Prep football: Manatee closes season ranked tops in 7A



photo by Tiffany Tompkins-Condie
Trevon Walters and Manatee head into the playoffs ranked tops in the state in Class 7A

As expected, Manatee closed the regular season ranked No.1 in Class 7A in the latest AP Poll, which was released Monday.
The Hurricanes, who defeated Lakewood Ranch on Friday to go 10-0 for the second time in three years, have been ranked No.1 since defeating Jacksonville First Coast in last year's 7A state championship game.
Manatee earned all 14 first-place votes in the latest poll. The Hurricanes open the Region 3 playoffs Friday at home against St. Petersburg Northeast.
Southeast was off last week and heads into the playoffs ranked ninth in the state in Class 5A. The Seminoles (8-2) host Winter Haven in the first round. 
Ranked first in 5A for much of the season, Palmetto was bumped out of the top 10 after back-to-back losses to Manatee and Southeast. The 8-2 Tigers did receive three votes, but that wasn't enough to get them back in the top 10.
Palmetto closed the regular season with a 27-7 win over Ocala Trinity Catholic. The Tigers head to Auburndale on Friday.

Prep cross country: Local regional runners



photo by Paul Videla
Kristin Zarrella and Lakewood Ranch's girls cross country team are looking for a return to the state meet

 The regional cross country meets are scheduled for Friday and Saturday.
Listed below are the area's regional qualifiers.
The top six teams and 15 individuals qualify for the state cross country meet, scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 17 at Apalachee Regional Park in Tallahassee.

CLASS 4A-REGION 2
When: 9 a.m. Saturday
Where: McIntosh Middle School
Locals: Manatee's girls team, Chris Pate (Manatee).

CLASS 3A-REGION 3
When: Friday, TBA
Where: Estero Commiunty Park
Locals: Lakewood Ranch's girls team, Lakewood Ranch's boys team, Canaan Meester-Kitterman (Bayshore), Alexis Cullen (Braden River)

CLASS 2A-REGION 3
When: 8 a.m. Saturday
Where: Holiday Anclote High
Locals: Southeast's girls team, David Marvel (Southeast), Cole Tuttle (Southeast)

CLASS 1A-REGION 3
When: 10 a.m. Saturday
Where: Melbourne Holy Trinity
Locals: Saint Stephen's girls team, Carling Landenche (Out-of-Door Academy), Grace Casagrande (Cardinal Mooney), Saint Stephen's boys team, Peter Runge (Out-of-Door Academy), Cal Turner Davidson (Cardinal Mooney).

Prep football: Manatee looking to pad two impressive streaks Friday

photo by Grant Jefferies
It's been a long time since coach Manatee coach Joe Kinnan and quarterback Cord Sandberg have lost to a Florida school

Manatee hosts Lakewood Ranch on Friday with a chance to go 10-0 for the second time in three years.
Impressive, right?
What's even more impressive, however, is a pair of streaks the Hurricanes are looking to lenghten at the Mustangs' expense.
First, they are looking to run their county winning streak to 24 games.
Second, Manatee is hoping to win its 28th straight regular-season game against Florida schools.
In fact, quarterback Cord Sandberg has never lost to a state school in the regular season. The only Florida team to beat Manatee with Sandberg running the offense is Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquians in the 2010 Class 5A state semifinals.
Want to know the last county and state teams to beat the Hurricanes?
Check out my story in Friday's edition of The Bradenton Herald.

Prep football: Manatee's opponent wrong on FHSAA website



photo by John Lembo
Who will Cord Sandberg and Manatee meet in the 7A-Region 3 playoffs next Friday?

 Manatee opens the Class 7A-Region 3 playoffs at home Nov. 16 against St. Petersburg Northeast.
The Florida High School Association, however, has the the Hurricanes hosting Largo Pinellas Park in the 7A bracket.
This time, the FHSAA is wrong, though it is understandable.
Going strictly by what happened on the field, Clearwater Countryside won District 9 and Pinellas Park was the runner-up.
Consequently, Pinellas Park was to head to Bradenton while Countryside hosted Venice in a the first round.
But Countryside was docked by the FHSAA for the use of ineligble player and had to forefeit six games, according to the Tampa Bay Times.
So Pinellas Park is the district champ and hosts Venice.
Northeast in the runner-up and Countryside will miss the postseason.

Prep football: Southeast in, Palmetto out of 5A top 10

photo by Tiffany Tompkins-Condie

The Southeast Seminoles not only played well enough to win a district title last week, they made their way into the Class 5A top 10 for the first time this season.
Southeast is ranked ninth in the state in Class 5A in the latest poll, released Monday.
The Seminoles beat Palmetto last Friday to clinch the District 10 title. Southeast (8-2) is off this week and hosts Lake Wales on Nov. 16 in a Region 3 quarterfinal.
Palmetto has lost two straight since beginning the season 7-0 and is out of the top 10 after owning the No.1 ranking for most the fall. The Tigers host Ocala Trinity Catholic on Friday before opening the playoffs at Auburndale.
Manatee, as expected, maintained its top spot in Class 7A after beating Sarasota to win the District 10 title. The Hurricanes have been No.1 since winning the state title last December.
The Hurricanes received all 14 first-place votes this week after second-ranked Jacksonville First Coast earned a top vote last week.  Manatee beat First Coast in last year's championship game.
Manatee is 9-0 and takes a 21-game winning streak into Friday's game against Lakewood Ranch. The Hurricanes are looking to wrap their second undefeated regular season in three years before opening the Class 7A-Region 3 playoffs at home against St. Petersburg Northeast.

Prep football: Breaking down Manatee County's three big ballgames

photo by Grant Jefferies
Manatee and its stacked defensive line look to clinch the Class 7A-District 10 title tonight.

Tonight marks the final week of the district portion of play, which means by Saturday mornin we will know how many teams are heading to the playoffs, which gets underway Nov. 16.
Three games tonight have playoff implications.
Here they are:

SARASOTA (5-3, 1-1 7A-10) at MANATEE (8-0, 2-0)
At stake: Despite their 20-game winning streak and a No.1 national ranking in three separate polls (ESPN, MaxPreps and USA Today), the Hurricanes haven't officially locked up a district title or even a playoff berth. They're heavy favorites, however, heading into tonight's game with the Sailors, and will clinch the District 10 championship with a win. A Hurricanes win means they host the District 9 runner-up, which will be Clearwater Countryside, Pinellas Park or St. Petersburg Northeast. All three are in the mix tonight to win the district or advance as the runner-up.
SOUTHEAST (7-2, 3-0 5A-10) at PALMETTO (7-1, 3-0)
At stake: The Seminoles and Tigers are the only area teams to officially seal a trip to the playoffs, but tonight's game decides the district champion and the host of a first-round playoff game. The losing team heads to the winner of tonight's District 9 title game between Lake Wales and Auburndale, while the loser of that games heads west to Manatee County.
SEMINOLE OSCEOLA (6-3, 3-1 6A-7) at LAKEWOOD RANCH (5-3, 3-1)
At stake: The math is simple - winner heads to the playoffs, loser doesn't. The Mustangs won last year's meeting in Pinellas County before nearly upsetting nationally-ranked Seffner Armwood in the first round of the Region 3 playoffs. Neither team gave district champ Largo much a game this season, though the Warriors found the end zone in a 41-20 defeat while the Mustangs didn't, losing 38-0. Will that have any bearing on tonight's game? Tonight's winner opens the playoffs at Tampa Hillsborough, the District 8 champion that upset Armwood (3-0) on Oct. 18.

Prep volleyball: And then there was one...



photo by Tom Hubbard
Ashlyn Falahee serves during Lakewood Ranch's regional win Tuesday over Dover Strawberry Crest. The Mustangs are the only locals left standing in the volleyball postseason.

 The opening round of the regional volleyball tournaments wasn't kind to area teams, as three squads were eliminated Wednesday.
The only team left standing is Lakewood Ranch, which hosts Tampa Sickles on Tuesday in Class 6A-Region 3 semifinals.
The Mustangs beat Dover Strawberry Crest in Tuesday's quarterfinals.
Listed below are Wednesday's results.

CLASS 7A-REGION 3
Stuart Martin County 3, Manatee 1
CLASS 3A-REGION 3
Clearwater Calvary Christian 3, Saint Stephen's 2
Clearwater Central Catholic 3, Out-of-Door Academy 0