There is a lot to get done in a short period of time, but the Bishop Verot Vikings are not complaining about their current situation.

For the first time in school history, the Vikings are preparing for the state semifinals after defeating Melbourne Central Catholic 44-35 in Saturday’s Region 3A-13 championship game at the John J. Nevins Gymnasium.

“It’s really exciting. It’s all happening so fast,” said coach Matt Herting, who is in his 10th season at Verot. “We’re trying to get films and get hotels ready and organize practices.”

The Vikings (21-8) leave for Lakeland Tuesday morning and play Wednesday at 2:30 p.m. against defending Class 3A champion Fort Lauderdale Pine Crest at the Lakeland Center.

The trip is made possible after the Vikings’ thrilling run to the regional championship. They knocked off Dunbar 53-51 for the district title and won another game in the closing seconds over Tampa Berkeley Prep 53-50 in the regional semifinals.

This was the Vikings’ third Region 3A-13 final in four years, but their first win.

“It was a big relief,” Herting said. “We dodged a few bullets against Dunbar and Berkeley Prep. We played an incredibly tough schedule and had some injuries and illnesses this season. To come through it all and still be standing is pretty exciting.”

The tandem of Brennen Melvin and Etienne Effenberg, again, led the way for the Vikings against Melbourne Central Catholic. Melvin 18 points and nine rebounds. Effenberg tallied 13 points and five rebounds.

Baseball

n Out-of-Door Academy 13, Island Coast 3: The Island Coast Gators ran into a traffic jam on their way to Sarasota Saturday for a game against Out-of-Door Academy. They arrived after the scheduled start time and had only a few minutes to warmup.

The experience didn’t get much better. The Gators surrendered four home runs in a 10-run loss.

The Gators did manage three doubles during the contest. Will Machin went 2-for-2 with two doubles and Randy Petito had a double.

The Gators (2-4) return home to face Dunbar Wednesday.