Blue Wahoos Roughed Up In Series Opening Loss At Biloxi
June 8, 2019
The Blue Wahoos ran into a hot pitcher and a big inning in a 9-1 loss Friday night against the Biloxi Shuckers to begin their pivotal series battle at MGM Park in Biloxi, Miss.
Shuckers’ righthander Alec Bettinger, named earlier this week as the Southern League Pitcher of the Week, after posting a pair of wins, spun another gem Friday, while wearing a New Orleans Saints jersey as part of a theme night before a crowd of 2,508.
Bettinger allowed just two hits, only one after giving up a leadoff home run to Pensacola’s Travis Blankenhorn to start the game. It was Blankenhorn’s 10th home run since joining the Blue Wahoos on April 27.
Bettinger then settled in to strike out 12 Blue Wahoos batters and allowed just one walk. The Shuckers moved back into a first-place tie with the Blue Wahoos atop the Southern League South Division first half standings.
Both teams have identical 36-25 records. The teams will continue their five game series Saturday at 6:35 p.m. Each team has nine games left in the first half schedule.
After Talyor Grzelakowski hit a two-out triple in the second inning for the Blue Wahoos’ second hit, it became their last one of the game. The Blue Wahoos had only three other baserunners in the game. Michael Davis reached on a walk, two others reached on errors.
Biloxi, meanwhile, pounded out 14 hits, including nine against Blue Wahoos starter Bryan Sammons (0-1), who had his roughest outing (9 hits, 6 earned runs) since joining the team two weeks ago.
Bettinger retired 16 of the final 18 batters he faced. Reliever Devin Williams entered in the eighth and produced two hitless innings.
Bettinger, a former University of Virginia standout, was drafted in 2017 in the 10th round by the Milwaukee Brewers – the Shuckers’ MLB affiliate. He has yielded just two runs in his last three starts, and only five runs allowed in his last six starts.
After Blankenhorn’s blast to start the game, the Shuckers’ Trent Grisham answered with a 2-run homer in the bottom of the first, after Luis Aviles Jr. reached on a fielder’s choice.
But the game was shaped by the fourth inning when the Shuckers went through all nine batters in producing a four-run inning. After Sammons loaded the bases by giving up a pair of singles and walk, Aviles Jr. had an RBI fielder’s choice play and Grisham followed with an RBI single.
Following a pitching change, Patrick Leonard hit a two RBI single off Blue Wahoos reliever Adam Bray. The Shuckers added three more runs in the eighth inning off Blue Wahoos reliever Tyler Jay.
Pensacola will send Charlie Barnes (0-0,3.60 ERA) to the mound for Saturday’s game. Barnes and Sammons both joined the team May 27.
Escambia County Reports Increase In Yellow Flies
June 8, 2019
Escambia County officials are reporting an increase of yellow flies.
Yellow flies are more active from late May to early July. They frequent wet, shaded areas on the edges of forests, rivers and creeks and tend to avoid open, sunny areas. Yellow flies are well-known for having a painful bite. They prefer to bite the head, neck and shoulders, but any exposed part of the body may be bitten. Symptoms of a bite include: a red, itchy, swollen area surrounding the bite, itchy skin and, in rare cases, a severe allergic reaction to the fly’s saliva.
Here are a few tips from Escambia County to prevent getting bitten by yellow flies this season:
1. Avoid the outdoors in the early morning and late evening. Yellow flies are most active during these periods.
2. Cover up. If you work outside, wear long sleeves, pants, closed-toe shoes and head nets. You can also use bug repellents containing DEET.
3. Create and hang a bug ball in your yard. A bug ball is a sticky black ball that attracts and traps yellow flies with a sticky substance. These black balls are usually hung on a tree limb. The dark color combined with the ball’s movement from the wind will attract yellow flies. You can also use everyday objects such as a painted milk jug to create a bug ball.
If you are bitten by a yellow fly, you can also try applying topical corticosteroid creams to decrease inflammation and antihistamines to control itching. If you face a severe allergic reaction, seek medical attention immediately.
Photo courtesy UF/IFAS.
Murder Investigation Underway After Cantonment Drive-by Shooting
June 7, 2019
A murder investigation is underway after a Cantonment drive-by shooting victim passed away Friday.
About 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office responded to the 500 block of Irene Lane where 38-year old Chester Purifoy was located with a gunshot wound to the leg. He was transported to an area hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.
There have been no suspects named in the case.
Anyone with information on the shooting is asked to call the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office at (850) 436-9620 or Crime Stoppers at (850) 433-STOP.
Gonzalez Utilities Issues Boil Water Notice In Tate Road Area
June 7, 2019
Gonzalez Utilities has issued a precautionary boil water notice due to a water main break.
The boil water advisory is for Tate Road, Archer Road, Petty Drive and Woodfield Drive.
Water was turned off in the area to repair a water main break on Tate Road. At noon Friday, the utility was working to make repairs and restore water service.
Precautionary boil water notices are issued as a part of the standard protocol following any loss of water pressure, whether as a result of planned maintenance activities or unscheduled repairs.
Residents located in the specified PBWN area are advised to boil water for one minute at a rolling boil or to use eight drops of regular unscented household bleach per gallon of water, for water to be used for drinking or cooking purposes. Two independent bacteriological samples have been initiated and the advisory will be lifted as soon as possible. This process routinely takes 48 hours.
One Injured In Highway 29 Wreck
June 7, 2019
One person was injured in a single vehicle wreck Friday morning on Highway 29.
The driver lost control with her vehicle coming to rest nose-down in a median ditch near the Companion Animal Clinic. She was transported to an area hospital by Escambia County EMS.
The Florida Highway Patrol is investigating.
NorthEscambia.com photos by Kristi Barbour, click to enlarge.
Cantonment Woman, Her Friend Charged With Defrauding State Of $352K In Daycare Scheme
June 7, 2019
A Cantonment woman and her friend have been charged with defrauding the state out of more than $350,000 in a scheme involving an Escambia County daycare.
Eboni Moorer Singer, age 38 of Cantonment, and Roletta Shelton, age 47 of Pensacola, were charged with racketeering and multiple counts of public assistance fraud. In total, the Florida Department of Financial Services says the two fraudulently accepted $352,622.09 in public assistance funds.
The state says the two women knowingly conspired for Shelton to act as the owner of the business actually owned by Singer and falsified state contracts, bank accounts and other documentation in order to conceal the identity of the true owner.
In June 2011, Singer, doing business as Legendary Pre-School was disqualified by the USDA Food Program for seven years due to submitted false claims to the Department of Health for Child Care Food Program funds. In June 2012, her contract with the Early Learning Coalition (ELC) of Escambia County was terminated due to her USDA disqualification.
Singer then transferred to the business to her husband who renamed the business Legendary Kids Pre-School. His contract with the ELC was terminated in 2014 and his eligibility was revoked for five years.
Investigators said that in response to being in eligible to received state funds for their daycare, Singer and her husband recruited Shelton to act as owner of the business for them. Shelton renamed the business Legendary Christian Pre-School. Shelton then signed numerous agreements with the ELC to provide subsidized Voluntary Pre-K and childcare services.
According to investigators, Singer leased the school’s location on West Fairfield Drive, and Singer and her husband owned both of the preschool’s vans. In addition, the business bank account was joint between Shelton and Singer, and Singer made transfers to and from her personal bank account.
Eboni Singer was released from the Escambia County Jail on an $85,000 bond, and Shelton was released from jail on a $40,000 bond.
Cantonment Drug Raid Leads To One Arrest
June 7, 2019
Michael Anthony Hare was charged with possession of methamphetamine with intent to sell, manufacture or deliver within 1,000 feet of a church, possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia and maintaining a public nuisance for drug paraphernalia.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office Narcotics Unit and SWAT team executed a search warrant in the 100 block of Mintz Lane as part of an ongoing narcotics investigation.
In Hare’s bedroom, deputies located a quantity of methamphetamine, a glass smoking pipe with methamphetamine residue, marijuana, a grinder with marijuana residue and other drug paraphernalia, according to an arrest report.
The residence is located about 200 feet from the Church of the Living God on Pace Parkway.
Hare remained in the Escambia County Jail with bond set at $57,000.
Escambia Considering Brownfield Designation For Cantonment, Three Other CRAs
June 7, 2019
The Escambia County Commission will consider designating four Community Development Areas in Cantonment and north Pensacola as Brownfield Areas.
In 2011 the county designated the Palafox, Englewood, Brownsville, Barrancas and Warrington CRAs as Brownfields.
Between 2010 and 2015 the county added four additional CRAs – Atwood, Ensley, Oakfield and Cantonment.
The BOCC will hold public hearings on June 20 and July 18 at 9:01 a.m. each day to discuss the brownfield designation.
A resolution seeks to designate thee four newer CRAs as brownfields for the purposes of economic development and environmental rehabilitation incentives offered through state programs. The project will be consistent with the land use plan and will reduce slum and blight, stimulate commercial development, and create new jobs.
To qualify for the incentives offered through the Brownfield Redevelopment Act, a property must be officially designated a Brownfield by resolution by commission.
There are about two dozen brownfield areas in Escambia County. The only one north of I-10 is the entire town of Century.
Hemp Workshops Planned
June 7, 2019
Commissioner Nicole “Nikki” Fried is announcing that the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) will hold hemp rulemaking workshops this month throughout the state. As the Governor is expected to sign the state hemp legislation soon, the Department is hosting the workshops to create a space for the public to ask questions and provide valuable input into the hemp rulemaking process, as this exciting new industry starts up in Florida.
“Our new state hemp program marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter here in Florida and brings a chance to strengthen our agriculture industry, increase access to safe CBD products, and diversify and fuel our state economy,” said Commissioner Nikki Fried. “We’re working to build the new state hemp program from the ground up, and we want to hear from the people it’s intended to serve. I encourage everyone to join us at these workshops — we’re making history, and want Floridians alongside us every step of the way.”
The North Florida Hemp Workshop will be held Monday, June 24 from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. EDT at the R.A. Gray Building Auditorium, 500 S Bronough St, Tallahassee.
Six Blue Wahoos Selected To Southern League All-Star Team
June 7, 2019
The Southern League of Professional Baseball Clubs has announced that six members of the Pensacola Blue Wahoos roster have been named to the Southern League’s South Division All-Star Team through voting by field managers, general managers, and radio broadcasters for all 10 Southern League clubs.
Three pitchers from Pensacola’s roster, Brusdar Graterol, Griffin Jax, and Ryan Mason, will join three position players, 2B Travis Blankenhorn, OF Jaylin Davis, and C Caleb Hamilton, on the roster for the All-Star Game on Tuesday, June 18 at MGM Park in Biloxi, Mississippi.