A week after making a major leap in the ESPNHS Powerade Fab 50, American Heritage has moved up again, and this time, the Patriots have risen as high as they can go.
American Heritage moved from No. 2 to No. 1 in the most recent ranking and have all but locked up the Powerade Fab 50 title. However, nothing is official yet since some states are still finishing their seasons.
Here’s what ESPN had to say about it’s decision to move the Patriots into the top spot:
“American Heritage moves up from No. 2 to No. 1 after previous No. 1 Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) was upset in the CIF Southern Section Division I semifinals by Newbury Park (Thousand Oaks, Calif.). The three No. 1 teams prior to the Monarchs who lost were Calallen (Corpus Christi, Texas), Jesuit (Tampa, Fla.) and Olympia (Orlando, Fla.).
When Jesuit lost, it was to American Heritage 3-0 in the Florida Class 5A state semifinals. The Patriots went on to blank Ponte Vedra (Fla.) 9-0 in the championship.
Another team that was considered for this week’s No. 1 ranking was Columbus (Ga.), a 33-4 squad that won its third straight Class AAA state title.
The difference for the Patriots was strength of schedule and on-field performance. All four of their losses were by one run and one of those was in an extra-inning game 1-0 to Harvard-Westlake (North Hollywood, Calif.), which is another nationally ranked team.”
Also ranked in the Powerade Fab 50 is three-time state champion Archbishop McCarthy which is ranked No. 16. Nova is ranked No. 42.
Follow this link to see the complete ESPNHS Powerade Fab 50.
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St. Thomas Aquinas girls soccer takes No. 1 spot in latest ESPN Rise Powarade Fab 50 rankings March 22nd, 2011
A month after winning its Florirda-record 11th state championship, the St. Thomas Aquinas girls soccer team is one step closer to earning a potential national title.
This week, the Raiders grabbed the top spot in the most recent ESPN Rise Powerade Fab 50 poll.
Although some parts of the nation–including Texas–are still competing in their respective soccer seasons, there’s good reason for the Raiders to feel confident they’ll hang on to that top spot. The team ranked No. 2–Texas’ McKinney Boyd–is still playing, but their lone loss this season came against St. Thomas.
The Raiders, who have long been a Broward County and Florida soccer power, capped a remarkable 25-1-0 season last month with a 2-0 victory over Newsome in the Class 5A state championship. At the time, St. Thomas was ranked No. 7 in the nation, while Newsome was No. 2.
That win marked the third time this season St. Thomas upset a highly-ranked opponent. McKinney Boyd and Melbourne were both No. 1 when they lost their respective matches against St. Thomas.
If St. Thomas keeps the No. 1 ranking–as expected it will–the program will clinch its sixth national title and its first since 2004.
The Raiders also won national titles in 1995, 1996, 1997, and 1998.
For a look at the most current ESPN Rise Powerade Fab 50, CLICK HERE.
Since leaving Blanche Ely, Patrick Peterson has had the kind of college career most young football players dream of.
Peterson, who was known as Patrick Johnson during his time at Ely, had 42 tackles, six break-ups and four interceptions last season at LSU and has been earning accolades all season. Twice he was named SEC Special Teams Player of the Week and at the end of the season, he was named an All-American.
He was also named this year’s Thorpe Award recipient as the nation’s best college defensive back.
Now, as he prepares for the next step in his career, Peterson has one more reason to be optimistic about next month’s NFL Draft.
After performing well at the NFL combine, Peterson’s stock has risen considerably with at least one of the nation’s top draft analysts.
Wednesday, ESPN’s Mel Kiper bumped Peterson up from No. 4 to No. 1 on his Big Board. One of the reasons? Peterson’s 4.34 speed.
To read more about Kiper’s analysis on Peterson and other NFL prospects, click HERE.
Former Rockwall-Heath star Lawrence takes center stage at Missouri February 24th, 2009
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Earlier this week, Dillard football coach Manny Martin learned his team’s record had improved after the Panthers’ first opponent–East St. Louis–was ruled to have used an ineligible player in its 51-7 victory over Dillard.
But early Friday, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that a judge had granted East St. Louis a temporary restraining order that put the Flyers back in the Illinois playoffs and restored their 9-0 record. So for now, Dillard’s record is back to 4-4.
I had a chance to catch up with Martin today and he said the Panthers aren’t really following the East St. Louis saga in Illinois. No one there is really communicating with the team about how the moves will affect Dillard’s record and Martin said that in his mind, Dillard lost its season opener to the Flyers. He added that he’s more concerned for teams in East St. Louis’ district and region that could be truly affected by the Flyers’ record and eligibility.
That seems like a reasonable approach for Dillard to take here. Instead of worrying about a loss that won’t really affect them, the Panthers are focusing next week’s Soul Bowl showdown with Ely. That’s a district game and Dillard needs a win to force a 3-way tiebreak in District 14-5A while a loss would leave them eliminated.