The Lady Eagles found their match on Oct. 28, as Middleburg came into Niceville and stunned a standing-room-only crowd with a five-set win (25-20, 21-25, 20-25, 25-23, 15-8) to advance to the Class 5A Final Four.
The match couldn’t have started any better for Niceville. The Lady Eagles opened on an 8-2 run behind Kate Jannazo and Riley Skowronski before the Lady Broncos worked their way back into it behind kills from Katelynn Laezza. After a Jannazo kill, Middleburg went on a rally as Laezza and Sophia Butler took over, and the Lady Broncos took the first set 25-20.
Niceville opened the second set on a 4-1 run behind Jannazo and Skowronski and got up 6-3 before a block from Abigail Grybb sparked a 4-0 Middleburg run that put the Lady Broncos right back in the set. It stayed tight throughout until a Skowronski kill sparked another Niceville run. Middleburg answered again, but Skowronski, Jannazo and Anna Sutter proved to be too much as Niceville won 25-21 to even the match.
The third set followed the same script. Middleburg grabbed an early 4-2 lead behind Laezza and Cora Hausman, but Sutter added two kills, Carnley Summerlin chipped in a kill and Middleburg errors piled up as Niceville retook the lead. Jannazo extended the advantage with two more kills before Laezza helped Middleburg pull close again. Niceville controlled the stretch run, though, and despite blocks from Grybb and Butler, Abby Swierzbin delivered two clutch kills to close out a 25-20 win and give the Lady Eagles a 2-1 lead in the match.
The fourth set opened tight again, but Jannazo, Summerlin, Swierzbin and Sutter quickly took over. Niceville held the advantage through most of the set, and it appeared the Lady Eagles were headed to their first Final Four since 2010.
Instead, the Lady Broncos went on a wild late run amid several disputed calls to take the fourth set 25-23 and force a decisive fifth set. Middleburg carried that momentum into the fifth, winning it 15-8 and leaving the crowd at The Nest in disbelief.
Middleburg will now face Region 3 champion Charlotte in the Final Four.
The loss doesn’t take away from a special season for Niceville, which made its first Elite Eight appearance since 2020. The Lady Eagles will lose seniors Summerlin, Sutter, Aprille Trotter and Shelby Plasier, but Jannazo, Skowronski, Swierzbin, Katherine Newkirk, Claire Ivey and Dani Puri are all set to return in 2027, barring any transfers.
