It’s playoff time for area volleyball. It has been three seasons since Baker last brought home the hardware in 2023, and this year might be an area team’s strongest case for doing it. Here’s a look at each bracket.

Class 5A, Region 1

• No. 1 Ponte Vedra vs. No. 8 Leon
• No. 2 Chiles vs. No. 7 Gainesville
• No. 3 Niceville vs. No. 6 Fletcher
• No. 4 Middleburg vs. No. 5 Gulf Breeze

Niceville won a district championship and swept Gulf Breeze in the regular season, but after Ponte Vedra surged from No. 4 to No. 1, the Lady Eagles will host only one playoff game.

Niceville opens at home against Fletcher. A win would set up a match with the winner of Chiles and Gainesville, with Chiles the likely opponent. Chiles won in four sets when the teams met in August at Chiles, and the Lady Timberwolves have swept seven straight opponents, which makes Chiles an even tougher test.

Get past Chiles, and Ponte Vedra likely awaits, though Middleburg or Gulf Breeze could go on a run. This looks like anybody’s region, and Niceville could very well make a Final Four run.

Class 4A, Region 1

• No. 1 Fleming Island vs. No. 8 Wakulla
• No. 2 Arnold vs. No. 7 Booker T. Washington
• No. 3 Choctaw vs. No. 6 Fort Walton Beach
• No. 4 Bishop Kenny vs. No. 5 Yulee

Choctaw and Fort Walton Beach will meet in the first round. The Indians defeated the Vikings last week in 4 sets to claim the District Championship. The winner will face the winner of Arnold and Booker T. Washington, a matchup that favors Arnold. Win that, and Fleming Island likely awaits.

This is the strongest Choctaw team since 2017 if it can get healthy, while Fort Walton Beach has defied the odds to get here, so either team has a chance.

Class 3A, Region 1

• No. 1 Pensacola Catholic vs. No. 8 Baldwin
• No. 2 Florida High vs. No. 7 Freeport
• No. 3 South Walton vs. No. 6 Newberry
• No. 4 Wolfson vs. No. 5 Bolles

With Santa Fe moved up to the open division, South Walton finds itself with a home playoff game, something that didn’t look likely early in the season. The Lady Seahawks will host Newberry, while Freeport travels to Florida High in the first round.

The winners of those two matches will meet in the Sweet 16, meaning a South Walton-Freeport matchup is possible, and it would be played at South Walton.

Whichever team makes it that far will likely face Pensacola Catholic, and the Lady Crusaders have been dominant all season. Still, a healthy Lady Seahawks team is very much capable of a Final Four run, as it showed last year. For Freeport, anything can happen.

Class 2A, Region 1

• No. 1 Trinity Catholic vs. No. 8 Trinity Prep
• No. 2 The First Academy vs. No. 7 Maclay
• No. 3 Trinity Christian Academy vs. No. 6 Episcopal School of Jacksonville
• No. 4 Oak Hall vs. No. 5 Destin

History has been made in Destin. For the first time in Destin High School history, the Lady Sharks will host a playoff game when they welcome Oak Hall in the first round.

A win would send Destin into a match against the winner of Trinity Catholic and Trinity Prep, and after that, The First Academy likely awaits in the Elite Eight. The odds are stacked against Destin, but the Lady Sharks have been defying the odds all year long.

Rural, Region 1

• No. 1 Jay vs. No. 4 Chipley
• No. 2 Baker vs. No. 3 Laurel Hill

Baker and Laurel Hill will meet in the first round after Laurel Hill surged past Central. The winner will play the winner of Jay and Chipley, and if either team can get past Jay, it will be headed on a Final Four run.

But the question remains: Are Jay’s Lady Royals just too good right now?