Southwest Florida volleyball regional playoff preview

The Florida High School Athletic Association has released its volleyball regional brackets, and 12 teams from Southwest Florida made the cut. That includes three teams who are the No. 1 overall seeds in their region.

Read on to see who made the field and what this year's regionals will look like. The numbers next to the schools are their seeds in the region:

CLASS 2A-REGION 3

No. 1 Seacrest vs. No. 8 Lakeland-Victory Christian:

Seacrest (21-4) is the defending 2A state champ, and the Stingrays have 10 players back from last year's squad. Victory Christian is 9-14.

No. 4 Tampa Bay HEAT vs. No. 5 St. John Neumann:

Neumann (12-8) grabbed an at-large bid thanks to a strong finish to the season. The Celtics won four of five games and advanced to the district finals. HEAT is 14-11.

No. 3 Largo-Indian Rocks Christian vs. No. 6 Marco Island Academy:

Marco Island is the third team from 2A-Distrct 12 to make regionals. The Manta Rays got upset in the district tournament but make the field thanks to their 16-4 record.

CLASS 3A-REGION 3

No. 4 Sarasota-Cardinal Mooney vs. No. 5 Canterbury:

Canterbury (14-5) has to start the playoffs on the road despite winning a district title. In years past all district champs hosted in the first round, but this year the FHSAA seeded teams based solely on RPI.

CLASS 4A-REGION 3

No. 4 Estero vs. No. 5 Weeki Wachee:

Estero (11-8) gets to host a regional game for the first time in a while thanks to winning the 4A-District 12 title. Weeki Wachee (14-8) also won its district but has to play on the road thanks to a lower RPI score.

No. 3 Lemon Bay vs. No. 6 Anclote:

Lemon Bay (11-9) won the 4A-District 11 championship. The Manta Rays started the season 6-1 but have gone just 5-8 since. Anclote (12-15) was District 9 runner-up to Weeki Wachee.

CLASS 5A-REGION 3

No. 1 Barron Collier vs. No. 8 Tampa-Freedom:

The Cougars (15-5) get homecourt advantage throughout regionals by taking the top seed. Barron Collier won a regional title last year and is looking for its sixth regional championship in seven years.

No. 4 St. Petersburg vs. No. 5 North Fort Myers:

North Fort Myers was 15-3 before getting upset in the district semifinals. Now the Red Knights have to start the playoffs on the road. St. Pete is 20-7.

No. 3 Bradenton-Braden River vs. No. 6 Naples:

Naples (11-11) grabbed an at-large bid after finishing district runner-up for the eighth time in 10 seasons. Braden River (20-7) won the 5A-District 11 title.

CLASS 6A-REGION 3

No. 1 Charlotte vs. No. 8 Tampa-Wharton:

Charlotte (17-1) is the region's top seed after losing just once this season. The Tarpons, who have won 14 straight games, lost in the regional finals last season.

No. 2 Land O' Lakes vs. No. 7 Fort Myers:

Fort Myers (10-8) earned an at-large bid thanks to five straight wins to close the season, including a district title. Land O' Lakes is 21-7 and also a district champ.

CLASS 7A-REGION 3

No. 3 Gulf Coast vs. No. 6 Lithia-Newsome:

The Sharks finished district runner-up but are seeded higher than two district champs in the region. Gulf Coast (16-8) was rewarded for its strong strength of schedule and playing in one of the toughest districts in the state.