Lady Sharks Fall Short of Title

The Miami Dade College Lady Sharks volleyball team lost two of three games at the community college national championships to fall short of their goal of capturing a national title.

The tournament was held in West Plains, Missouri from Nov. 17-19.

“It wasn’t one of our best trips to nationals, but there is always room for improvement,” said Lady Sharks Head Coach Origenes “Kiko” Benoit.

During the tournament, the Lady Sharks lost to Eastern Arizona College, winning only one out of four sets (25-19,25-17,18-25,25-18); beat Gadsden State Community College, winning three out of four sets (22-25, 25-18, 25-23, 25-20); and lost the final game against Mineral Area College (28-26,25-22,17-25,25-23).

The Lady Sharks came into the season with high expectations, ranked as high as No. 2 in the nation. They hoped to add to the College’s national titles. The Lady Sharks have won seven national championship titles since 1969; their last title was in 2004.

The team was led by sophomore middle blocker Marifranchi Rodriguez, who is the nation’s leading-scorer and averages 5.11 kills per set.

Earlier in the month, the Lady Sharks defeated Polk State College (25-16, 25-23, and 25-15) to capture the Atlantic District Championship. Then the Lady Sharks defeated the College of Central Florida (25-20, 25-23 and 25-23) to win the State Championship.

The Lady Sharks finished the season with a 24-6 record.

“I couldn’t have gotten this far by myself,” said sophomore outside hitter/libero Yukie Futami.