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Four Volusia girls basketball teams advance to FHSAA playoffs

Four Volusia-Flagler area girls basketball teams are headed to the state playoffs.

The Florida High School Athletic Association revealed the regional brackets Sunday afternoon. Mainland, New Smyrna Beach and Spruce Creek booked spots by winning their district tournaments last week. Calvary Christian made the field as an at-large bid.

All four will compete in the regional quarterfinals at 7 p.m. Wednesday.

The Buccaneers (14-12) enter the 5A tournament as the area’s top-ranked team regardless of classification — 25th in the state. They captured their third straight District 4-5A title with a victory over Deltona, which granted them a first-round home game. As a two seed, Mainland will welcome No. 7 Choctawhatchee to Daytona Beach.

Last year, the Bucs were Volusia-Flagler’s lone state champion.

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Spruce Creek's Anastasia Neal (23) attempts a shoot over Mainland's Samantha Lecas (30) during the Five Star Conference finals at Atlantic High School in Port Orange, Friday, Jan. 26, 2024.
Spruce Creek's Anastasia Neal (23) attempts a shoot over Mainland's Samantha Lecas (30) during the Five Star Conference finals at Atlantic High School in Port Orange, Friday, Jan. 26, 2024.

Spruce Creek’s first opponent will be familiar. The Hawks, ranked 32nd in the state at 18-8, will host the same team, Lake Mary, they just defeated for the District 2-7A crown. They won 70-44 at Lake Mary and will now conduct the Region 1-7A matchup on their home court.

Despite prevailing against Lake Howell in the District 5-6A tournament, New Smyrna Beach will hit the road for their Region 2-6A quarterfinals. The eighth-seeded Barracudas (14-6) have claimed eight of their last nine games. They will take on No. 1 St. Cloud, another district champ.

Calvary Christian (14-12) finished as the runner-up to Mount Dora Christian in the District 6-2A finals. As Region 2-2A’s fifth seed, the Lions will travel to No. 4 Seven Rivers Christian for the quarterfinals.

After those games, the winners will advance to the regional semifinals on Monday, Feb. 17.

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Classes 1A-4A will wrap up their tournaments with the final four Feb. 27-March 2 at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland. Classes 5A-7A will follow from March 6-9.

(Note: Game times are subject to change upon agreement by both schools and FHSAA approval.)

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: High school basketball: Four Volusia girls teams make FHSAA playoffs