There was little doubt about the University of West Florida coming out on top in its season opener against Kentucky Wesleyan Friday night at Pen Air Field.

The Argos came in ranked in the top nationally and coming off a third NCAA Division II final four appearance in program history. Kentucky Wesleyan was unranked and won just two games in 2022.

The Patriots took a tough loss last Friday night against the Lincoln Trojans, falling 21-7 at home and dropping to 1-1 on the season.

The Patriot defense came out of the gate strong, stopping the Trojans from putting up points in the first quarter. The Trojan defense had the same energy and forced the Patriots to punt twice in the opening quarter.

Week two of the high school football season is here and Pace, Milton and Jay, all coming off wins last week, are in action Friday night.

Pace hosts Lincoln, Milton travels to powerhouse Niceville and Jay is on the road against Freeport.

Milton’s swim competed in a tri-meet with Navarre and Fort Walton Beach last Wednesday at the Pullum YMCA.

The Panthers finished third overall as a team.

Milton and Pace finished third and fourth, respectively, in a four-team meet at Stonebrook Monday.

Gabi Wright had the top score for the Panthers, carding a 44, as Milton finished with a 202.

In 2016, Kaleb Nobles was making his debut as the quarterback of a first-year University of West Florida football program.

Fast forward seven years and Nobles is now the head coach of the program that ushers in a new era Friday night when it hosts Kentucky Wesleyan in a 6 p.m. game at Pen Air Field.

Milton and Central’s volleyball match Tuesday night ended with a little edge-of-your-seat drama.

The Panthers were on the brink of victory. The Jaguars had every intention of keeping hope alive and forcing a decisive fifth game.

Ashlyn Hines chased after the ball late in the third set of a tightly contested volleyball match against Pensacola Catholic last Monday night. She was able to bump it behind her as she ran towards the sideline, setting up an opportunity for Cambree Klein to throw down a kill and tie the score at 24-24.

On Christmas day, a few days before her fourth birthday, Briana Willis received her first set of golf clubs.

It wasn’t too long after that Willis found golf to be a sport she loved to play.

The margin might have been larger, but Jay High School football coach Brian Watson was happy to win the Royals’ season opener 20-13 against the visiting Vernon Yellowjackets.

“It feels good, our kids are happy,” Watson said after Friday’s game at Merle V. North Stadium in Jay. “It’s been a while since we’ve had an opening-season win. The kids are excited.”