BULLETIN BOARD MATERIAL!

This is what Venice coach Brian Wheatley told the Venice Gondolier after watching Plant -- which plays Clearwater Thursday for the region championship -- celebrate following the Panthers' win against the Indians in Saturday's region semifinal.

"This was pretty much the state championship," reasoned Wheatley.

What? Now it is well know Wheatley has a ...uh-um ... high opinion of himself and his team, but that's a flat-out slap in the face to a pretty darn good Clearwater team. That said, is Wheatley right? Plant is a powerhouse, featuring an all-star cast led by Miami-bound Christine Williamson. What do those of you in the area think of Clearwater's chances Thursday?

--BRANDON WRIGHT, Times Staff Writer

Comments

I think that Plant will win the match, but I believe that CLW will put up a fight, Plant should not look past them. All Plant has to do is shut down Fisher and Plant's offense will tear ClW's defense to shreds. Plant is just a good team, nothing against CLW.

Its a clearwater sound spanking

It should be written, this is why they play the game!
PHU lost close games to Plant and Clearwater blew PHU away and everyone else in a VERY strong Northern Pinellas Region (Countryside,East Lake and PHU). DO NOT celebrate to soon here Plant, whoever thinks, its just Fisher and a nice warm-up match to state final is sadly mistaken! Venice coach watch closely, Clearwater will not get swept like you and they will play at Plant.

[Parent]

Before things get ugly on this blog lets just stop. Let the girls play on Thursday then you can talk. Anyone can win on any given day. Just remember, both teams have great players and it takes 6 on the court to win. Both teams have several standouts and I am sure they are ready to play! All these girls are nice and before you start something parents, just remember that it could come back on your kid. Please, let them just play. Wheatly does have a very high opinion of himself and I am personally glad he lost. That just sounds like sour grapes to me of his comments. All these girls including his have put in alot of time preparing for this moment- lets encourage all and be proud to have come this far.

[clearwater fan]

Plant High School has a very fine team, we are looking forward to the challenge.May the best team win and may both teams play without any injuries.Clearwater will show up.Good Luck Tornadoes.

I think this will be a very close and exciting match. Clearwater earned their way here and are looking to make it past the regional finals. Plant is no easy task, but I think Clearwater can do it if they function together and come prepared. Everyone has weaknesses, even the number one team in the state.

I can't wait for tomorrow's region final volleyball showdown between Plant and Clearwater for a couple of reasons: 1) It should be a classic matchup between two outstanding volleyball teams and 2) I don't have to cover it so I can watch from the stands like a normal fan! Since it's in Hillsborough, ace reporter Scott Purks will be covering the match, which means I can interject some opinion on here as to what might transpire. Here goes:
1) It is critical for Clearwater to take the crowd out of the match early. Plant has a huge following and their gym will be packed. The Tornadoes have to "get off the bus" quick and strike hard in game 1.
2) There is a great battle within the battle between some outstanding duos. Plant hitter Christine Williamson (Miami) and setter Kellie Catanach vs. Clearwater's Kristin Fisher (UCF) and setter Channing Salava. All four play at an extremely high level and their team's chances of winning will be bolstered by whichever pair plays best.
3) Serve-recieve. Salava has an absolutely lights-out serve but the key for Clearwater will be how MANY serves she takes. If Salava only gets one serve off before rotation, that could be trouble. But if she can rip off 4 or 5 service points at a clip, Clearwater is in good shape. Salava is averaging nearly four aces per match and has gotten way more consistent as the year has gone on.
4) Clearwater's blockers must slow down Plant's hitters. Katie Betourne, Kaitlin Posnak and Fisher, who all have good size, will be key up front but since Plant has such a versatile attack, whoever rotates up front for the Tornadoes will have to be on point.
5) Passing. I think this is the only area Plant holds a clear advatage. I've seen the Panthers play a few times this season and their passing is crisp, precise and efficient.
6) So now to the good part: whose going to win? Tough to say with teams these close and after seeing both this year believe me, it's that close. But I hate predictions so the best I'll do is this: If the Tornadoes win game 1, I like Clearwater in 5.
--BRANDON WRIGHT, Times Staff Writer

plant in 4

[Observer]

I am sorry to see Clearwater lose but mostly because they did not seem to be playing the game they used to beat all of Pinellas County. Why did Fisher not get set more like she usually does? Plant had no answer for her, but Clearwater stopped setting her. I think almost all of her attacks were from when she was in the back row. But great season for Clearwater and Fisher will really be missed! Good luck at UCF! In the meantime, we need to start shipping in the water from Tampa because there are no girls as big as those Plant girls in all of Pinellas county volleyball.

[Another Observer]

Congratulations to the Tornadoes for a great season. There are a couple of girls on that team who have been unsung heroes all year and last night they did play their hearts out.

Observer...Clearwater did great and Shannon Romine and Kristin Fisher and Lauren Rilling played their last game. You have to have all components of the game to succeed and it just didn't happen last night. I think they did great to get as far as they did with that team, but to ask why Fisher didn't get set more makes me wonder if you were even there. I did not see many opportunties for her or Shannon or Channing due to the passing. Its no one persons fault, that happens sometimes. Its a game and they won last night and Clearwater did not. They clearly did everything better but serve.

What can you say.....I have never seen a hitter like Christine Williamson.... the 8th Wonder of the World! It's True!

How can you set Fisher when the passes are crap? How can you say Fisher is the only that will be missed? There wasn't one senior on that team, there was 5, 2 who only got to play a little. All this year you've heard about how great Fisher and Channing are but they weren't the only ones giving their all last night. All year it's been the little things other players have done and were taken for granted. How about Katie Betourne's consistent passing and digging, Lauren Rilling's outstanding serves, and Shannon Romine's consistent smartness in every aspect of the game. Clearwater's team will sorely miss ALL 5 of their seniors next year.

Yes, I agree several players were completely underrated and remained humble throughout the entire season. Congratulations to those of you willing to sacrifice for minimal spotlight and credit. "Teams do not go physically flat, they go mentally stale," could sum up the game last night. It was simply there were taller, bigger and hit harder and the team was not a team last night.

Congrats to Clearwater for a great year, they've never played a team that good all year so you can't be surprised by the results.

"Teams do not go physically flat, they go mentally stale," could sum up the game last night. It was simply there were taller, bigger and hit harder and the team was not a team last night.

Whose fault is that and why?

Props to Clearwater for taking them to 4 games.The girls played their hearts out that night.

I think you have to look at the coach and ask what she did to make it so that all the Seniors don't feel like they were important. A coach can make or break a team and they needed to all feel important for their contribution what ever it is. A coach needs to be impartial at all times, favoritism can destroy everything and divide all. You girls did a great job, the entire team. CHS has a great future and tradition. The plant girls have more experience, played bigger games with their club experience and had tougher indivualized training. To take them to 4 was GREAT and don't forget it was better then Venice did! Also, Christine Williamson is a name you are going to here for a long time. What an unbelivable hitter and athlete she is.

Just because the paper doesn't give credit to the other seniors, doesn't mean the coach does not. Rilling and Shannon had a great season as well. It takes a team, including the ones who's main job was to help prepare the team during practice, to get that far and to take Plant to 4. Nice job to the ENTIRE team!

[Plant Parent]

Clearwater is hands down a better team than Venice and are clearly the next best team in 5A. After Winter Park, Plant, Lake Highland and Buccholz, Clearwater is next in cross-class rankings in my opinion. Great team!

[Venice Fan]

Just b/c Clearwater took Plant to 4 means they are better then Venice? Clearwater has not beaten Venice since the State Finals in 1997. Venice has won every match since then and is the team who usually knocks Clearwater out of the playoffs. Venice probably would have beaten Clearwater in 3 had they played but Clearwater plays in easy tournaments all year. Didn't Manatee take Clearwater to 4 in the quarterfinals??????

[Plant Parent]

Hey, Venice Fan, it's me again...Plant Parent. I didn't mean to offend but I did intend what I said, I believe CHS is simply better than Venice this year, not because they took Plant to 4 because Plant lost that one game due to mental lapse as they fell behind by nearly 15 points and then almost came back to win it when they woke up.

BUT, I think CHS simply serves more aggressively and they're tougher at the net. Hey, Kristen Fisher is a tough player and I think she is tougher load than handle than what Venice brings offensively. I don't agree with Wheatley's comment at the beginning of this thread, I firmly believe that CHS is the 2nd best team in 5A. After that, Venice. But I think CHS would be beat Venice in no more than 4, but likely 3. Of course, in the past Venice has had Dumas, Hough, etc...I don't the past has any impact on the current assessment...

[vb fan]

Thanks Plant parent for your insight. I guess we will never know who the 2nd best team in 5A will be since Clearwater did not play the schedule that Venice or Plant did. I am glad that you do not assess teams from past players like Dumas and Hough but I think good programs win year in and year out. Not always championships but have very competitive teams. Now, you put a very nice transfer like Williamson or even Sharpe on Clearwater's team and the tornadoes now are State Champs or Venice. Agree?