PORT CHARLOTTE – For Port Charlotte volleyball head coach Julie White, it was an emotional moment.
For four years, she has tried to make her Pirates the top team in the district. Twice she reached the title game, only to come up empty. Plus, the hurricanes had a way of bumming everyone out.
On Saturday, in the District 5A-12 championship game against No. 3 seed Braden River, the third time was the charm as top-seeded Port Charlotte won the “Battle of the Pirates” in straight sets (25-15, 25-20, 25-21) for its first district title since 2020.
Port Charlotte (16-8) will wait to see where it ends up in the region. They and Osceola, which also won its district, have gone back and forth for the top seed for much of the season. If things hold true, the Pirates will be the No. 2 seed, which would bring possibly two home games when regionals kick off Wednesday.
After going through so much the past few weeks, White was thrilled to finally get over the hump.
“For some of them, I’ve been with them for four years. I’m happy, sad, mixed emotions,” White said. “We have this great team chemistry. They play for each other and know what they need to do.”