Northview Volleyball Defeats Pine Forest (With Photo Gallery)
September 14, 2021
The 1A Northview Lady Chiefs varsity volleyball team improved to 4-1 Monday night with a win over the 5A Pine Forest Lady Eagles.
Northview lost the first match to Pine Forest 21-25, but came back to defeat the Eagles 25-16, 25-13, 25-14 for the win.
Northview has earned victories so far this season over Pine Forest, W.S. Neal, Flomaton, and 6A Escambia. Their only loss was to 4A West Florida.
The Lady Chiefs will be back at home Tuesday at 6 p.m. against Baker (3-1) in their first 1A district matchup of the season.
For a photo gallery, click here.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Register By Wednesday For Tate Lil Aggies Fall Cheer Clinic
September 14, 2021
It’s almost time for the annual Lil Aggies Fall Cheer Clinic, and the deadline to register is Wednesday.
The clinic will take place on Saturday, September 25 from 8:30 a.m. until noon. There will be a parent showcase at noon with a special performance.
Registration forms and payment are due by Wednesday, September 15. Cash, check and money order are accepted. Checks should be payable to Tate High School and must include a phone number.
The cost of the clinic is $50 per athlete which includes an exclusive 2021 Lil Aggies t-shirt and a matching hair bow. Lil Aggies will receive free admission into the football game on Friday, October 1 and invited to cheer during the first quarter with the varsity cheerleaders.
RSVP online by clicking or tapping here, or download a registration form (pdf).
Retired Officer Charged With DUI Manslaughter Following Fatal Airport Boulevard Pedestrian Crash
September 13, 2021
A retired police officer is charged with DUI manslaughter in connection with a fatal crash Monday morning on Airport Boulevard.
About 7:30 a.m., a pedestrian was walking westbound on an Airport Boulevard sidewalk, between The Fresh Market and Sam’s’ Club, when they were hit by a pickup truck driven by 74-year old Alvin Odessel. Godwin.
The name of the victim has not been released, but Pensacola Police have confirmed the victim was not a student at nearby Washington High School.
According to police, Godwin retired from the Pensacola Police Department as a lieutenant about 20 years ago. He was released from the Escambia County on a $100,000 bond. Due to his status as a retired officer, his mugshot is exempt from release under Florida law.
Airport Boulevard was closed for several hours due to the crash but has since reopened.
NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Man Cashed Check Stolen From Cantonment Mailbox, Forged Another, ECSO Says
September 13, 2021
A Cantonment man is accused of trying to cash a check stolen from a mailbox on East Kingsfield Road, cashing second fake check and pawning a gun.
Allen Alberto Maddox, Jr., 48, was charged with felony counts of uttering a forged check, uttering a false instrument, defrauding a money service business, grand theft and possession of a weapon by a convicted felon.
A victim told the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office that on June 23 he placed three envelopes containing checks in his empty mailbox for pick up. The checks were payable to Gulf Power, a $1,400 check to a mortgage company and a third to another company. The following day, he received a call from his credit union asking if he had written a $1,400 check to anyone local, and he stated that he had not. He obtained the information to contact Cash Any Checks on Pensacola Boulevard.
He contacted the check cashing business to find a male was at the location trying to cash a $1,400 check made out to “Allen Maddox”. Maddox left the store before law enforcement could be contacted. The company sent a copy of the check to the victim, who turned to the internet to find Maddox’s previous arrests and photos in a jail view log and Facebook. He sent the photos back to the check cashing business, which confirmed the pictured man was the one that attempted to cash the fraudulent check.
According to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office, the check did appear to be altered, and Maddox was identified from a lineup.
In late July, Maddox was identified as the person that allegedly cashed a fraudulent $865 check at National Check Cashing on Mobile Highway. According to an arrest report, Maddox provided his photo identification and fingerprint when cashing the check, which had an inconsistent check number and an nonexistent routing number.
And in August, Maddox allegedly pawned a revolver for $350 after asking for $500. Maddox provided his photo identification and fingerprint at the time, according to the arrest report. The firearm was was not listed as stolen.
Maddox remained in the Escambia County Jail Monday with bond set at $15,000.
Tate Aggies Honor 13 Fallen Service Members
September 13, 2021
The smell of Aggie Fries was in the air below the Aggie Shack Friday night at Tate High School’s Pete Gindl Stadium.
Tate’s Showband of the South and the West Florida band battled to be the loudest shortly after kickoff.
And the Tate AJROTC stood watch over 13 chairs. just off the track and the end zone of Carl Madison Field.
Up on the grass above, a few kids tossed a football. Some sat watching the game. A group of girls took selfies for their insta. #Cute #Happy #GoAggies #Merica.
These chairs that would not be filled on this Friday night with a faint hint of fall weather in the air. Thirteen chairs, thirteen photos, thirteen pairs of boots, and 13 American flags. Seats saved for 13 brave men and women who never made it home from war. Seats to remind fans about what’s really important.
It may have been a tough task for Tate against West Florida Friday night. They lost. Pretty bad actually. But the Aggie spirit won.
As the team left the field, many players stopped by the 13 empty chairs. They knelt. Some silent, some in prayer. All in respect of the 13 heroes lost. And freedom.
The Aggie spirit won Friday night. #GoAggies #Merica.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Florida Gas Prices Decline A Couple Of Cents On Average
September 13, 2021
Florida gas prices drifted lower last week, declining two cents per gallon. The state average is now slightly below $3 for the first time this month, according to AAA.
“Gas prices are inching lower as most of the refineries that went offline because of Hurricane Ida are now in restart mode,” said Mark Jenkins, spokesman, AAA — The Auto Club Group. “Drivers may see another week of similar declines this week after a relatively uneventful week in the futures market.”
Escambia County’s average price Sunday night was $3.02. Three Cantonment stations were the cheapest in North Escambia at $2.85, while a couple of Pensacola stations had the lowest metro price at $2.83
Bonus Photos: Tate And West Florida Cheerleaders, Bands And Student Sections
September 13, 2021
Here is a bonus photo gallery of the Tate and West Florida cheerleaders, bands, student sections and more from last Friday night.
For the photo gallery, click or tap here.
For a game action story and photos, click here.
NorthEscambia.com photos by William Reynolds, click to enlarge.
Wahoos Win Home Finale Behind Velez’s Quality Start
September 13, 2021
The team had unfurled a thank you banner Saturday night in appreciation of Blue Wahoos fans.
And then on Sunday, the Blue Wahoos took a bow by completing their five month home schedule in a desired way.
In a game which best crystalized their entire season, the Blue Wahoos received stellar, starting pitching – this time again from Anthony Velez — solid relief and produced just enough runs to beat the Biloxi Shuckers 3-2 in the final, regular-season home game of the 2021 season.
The win improved the Blue Wahoos (56-53) position for an overall winning record. But losses in the first four games of this six-game homestand dampened hopes for reaching the Double-A South playoffs.
“It’s always good when you can bookend a series with a couple of wins,” said Blue Wahoos manager Kevin Randel, whose team beat Biloxi 6-0 Saturday night to end the losing streak.
“Obviously it is sort of a letdown, losing those first four and kinda dropping our chances to get into the playoffs. But it’s always nice to finish strong.”
The weather held up Sunday for a crowd of 3,444 to watch Velez, 24, a left-hander and former Florida State pitcher, to make his third consecutive quality start since joining the team August 17 from the Beloit (Wisc.) Snappers, the Miami Marlins’ High-A affiliate.
Velez, a Miami native and former Tampa Bay area high school star, gave up just four hits in six complete innings. He did not walk a batter and struck out nine to lower his earned run average to 0.50 in Double-A.
“He was really good,” Randel said. “He caught a stretch in Beloit and still is kinda riding that high. He’s a guy that throws strikes and changes speed and if you do that, you’ll pitch for a long time.”
In three Double-A starts, Velez has pitched 18 innings, allowed just one earned run, walked only two and has 18 strikeouts.
He got run support Sunday when centerfielder Kameron Misner, another recent addition from Beloit, led off the first inning with a double and scored on J.J. Bleday’s single to right field. Bleday then led off the fifth inning with a single, stole second base and scored on Lazaro Alonso’s single.
Bleday went 2-for-3 in the game with a walk and RBI, following a 2-for-3 night Saturday with two RBI.
The eventual decisive run occurred in the sixth, after Galli Cribbs Jr. doubled and scored on Misner’s RBI single. Misner went 2-for-5 after going 2-for-3 Saturday with two walks and two runs scored.
“He’s kind of a good all-around player,” Randel said. “He’s got some speed, some power, got a pretty swing from the left side. He’s just a good bat to add to the top of the order where we have been kinda missing that top-of-the-order-batter to get on base.”
The Blue Wahoos know they may have missed chances earlier in the series for more wins and closer position in for a playoff spot.
The Birmingham Barons (62-52) continued their red-hot play to control second place. They swept the Rocket City Trash Pandas to maintain a 3.5-game lead over Pensacola in the race for the other playoff spot. The Barons finish the season on the road against the Montgomery Biscuits.
The Mississippi Braves clinched first place in the Double-A South earlier in the week. The two teams with the best overall record in the Double-A South will meet in a best-of-five championship series starting Sept. 21.
The Blue Wahoos finish the season on the road against the Trash Pandas, whose manager, former major league star Jay Bell, is a Tate High grad and one of the all-time best players from the Pensacola area.
The six-game series begins Tuesday in Madison, Alabama, just outside of Huntsville, where Rocket City has played its inaugural season at newly-built Toyota Field.
The teams played way back on May 18-23 in Pensacola with the Blue Wahoos winning five of six.
“Our chances got limited pretty good,” said Randel, referring to the week. “But you try and win some ballgames (against Rocket City) and hope for the best and the other guys kinda battling it out. If we can just take care of business, hopefully, we’ll get some help and sneak into the playoffs.”
But if not, Randel has good memories of his first season in Pensacola, after coming into Blue Wahoos Stadium in past seasons as visiting manager with Jacksonville, then the Double-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins.
The Blue Wahoos home record (33-27) was their fifth consecutive season with a winning home record. One-third of the home games (20) featured sellout crowds, including the final one on Saturday.
“Playing in Pensacola is great,” Randel said. “We have played well here at home. We had a good home record, one of the better ones in the league.”
by Bill Vilona, Blue Wahoos senior writer
One Person Injured In Century Drive-by Shooting Sunday Morning
September 12, 2021
One person was injured in a drive-by shooting Sunday morning in Century.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office responded to a report of shots fired in the 300 block of Hilltop Road, about one-third of mile off Highway 4A, about 5:30 a.m.
ECSO Sgt. Melanie Peterson said a residence and car were struck with multiple rounds. She said a male was struck in the calf and was treated for his injuries, which were not considered life threatening.
There was no suspect information available. Escambia County EMS also responded.
The investigation is continuing.
File photo.
Cantonment Man Struck And Killed Late Saturday Night Near Beulah
September 12, 2021
A 60-year old man from Cantonment was struck by a vehicle and killed late Saturday night in Beulah.
The Florida Highway Patrol said the man walked into the direct path of a SUV at Mobile Highway near the intersection of Nine Mile Road about 11:25 p.m.
The 19-year old driver attempted evasive action but was unsuccessful, FHP said.
The victim was pronounced deceased at the scene.
The SUV driver and her 22-year old passenger were not injured.
The Beulah Station of Escambia Fire Rescue, Escambia County EMS and the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office also responded.
File photo.