Polk County Public Schools staff announced last week the district is temporarily suspending all athletics programs in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

When the pandemic set in, Winter Haven resident Yvette Fox couldn't go to the gym to workout, so she took some old weights out of storage and converted her garage into a gym.

The Florida Tropics Presented by Bond Clinic will start their defense of their first ever Eastern Conference championship on Saturday, Jan. 2, when the St. Louis Ambush visit the RP Funding Center in Lakeland.

The Polk Senior Games Board of Directors has announced that the 2021 Polk Senior Games have been cancelled. The decision was made because of the safety concerns and the many unknowns caused by the pandemic.

The Florida High School Athletic Association’s Board of Directors held its second regularly scheduled meeting of the 2020-21 school year on Nov. 16 in Gainesville.

Keymari Odum, a senior for the Ridge Community High School football team, moved from playing quarterback for the Bolts to wide receiver.

Ridge Community High School’s varsity football team would certainly prefer to play – and win – a state playoff game this week. But the Bolts have put together a strikingly accomplished season that goes deeper than one matchup.

High school varsity football has entered the critical month of November.

AUBURNDALE – The Florida Tropics SC, Presented by Bond Clinic, showed up with plenty of treats for their fans this Halloween weekend, scoring six times in the first half and five more in the second to cruise past Sporting Tampa Bay FC Nov. 1 at Lake Myrtle Sports Complex, 11-1.

When it comes to the Florida High School Athletic Association state series, girls varsity volleyball is among the 2020 fall sports that followed a more simplified format.

The first meeting of new Polk County rivals in the United Premier Soccer League went to the Florida Tropics.

The FHSAA released girls volleyball district tournament brackets last Wednesday, Sept. 30. Member schools had until Sept. 18 to opt out of the state series, while a blind draw was utilized to determine the initial matchups.

HAINES CITY – Winter Haven Police Department officers won first place in the “Hoops & Heroes” fundraiser basketball tournament, held Oct. 2 to benefit the Ridge Community High School Lady Bolts basketball team.

CHAMPIONSGATE – In 2019, when Melissa Chivers started a girls golf group, her goal was to eventually have 30 students.

Freshman defensive tackle Gervon Dexter made the most of his playing time in the University of Florida’s 51-35 victory at Ole Miss last Saturday.

Poinciana High was scheduled to open its 2020 varsity season last Saturday at Celebration, but results were unavailable at press time. Meanwhile, the Storm dropped a five-set decision to Orlando University High on Sept. 15 and two days later they rebounded to defeat Cornerstone Charter Academy 3-0.

For the first time in nearly 18 months, the Florida Tropics took to the outdoor pitch to defend their United Premier Soccer League national championship. The Tropics had a road game Sept. 19, after the time of publication, at the PSE Conquistadors.

DAVENPORT — A late rally for the Ridge Community Bolts fell short as the Lake Wales Highlanders, playing in their first game of the season, held on for a 36-28 victory Sept. 18.

HAINES CITY – The Ridge Community High School girls’ basketball program is teaming with the Haines City Police Department’s COPS unit for a fundraiser called “Hoops & Heroes.”

DAVENPORT — The love of America’s pastime is alive and well for two Davenport youth baseball travel teams.

The 2020 fall sports season was off and running earlier this month with the Seffner Christian Cross Country Invitational on Sept. 5 and the Tohopekaliga Invitational on Sept. 7.

Zay Mathis turned in a career-best performance for All Saints Academy against City of Life Christian Academy, as he rushed for 200 yards and four touchdowns in a 64-6 win on Sept. 4.

The fall high school sports season involves several new dynamics, and Friday should provide some additional insight into the Florida High School Athletic Association’s new-look playoff system.

Heading into his final year on the gridiron at Winter Haven High School, Jakobe Lane is set to lead a relatively young team this season. Lane is one of four siblings to play football at Winter Haven High.

Sept. 18 has emerged as a significant date when the Florida High School Athletic Association released its plan for the fall sports season.

What will a fall season of local collegiate athletics look like during the COVID-19 pandemic?

Justin Stewart turned in a solid summer on the mound for the Leesburg Lightning, a team in the Florida Collegiate Summer League — a showcase and development league for college baseball players.

WINTER HAVEN – Organizers of an open bass tournament at Tanner's Lakeside on Sept. 12 want to create a college scholarship for young anglers.

Coming off of a solid summer for the Winter Garden Squeeze, Auburndale High alum Nicholas Shower is looking to continue that momentum into next spring in his final season at Ohio Valley University. For the Squeeze, Shower went 3-1 on the mound.

The Florida High School Athletic Association released the pause button last Friday and finalized a start date for the upcoming fall sports season.

The Orlando City Soccer Club is heading back to its home market, but memories of their lengthy “bubble” stay at Walt Disney World Resort and the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex should stick with the Lions for a while.

When the Florida High School Athletic Association’s Board of Directors holds a much-anticipated meeting later this week at a hotel in Gainesville, a total of five months will have passed without sanctioned athletic competition.

JoJo Debree hit a grand slam in the semifinal of a travel baseball tournament earlier this summer, helping to lift the Winter Haven Elite travel ball team to the finals, where they would also win 11-9.

WINTER HAVEN — Kris Dehnert’s colleagues affectionately call him “Promo.”

Polk County Public Schools Senior Coordinator of Athletics Dan Talbot said that some details about the start of high school football season were still unknown during a PCPS Reopening Task Force meeting held July 8.

A surge in the number of coronavirus cases in Florida has sparked concerns over the National Basketball Association’s plans to resume play next month at Walt Disney World, near the Four Corners area.

The Four Corners region – specifically Osceola Heritage Park and Walt Disney World’s ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex – continues to be the home away from home for Major League Soccer’s Orlando City Soccer Club.

In the blink of an eye, area high school student athletes went from planning spring break activities to the possibility of being held out of school for the remainder of the current academic year.

BARTOW — Even while dealing with a massive effort to combat the spread of coronavirus, the Polk County Board of County Commissioners has additional business to tend to, including the recent decision to okay the construction of a new stadium at the Lake Myrtle Sports Park in Auburndale.

It may not seem like it, but there were still some high school athletic events around earlier this month.

WINTER HAVEN — A couple early birdies from Janie Jackson (Huntsville, Alabama) — one at No. 2 to take a four-shot lead and another at No. 4 to claim a five-stroke advantage — was all she needed to separate herself from the pack at the Country Club of Winter Haven and win the 12th annual Flor…

CELEBRATION — The Ridge Community High School softball team traveled east on Feb. 27 to take on nearby Celebration High.

Like its fall and winter predecessors, the Florida High School Athletic Association’s 2020 spring season will see the continuation of a new system.

WINTER HAVEN — Mike Nichols still recalls an interaction with one of the players on the Symetra Tour in 2012.

Feltrim Sports Village in Haines City recently hosted the 2020 US Quidditch South Regional Championships.