The Lakeland Dreadnaughts secured their eighth state title under head coach Bill Castle with a 21-14 victory over the Venice Indians at DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale in the FHSAA Class 4S State Championship on Saturday afternoon.
The road to the first-ever Class 3S (Suburban) state championship game continues to go through Legion Field in Lake Wales.
The Lake Wales All-Star Junior and Senior teams claimed district baseball titles recently.
The Bartow Dixie Youth T-ball All-Star team claimed the District 7 championship with a 24-13 victory over North Lakeland, June 21, at the George Pittas Complex.
The Bartow Dixie Youth T-ball All-Star team claimed the District 7 championship with a 24-13 victory over North Lakeland, June 21, at the George Pittas Complex.
Fort Meade native Andrew McCutchen is off a promising start as a member of the Milwaukee Brewers.
Thanksgiving week marked the return of the Metro vs. Florida Challenge, and Auburndale High’s boys’ basketball team did its part to help the latter side carve out a tournament victory.
From an observer’s viewpoint, the Lake Wales varsity football team checked several boxes off its Week 1 to-do list on Friday.
This week marks the transition from Week 0 to Week 1 for Polk County high school varsity football programs.
A few more sports-related thoughts as the month of April winds down in Polk County…
Polk State broke a two-game losing streak Monday night, defeating St. Petersburg 8-6 in Clearwater.
Piecing together sports news as high school football nears the start of spring practice…
Kyle Meadows helped set the tone for All Saints Academy’s boys lacrosse team on its journey to an 11-5 record this season.
After devoting articles to the recent NBA G League bubble season at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, it is fitting to mention the recent developments regarding now-former Lakeland Magic head coach Stan Heath.
Polk State women’s soccer rallied from a 2-0 deficit to soar past the Daytona State Falcons 4-2 April 17 in Lakeland. The Falcons rank No. 14 in NJCAA D1.
The Ridge Community High softball team hosted Lake Wales Thursday, April 1, and the host Bolts fell to the visiting Highlanders 18-5.
Of the area high school programs with the potential to play championship-caliber softball this spring, two in particular are leading the charge.
A seventh-inning rally by Haines City kept host Lake Region High from claiming top honors at last week’s Thunder Spring Classic.
WINTER HAVEN — The Winter Haven High baseball team hosted Lakeland Christian on Wednesday, March 24, as part of their 2021 Blue Devil Classic.
The tradition-rich Lake Wales football program will take a step back in time with the Florida High School Athletic Association’s recent vote for a one-year reclassification cycle.
On March 17, the Winter Haven Blue Devils girls lacrosse team hosted the nearby Discovery Spartans, of Lake Alfred. The game was also Senior Night for the home team.
LAKELAND — In the end, the Bartow Yellow Jackets didn’t just repeat as FHSAA Class 6A State Champions — they were dominant in doing so.
LAKELAND — The Bartow High boys basketball team dominated Ocala Forest in the FHSAA Class 6A State Semifinals Thursday night, topping the Wildcats 63-24 at the RP Funding Center.
The Bartow High boys basketball team enjoyed its trip last year to Lakeland for the FHSAA Final Four so much that the Yellow Jackets are going back.
The staff for the athletics department at soon-to-be-opened Davenport High School continues to take shape.
For a second consecutive season, the Winter Haven High School girls basketball team’s season ended in the Final Four in Lakeland.
On Sunday, Feb. 28, Winter Haven native Trey Mancini received a standing ovation during his first live at-bat after missing the 2020 season while recovering from Stage 3 colon cancer.
Polk County Public Schools staff announced Wednesday, Jan. 27, that the school district will limit attendance at athletic events for the remainder of the 2020-21 school year in an effort to help slow the spread of coronavirus.
Three of Polk State College’s five athletics programs returned to action within the past week, with a fourth set to begin play this week.
The RP Funding Center in Lakeland hosted the FHSAA Competitive Cheerleading State Championships this past weekend, with a pair of Polk County teams winning state titles.
Novel coronavirus-related issues continue to be the norm – especially for tournament organizers.
Florida High School Athletic Association regional meets involving area schools are scheduled for this week: Class 3A-3 (Jan. 30 at St. Cloud High), Class 2A-3 (Jan. 28 at River Ridge High) and Class 1A-4 (Jan. 30 at Lemon Bay High).
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.
Bartow City Commissioners presented a proclamation to Bartow High School’s two principals and head football coach last week, proclaiming the city the “Home of Champions.”
The Auburndale boys basketball team swept all four games it played last week, including wins over nearby Winter Haven and a well-regarded Windermere team out of Orange County, to improve to 8-0 on the season.
Winter Haven High School girls basketball standout Trinity Hardy announced her commitment to further her education and basketball career at the United States Military Academy at West Point on November 21.
Courtney Blastic has helped play an important role in the Winter Haven High girls soccer team’s 3-1-1 start this season. Blastic plays forward and has been on varsity since her freshman year. She is currently a junior.
The transition from fall to winter high school sports is underway as the calendar flips to December.
It seems like forever going back to February 2020, but that month Winter Haven’s girls varsity basketball team nearly reached the Class 6A state championship game.
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.
The novel coronavirus continues to exact a significant toll on the varsity football season.
Throughout the month of November, the Lakeland Magic and Florida Blue are asking fans to help virtually sell out the RP Funding Center and fill the bowl for those in need as they raise money to fight hunger in the Central Florida community.
The COVID-19 pandemic teamed up with Tropical Storm Eta to alter portions of last week’s high school athletic schedule.
Keymari Odum, a senior for the Ridge Community High School football team, moved from playing quarterback for the Bolts to wide receiver.
The Bartow High football program has had quite the turnaround over the past three seasons, capped by a decisive win over Lake Wales in the Yellow Jackets’ regular season finale Nov. 6.
The high school varsity football season has progressed similar to that of a long roller coaster ride.
The Lake Wales High boys and girls bowling programs were represented at the 2020 FHSAA state bowling championships.
The Bartow and Lake Wales varsity football teams remained undefeated last Friday, while Fort Meade reached the .500 mark the same night with its second straight victory.
Despite being at Winter Haven Christian for just two months, Elissa MacDonald has already made an immediate impact, setting the girls record in cross country at the school and winning four medals so far this season.
