Archbishop McCarthy girls’ volleyball team advances to first state final four
Juliana Lugo has spent only one season on the Archbishop McCarthy girls’ volleyball team.
But that was more than enough time for her to develop unwavering confidence in her squad’s ability to handle any situation.
So when the Mavericks found themselves behind early against Lourdes Academy - the team that eliminated them from the playoffs exactly one year earlier - Lugo never worried.
“We know we are a great team and we’re confident in our abilities,” Lugo said. “Besides, who wants a three-set game, anyway? Let’s make it four. Let’s make it interesting.”
McCarthy kept the capacity crowd at its home gym enthralled for four competitive sets and gave its fans a reason to storm the court after the Mavericks topped Lourdes 25-27, 25-19, 25-13, 25-16 in the Region 4-5A final on Wednesday night.
After losing to the Bobcats (23-6) in the same round last season and watching them celebrate their first ever trip to state on their home court, McCarthy (27-3) returned the favor, rallying to victory after a tough first set slipped away.
“We just made school history,” said Lugo, a junior outside hitter who transferred from Weston Sagemont before the season. “We brought the energy, the pride and the talent. Everyone is ecstatic right now. We’re really grateful. We’ve been anticipating this game for a while. We told ourselves this time we’d take it home.”
The Mavericks are the No. 2 seed at state, and will next face No. 3 seed Gainesville at 4 next Friday, Nov. 7 in a Class 5A state semifinal at Polk State College in Winter Haven.
“We prepared for this,” McCarthy coach Robert Perez said. “They beat us at their place last year, but this time we could bring them to our home court and in front of our fans and I think that made a big difference.”
Lugo led McCarthy with 18 kills, three aces, four blocks and seven digs. Brianna Masaracchio had 12 kills, Fabiana Castro had 39 assists and Raquel Hurtado had 10 digs, as each played key roles in the Mavericks’ win.
“(Lugo)’s been the heart of this team. Her attitude and her hard work and she and her teammates support each other. We’re really happy she’s with us and glad we have her for one more year,” Perez said. “Lugo takes on a lot of the offensive responsibility, but it’s a collective effort. We blocked well and attacked the middle when we had to and everything turned out well.”
Perez, a former coach on the Puerto Rican national team, is in his third season coaching the Mavericks and watched his squad make program history after overcoming a disappointing finish to the first set.
McCarthy led 22-18 after a kill by Oprah Poveda, and had three possible set points at 24-21 after an ace by Lugo. But led by Sophia Gonzalez and Nicole Plant, the Bobcats scored four points in a row and eventually took the set, 27-25.
Lourdes led 4-2 early in the second before the Mavericks recovered their momentum thanks to kills from Kaylin Rivera and Em’Pris Seetal. McCarthy used an 8-0 run late in the third set to score a lopsided win and take the lead for good.
“We made some adjustments after that first set and we didn’t look back,” Perez said. “It was an intense match, but we achieved what we set out to do five months ago and we’re headed to state. And this is just the beginning because we have 14 players that can come back next season, so we look to have great volleyball for a while here at McCarthy.”
This story was originally published October 30, 2025 at 12:43 PM.
