Sports Archive

Riding the high of a win over area powerhouse Tate earlier in the week, Navarre’s baseball team was hoping to keep the momentum rolling Friday night against Gulf Breeze.

Instead, it turned out to be one of those nights where the hits, the pitches and the breaks didn’t go the Raiders’ way in a 10-1 loss to the rival Dolphins.

Until last week, Navarre’s flag football team didn’t have its entire roster together for a practice. Several of the girls were still playing basketball for a Raider squad that reached the Elite Eight.

Yet, Thursday afternoon at Bennett C. Russell Stadium, the Raiders looked like a well-oiled machine in a pair of preseason games against county rivals Pace and Gulf Breeze.

Rachel Hester fired a perfect pitch across the plate that left the Choctaw batter with no chance of making contact.

Hester pumped her fist, flashed a smile and turned to exchange high fives with her teammates after Navarre’s 5-0 win over the Indians Thursday night in Fort Walton Beach.

Rachel Leggett set a school record in the long jump and AJ Arno won the triple jump as Navarre competed in its first big meet of the season Saturday.

A week removed from wrapping up her high school basketball season, Leggett went out and crushed the previous record with a distance of 17-feet-6 1/4-inches at the Fort Walton Beach Viking Relays.

Teddi Atteberry needed a minute to realize the significance of the moment after her girls lacrosse team rolled over Fort Walton Beach 6-1 last Monday night.

That win, after all, marked the first in program history for the sport at Navarre.

Navarre head track coach Tony Carter watches as his athletes go through another practice on a weekday afternoon and he points to the potential this team of nearly 200 holds for this season.

“The kids are working hard and we have a lot of young talent,” Carter said. “We have some freshmen and sophomores who can make an impact this year and some seniors out for the sport for the first time that are impressive, too. I’m excited.”

Cami Acevedo made one of her soccer dreams come true this week. The Navarre senior signed with NCAA Division III Methodist University in North Carolina to continue her athletic and academic career.

Acevedo signed her national letter of intent last Tuesday afternoon at the NYSA Soccer Complex.

Amira Marshall’s dream of competing at the 3A state girls weightlifting meet ended unexpectedly.

Navarre’s senior standout in the unlimited division had to quarantine before the district meet last month, ending all hope of returning to state and contending for a top three finish for the Raiders.

Even with a second-place finish at the Northwest Florida Invitational last Wednesday afternoon at Baker, Navarre’s boys weightlifting team isn’t satisfied with the result.

This is a program that was the state runner-up in 2018 and won the state title in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic ended hopes of a repeat in 2020.

Name that bridge. It just sounds more fun than name that tune doesn’t it?

I think so. I hope you do as well.