Lady Indians season ends, Wheatley focusing on 2024

VENICE, Fla. (WWSB) - The season is over for the Venice High School Lady Indians volleyball program. The girls fell short in their matchup against the Plant High School Lady Panthers on Wednesday night (3-1).

The Lady Indians knew that the task would be tough, especially with Plant having revenge on their minds. On their quest to their 2022 state title, one of the Venice victories for championship number six came against the Lady Panthers.

Venice head coach Brian Wheatley tells ABC7 he feels the girls never could really get into their groove.

“I kind of felt like we were one of those cars where we get the engine going for a little bit and then it would just kind of sputter out,” Wheatley said. “We’d get the engine going again and you’d think we’re ready and then we kind of sputter out. We never really got into our groove. Plant’s been thinking about us for 365 days so they had a lot of motivation.”

Despite the disappointing finish, the Lady Indians still have many great moments from this go around. The season began with Wheatley getting his 700th career victory. However, he says what he will cherish the most is watching these young ladies become better people each day.

“I think we have a group of really good kids,” Wheatley said. “Whatever they end up doing after this, whether it’s college volleyball or just going to college. They’re awesome kids. They’re awesome people. They’ve obviously been parented very well, and that’s the most important thing.”

When it comes to building for next season, Wheatley says he looks forward to the road ahead as the program builds towards title number seven during his tenure.