Joe Surratt helps a young football player adjust his helmet before practice begins for Central on an open athletic field in rural Santa Rosa County. It’s one of those things that comes with the territory of being a program literally being built from the ground up.

Manny Kimmons started playing football in middle school and hasn’t looked back. He’s now one of the Milton Panthers’ top players going into the 2023 season. A senior defensive lineman, Kimmons is doing his best to be a leader.

Autumn Boutwell received some good basketball advice in middle school that has served her well into her high school career. It’s clear she’s taken that advice to heart as she’s cemented herself as one of the top 3-point shooters in the area and is currently the school record holder at Central for 3-pointers made in a season (71) and career (123).

All eyes from the inline speedskating community are on Milton with the completion of the track at Weber’s Skate World. The governing body of inline speedskating came out with new designs for parabolic tracks that fits in with the new technology as well as the speeds now reached in skating.

David Aboya started playing basketball in the eighth grade. He loved the sport from the jump. When he got to high school, his friends convinced him to give football a shot as well. Never mind that he had never played the game.

Alyssa Clark wasn’t about to let a Crestview player get an easy two points off an uncontested layup in a game earlier this summer. A track athlete as well as a basketball player, the junior for Pace kicked her speed into another gear and took off after her before blocking the shot.

Mark Yepshin has two young children. One just turned 3. The other is a little over a year. So when his name was mentioned as a possible head coach for the first women’s soccer program in Pensacola State history, he had to make sure his wife was on board.

Kalia Corbridge almost didn’t compete at USA Weightlifting nationals this year. A reigning champ, the Pace grad said she started losing her drive in the sport shortly after the high school season ended with Corbridge repeating as an individual state champ and helping the Patriots claim their first team crown in program history.

Pensacola State’s women’s soccer team will play its first regular-season game in program history Aug. 18 at home against Hinds Community College. The Pirates will play their 2023 home games at the Ashton Brosnaham Complex in Pensacola.

Sydney Roest is on a new team. The Pace grad is playing college soccer for the first time. Typically, that can be a little intimidating. But as she gets set for her first year with the first Pensacola State women’s soccer team in program history, she loves that a couple of her travel soccer teammates (Maddie Motes and Paige Phillips) are on the squad with her.