Sports Archive

Julia Irmen is confident in her ability as a setter.

And she should be. Over the last two seasons, the junior standout has racked up nearly 800 assists while running the Navarre Raider offense.

Steve Alford’s voice won’t be booming over the speakers at Bennett C. Russell Stadium on Friday nights this fall.

Alford, the long-time public address man for the Navarre Raider football team is stepping away from a role he loves to watch his son, Everette, coach football at Lighthouse Private Christian Academy.

It doesn’t appear the heat will be turned down anytime soon on the recruiting trail for Navarre football standout Zavier Hamilton.

Offers continue to roll in, including the latest from Michigan State, and while there was talk he would commit prior to the season, the four-star recruit is holding off on that decision.

Hunter Wallace originally planned to spend her post-high school days playing soccer in England.

That still could happen at some point down the road for the former Navarre Raider, but for now, Wallace is headed to NCAA Division II Valdosta State to continue her career.

With the sun still shining bright on a hot and humid Saturday evening in late July, Pete Della Ratta stood on the turf of Blue Wahoos Stadium reminiscing with former teammates about their days with the Pensacola Pelicans.

Della Ratta, now the assistant principal at Holley-Navarre Middle School, spent a year of pro baseball as a player and manager for the independent league team.

Lee Jones was golfing one day with former teammate and friend Everette Alford when he asked him about the possibility of coaching football at Lighthouse Private Christian Academy.

Alford got Jones a meeting with then head coach Skyler Mayo, and the Navarre alum soon had himself his first high school coaching gig.

Navarre’s own Quentin Randolph has been rewarded for his success in his first season in the Indoor Football League.

Randolph has been named to the league’s all-rookie team after an impressive 2022 season with the Western Conference champion Northern Arizona Wranglers.

If a reminder was needed on how this season has gone for Navarre Xpress, look no further than the handful of athletes that qualified for nationals.

Kadesh Lott, Mason Baker, Caden Howard, Bryce Howard, Chance Howard, Payton Robinson, Bryce Wheeler and Diesel Hemingway, all made it.

The University of West Florida football team is picked to finish second in the Gulf South Conference preseason poll.

The Argos were crowned conference champions for the first time in program history a year ago, sharing the title with Valdosta State, the favorite to win the GSC title.

Terence Marshall jumped up and made a tough catch in the end zone during a 7-on-7 game with Escambia earlier this summer, and as he came down with the ball, he was knocked to the ground.

But the Raider wide receiver got up, the ball still in his hands, and brushed off the physical play as if it was no big deal.