Central head football coach Joe Surratt stood on the sideline early Friday afternoon and couldn’t help but smile as his team warmed up on the field.
Finally, on a 90-degree day in late October, the Jaguars were ready to play a true home game.

Ben Tyner took a few photos with family members and then turned to celebrate with his teammates. The smile on his face said it all. The joy in his voice did as well. Tyner and the Patriots were officially District 1-6A champions, and no one was going to take that away from them.

River Igoe started running cross-country when she was 7 or 8 years old. She was inspired by her older brother after watching him run and has stuck with the sport ever since.

Two weeks remain in the high school football regular season and among the highlights this Friday are Pace playing for a district title and Central hosting its first ever official home game.
Here’s a look ahead to week 10 of the season.

Swimmers from Santa Rosa County had a strong showing at a stacked District 1-3A meet Wednesday at the University of West Florida Aquatic Center in Pensacola.
And now several of them are headed to Tuesday’s Region 1-3A meet at the FAST Center in Gainesville.

Kinsley Hines remembers last year when Pace’s volleyball season ended in Navarre’s gym. The Patriots lost a heartbreaker in five in the district tournament.
This time the two teams met in the opening round of the Region 1-6A tournament in the very same gym.

Pace and Jay remain among the top teams in their respective regions while Navarre and Crestview are still on the outside looking in.

Navarre, Pace and Jay have all earned at-large berths to their respective regional volleyball tournaments. And now, it’s win or go home time as the road to a state title begins.

Milton and Central nearly came through with their first wins of the season Friday night.

Pace quarterback Ben Tyner summarized the Patriots’ 29-6 win over the Pine Forest Eagles at home in a few words Thursday night.
“It was not pretty, but we got the job done,” Tyner said.