After losing many of their key leaders to graduation, the Plant City Raiders’ new crop of seniors are about to fill big shoes. To help the boys become better leaders on and off the field, the Raiders called in the U.S. Marines. Led by Capt. Kevin Lowe and Staff Sgt. Jose Moreno, a team of […]
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T.J. Chase transfers to IMG Academy
T.J. Chase had himself a great sophomore year with the Plant City Raiders. Averaging 20.1 yards per catch, he helped lead his team to a playoff berth and racked up more than 20 football scholarship offers from NCAA Division I schools. He hasn’t given any of them a verbal commitment yet, but he’s already made […]
Continue ReadingATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Kellie Pernula
A senior on the Plant City High School volleyball team, Kellie Pernula spent much of this past week helping at the Lady Raiders’ summer volleyball camp, working with the young campers to improve their skills. Tell me a little bit about your volleyball career. I’ve been playing since the sixth grade, and I’ve played for […]
Continue ReadingPlant City schools to play big roles in All-Star game
Sunday night’s Hillsborough County All-Star Game should be a good one: It will pit many of Hillsborough’s best seniors against a group from Pinellas County, and the action will start at 7 p.m. at Tropicana Field, in St. Petersburg. The boys will get big-league treatment, even appearing on the jumbotron before their at-bats. Coaches from […]
Continue ReadingPlant City athletes going for gold
Plant City’s Special Olympics Unified Sports teams enjoyed a successful summer in 2013, and this weekend, they will return to Orlando try to recapture the magic. Six teams, most of which are under the Plant City Raiders banner, will represent the Winter Strawberry Capital of the World in four different sports: soccer, athletics, volleyball and […]
Continue ReadingWHAT’S ON KLINE’S MIND? Denzel Drone seeks NFL home
Thanks to ESPN’s constant, almost suffocating coverage, this seems more like a question that’s already been answered. Kid declares for the Draft, hires an agent, performs at his school’s Pro Day and, maybe, the NFL Combine, and then spends the rest of the time leading up to the Draft talking to teams. On one of […]
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SPECIAL OLYMPICS + Area athletes make state teams Plant City will send six teams to Orlando for next weekend’s Summer Games. Participants include: P.C. Punishers (volleyball): Justin Ford, Joshua Ford, Garrett Johnson, Gregory Hawkins, John Straub, Michael Agustin, Ana Boxtha, Luis Ibarra, Erain Boxtha, Carol Boxtha and Yajaira Trevino P.C. Raiders (volleyball): Kyle Hall, Jesse Culpepper, […]
Continue ReadingSWING KING: Cody Colding
Cody Colding would live in the Mike E. Sansone Park batting cage, if his parents let him. Colding, 17, says his entire world has revolved around the game of baseball from a young age, and his fifteen years of dedication are paying off. The Plant City High School junior was named to the Baseball Factory’s […]
Continue ReadingPlant City golfer earns spot in international tournament
Before this month, Kyle Martin probably thought playing golf for Team USA while in college was a foreign concept. Now, golf is about to take him to a foreign country. Martin, 22, has accepted an invitation to represent his country in the 2014 World University Championships in June, in Crans-Montana, Switzerland. Is there a better […]
Continue ReadingWHAT’S ON KLINE’S MIND? New unis complete Raider makeover
Gone are the days of simple, understated uniform changes. Nowadays, we have to make it a showcase on television, social media and everywhere else under the sun. You can probably (correctly) blame it on the Oregon Ducks, who have gotten so prolific that they recently unveiled two new unis for one bowl game. And, no, […]
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