SEBRING — When Daniel Grimaldo walked onto Firemen's Field for the second half of Tuesday's Class 4A-District 10 semifinal match, the Sebring senior realized the jog from the locker room could very well be his last. "I knew what I had to do," Grimaldo said. "Everyone was telling me: 'Go to the goal.' "That's my job." Grimaldo scored two goals in the first seven minutes of the second half, breaking a first-half tie and leading the Sebring boys soccer team to a 5-3 victory over third-seeded Braden River. The No. 2-seeded Blue Streaks (13-7-3) now face top-seeded Palmetto at 7 p.m. on Friday for the district title and home-field advantage for regionals. ...more

January 23, 2008

No. 3-seeded Sebring was eliminated in the early game, falling to No. 2-seeded Braden River by a 2-0 mark, while No. 4 seed Avon Park couldn't slow down top-seeded Palmetto in the nightcap, falling 8-0. ...more

January 15, 2008

LAKE PLACID — After getting drubbed in their first game back from Christmas break, the Lake Placid girls basketball team rebounded nicely on Tuesday night. The Green Dragons, led by Ale Baker's team-high eight points, beat Mulberry 41-31 in a Class 3A-District 10 matchup after losing to Avon Park by 46 points the previous evening. "It was a nice win after getting blown out by Avon Park on Monday night," said Lake Placid coach Shonda Legree. "I brought up four girls from junior varsity to give us some depth, and it paid off. "We got all the girls in the game to get some experience and came away with a big district win." Lake Placid, which improved to 2-2 in district play, trailed 17-12 at the half before mounting a second-half rally. ...more

January 10, 2008

TOWN 'N COUNTRY - Ralph Jacobi was confident his goal of becoming an Eagle Scout would be accomplished. ...more

January 3, 2008

Christmas comes out of nowhere on State Road 50 east of Orlando, just as you start to catch your breath from miles of Disney-spawned sprawl. ...more

December 22, 2007

SEBRING –– After starting the season off struggling to score goals, the Sebring boys soccer team has turned into a veritable scoring machine. The Blue Streaks continued their outstanding recent play on Thursday night, as senior Daniel Grimaldo scored two goals and Nick Peters and Gilberto Santos added a goal to spark a 4-1 win over Palmetto in a key Class 4A-District 10 match at Firemen's Field. "This is one of the best feelings I've had all season," said an elated Grimaldo. "We've come so far and we're a different team from the beginning of the year. "Our defense is anticipating passes and playing great, and our offense is on fire." Sebring, which is unbeaten in its last 10 matches, improved to 10-4-2 overall and 6-1-1, while the Tigers suffered their first district loss and dropped to 10-2-1, 7-1-1. ...more

December 22, 2007

SEBRING — Facing the same Palmetto squad that started the Sebring girls basketball team's season off on a sour note, Blue Streak coach Mike Lee was looking for a little senior leadership. And it showed up just in time. Sebring scored eight of the game's final 10 points and got key buckets from seniors Chelsea Davis and Brenita Grant late on Tuesday to escape with a 50-44 Class 4A-District 10 victory over Palmetto. "We talked at halftime about the seniors stepping up and taking control," said Davis, who finished with 10 points. "We came together as a team in the last few minutes and really pushed it." ...more

December 13, 2007

Vertical integration is helping Maronda Homes weather the tough housing market. ...more

December 2, 2007

SEBRING — Sebring coach Steve Ashley said the driving rain that soaked Firemen's Field in the first half of the Blue Streak girls soccer team's meeting with Palmetto on Thursday night didn't have much of an effect on the game. Junior Molly Blackman, on the other hand, gleefully disagreed. "It made it a lot more fun," Blackman said. "I think everyone enjoyed it." ...more

December 1, 2007

AVON PARK — Nobody can tell the Avon Park girls basketball team it can't handle pressure. The Red Devils proved that time and time again in their 46-45 comeback victory over Palmetto in a Class 4A-District 10 showdown on Thursday night. Avon Park, which routed Braden River 69-46 on Tuesday, got all it could handle with Palmetto's "box-and-one" defense, but still found a way to squeak out a win. ...more

November 17, 2007