As much as this preseason for the Navarre volleyball team has been about being prepared to play when the games start to count, it’s also been about instilling a new mindset and attitude, one that will help carry this program to a turnaround season.
In the shadow of the Interstate-110 Bridge on a busy Wednesday afternoon in Pensacola, Lighthouse Private Christian Academy’s football team is on a field holding another practice.
He put on his Georgia SEC Championship hat — Jody Davis wanted to show off his Bulldog pride in front of the camera– and in his usual casual manner, the first-year manager of the Pensacola Blue Wahoos started talking about the escape from defeat act his team pulled off against the Montgomery Biscuits Friday night.
Mike Baker was the first one across finish line Saturday morning at the inaugural Navarre Raider 5K, but his victory wasn’t nearly as important as the cause he was supporting.
They come off the field sweaty and aching, even a little tired, the grind of a two-hour practice on a hot Friday afternoon clearly taking its toll, but they feel good about the work they have put in, not just for this day but the first week of preseason camp as a whole.
Tabbed as the No. 1 team in the nation in a couple of preseason polls, the University of West Florida is picked to finish second in its own conference.
