Sports Archive

History will be made at Doug Griffith Memorial Stadium on Friday when the Baker football team plays host to Destin. What’s so historical about the game? It will be the first football game in the history of the Shark program led by former Fort Walton Beach High School and Florida State star receiver E.G. Green.

There are no easy football games to be played in Northwest Florida. Last week, Crestview traveled to Kissimmee and soundly defeated a Ridley, Penn., team 50-28. This week the road trip is shorter, but the challenge greater for the Bulldogs.

The Baker cross country team has something to prove this season. Due to some paperwork problems, the Gators were unable to compete at the district meet last season.

Coaches Jennifer Saunders and Jennifer Morgan are going to make sure that doesn’t happen again.

If the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, it takes several hundreds of thousands of steps to complete the journey. Crestview High School’s volleyball team is in the early stages of the journey to battle for district titles. It might take a while, but if the improvement shown by the Bulldogs from their first match to the second match is any indication, they are well on their way to competing for titles.

With a quick step and jump, Gabby Sheffield makes playing volleyball almost look easy. And while her athleticism makes her a leader on the court for the Crestview team, her attitude makes her a player others want to follow. “Gabby is one of the most dependable players that you could ever coach,” Crestview volleyball coach James Kerrell said. “She has one of the best attitudes you could ever wish for in a player. When you’re coaching a kid, you want a kid that’s going to work hard.

If the early bird catches the worm, there’s a good chance it will be a member of the Crestview High School swimming team eating well.

The Bulldogs, who practice and will swim their home meets at the ROC at Central Baptist Church, will host meets at 7 a.m. The actual swimming will start at 8 a.m. The first home meet of the season is Saturday, Sept. 10 against Fort Walton Beach.

Weather in Kissimmee played havoc with the scheduled kickoff time between Crestview and Ridley, Penn., on Friday. When the game was played it was the Bulldogs wreaking havoc on the Raiders at the Austin-Tindall Sports Complex. Crestview scored early and often on the way to a 50-28 win.

Heavy rains through the month of August left the football field at South Walton somewhere between a playing surface and a mud bog more suitable for monster trucks. One might conclude the tackiness of the field, through no fault of the people at South Walton, was more of a Mudville than football field.

A year after Baker and South Walton combined for more than 1,200 yards and almost 100 combined points as Kayleb Wagner set a single-game state record for rushing, only one team, the host Seahawks would soar.

It has been a year of transition for the Crestview High School volleyball team. Coming off a disappointing 2021 season in which the Bulldogs only won two matches, James Kerrell was named the new coach. While getting to know their new coach, the team spent the summer as nomads seeking a place to practice as a new floor was being placed in the CHS gym.

It’s football time in Florida and the Crestview Bulldogs should pose some problems for people playing in a tough Suburban Class 4A Region 1, District 2.

Crestview is joined in the district by county rival, Niceville, Lynn Haven Mosely and Tallahassee schools Chiles and Leon.