her ability to play anywhere, setter Jenny Peters' serve has been a bright spot, and sophomore Colena Lavar has been a pleasant surprise after not playing last year.

Pasco 5-7 just needs to find a way to bottle performances like last week's win over then-undefeated Land O'Lakes.

"We've got a lot of pieces that we need to come together," Tejada said. "We've proven that when we're on, we can beat the other teams."

BOUNCEBACK BUCS?: Like Tejada, Gulf coach Shari Schau thinks her Bucs have a run in them as well.

Schau, who thought her team would be one of the top three in the district, hasn't been happy about her the Bucs' start, which included a loss to Pasco in which the Bucs won the first two games, then fell apart. They are 4-6 and haven't beaten a team with a winning record.

"Hopefully we'll step up in the second half," she said.

Schau thought serving would be her team's strong suit, and some games it is. But in the very next outing, it won't be, like the Bucs 79 percent success rate against Mitchell on Monday.

"That's just letting the other team have points for standing there," Schau said.

The coach has been pleased with Amanda Gardner's play. The junior outside hitter leads the Bucs in aces (32), digs (92), kills (55) and points (115).

Setter Jasmina Buksanovic has 123 assists, and River Ridge transfer Lauren Bullock has 50 kills and 52 digs.

BEST BETS: Mitchell travels to Sickles for a key district meeting tonight, with equally big district implications in tonight's Zephyrhills at Gulf matchup. Zephyrhills gets another shot at Hudson next Thursday, after being routed by the Cobras two weeks ago. Land O'Lakes, which went 2-2 over the weekend at the Academy of Holy Names Tournament, travels to Hudson on Monday.

QUICK SETS: While Mitchell and Hudson had mixed results over the weekend at out-of-town tournaments, River Ridge (12-1) cruised to the championship at the Crystal River Invitational. The Royal Knights beat Lecanto, Citrus, Boca Ciega and Lakeland for the title. ...Ridgewood continues to struggle at 1-8, with the Jens (Galizia and Daun) leading the way at the net and the Williamson sisters (Daylyn and Aleesa) leading in assists. They play rival River Ridge tonight at 7:30 p.m.

John C. Cotey can be reached at cotey@sptimes.com

[Last modified September 20, 2006, 23:08:09]