UWF Beats McKendree, 35-3
September 10, 2023
The season has started with UWF’s football team getting a pair of wins by identical scores.
But the latest one on Saturday was viewed differently.
The sixth-ranked Argos again received a dominating performance by their defense, along with more superlatives from quarterback Peewee Jarrett, but an alarming number of penalties (15) in UWF’s 35-3 road win against McKendree University created an urgency to correct.
“We’re not content with how this game went, so we have to keep getting better,” said Argos’ coach Kaleb Nobles, whose team opened its season Sept. 1 with a 35-3 home win against Kentucky Wesleyan. “Obviously, we’ll take wins any way we can get them. And we have a lot to improve on and these guys know that.
“We just have to clean up little things, clean up things between the whistles and be better about smart play. But overall, I am proud of the team and we have to keep improving up.”
His biggest salute was with UWF’s defense, which has been two field goals away from producing two shutouts. An astonishing 22 different Argos’ defenders recorded at least one tackle. UWF held McKendree to minus-32 yards rushing, recorded seven sacks, and limited the home team to just 2.4 yards per play.
McKendree only crossed inside the red zone when the Bearcats were stalled at the 9 on their final possession and missed a field goal. Their only points came on a 47-yard field goal in the second quarter.
Senior linebacker Gael Laurent shined again with five solo stops. Newcomer John McMullen, a graduate student transfer, had four stops, including three sacks. Onelio Rios also had four stops.
“I am really excited about those guys,” Nobles said. “That (defensive) line is awesome and just doing a great job getting after the quarterback.”
The team’s big performance blemish was UWF being whistled for 15 penalties for 160 yards. One of the penalties – a holding call — nullified Caden Leggett scoring on a 62 yard direct snap on a fake punt early in the fourth quarter.
It did result in a first down, however, and UWF scored five plays later on Jarrett’s fourth touchdown pass of the game to complete the scoring. Jarrett finished by completing 21 of 28 passes for 329 yards, including a 77-yard catch-and-run by transfer John Jiles, who played a year ago at Virginia Union.
Nine different UWF players caught a pass, which reinforced this team’s potential.
“We have to worry about us, not worry about the other team or the officials, just do our job as a team overall,” said Nobles in a message he will likely keep repeating to his team this week.
The win continued UWF’s well-earned moniker as “Kings of the Road.” They are now 32-6 in road games since 2017, among the best road records of any NCAA Division II team. They had a 16-game road win streak ended last December in the D-2 national semifinal game and that was their first road playoff loss at a campus site.
This game was the fourth-longest, regular-season road trip – a distance of 724 miles – to a school located 28 miles east of St. Louis. The team was set to travel all night Saturday back to Pensacola.
Their next road trip will be the shortest one in UWF history – less than 220 miles to Tallahassee – for a marquee game Sept. 16 against Florida A&M, which played the South Florida Bulls in a night game Saturday in Tampa.
After that game, which will be the highest-profile Division I team UWF has played, the Argos will start Gulf South Conference play.
“Obviously, there is a lot of stuff we have to clean up because the road will be tougher moving forward,” Nobles said.
Saturday’s game at McKendree began the way UWF wanted. The Argos scored touchdowns on three of their first four possessions.
They capped their first offensive series with Jamontez Woods taking a pitch from Jarrett and sweeping seven yards into the left corner of the end zone.
On the second play of the second quarter, Jarrett connected with Leggett on a 47-yard touchdown pass to make it 14-0. The Argos then answered McKendree’s lone points with a six-play, 75-yard drive that ended with Jiles catching his first TD of the game on a 16-yard throw with 5:10 left before halftime.
Jiles’ second TD was more spectacular. He caught a pass from Jarrett at midfield, broke right through a charging defender, and raced the final 50 yards untouched for a 28-3 lead late in the third quarter.
The fake punt in the fourth quarter followed a timeout. With the ball at the UWF 38, Leggett took the direct snap, stunned the McKendree defense and raced past defenders into the end zone, but the ball was placed at the McKendree 30 following the holding call on the run.
“I told our guys, I’m not afraid to use (fake punt) no matter what,” Nobles said. “I don’t try to hold anything for anybody. I wanted to make sure we’re giving our guys a chance to score points.
“(Special teams) Coach (Jordan) Remsza said (before play), ‘Are you good with this?’ I said, you are dadgum right I am. I told our guys on offense I’m not afraid to be aggressive and go for it on fourth down, too, and we did after that (fake punt to finish TD drive).”
After the game, UWF players and coaches had a picture taken with the scoreboard in the background. It’s a new tradition Nobles wants to continue for all wins – home and away.
The Argos are now 5-0 against the teams from the Great Lakes Valley Conference with its Midwest locations.
The Argos game against Florida A&M is set for a 5 p.m. (CDT) kickoff at Bragg Memorial Stadium.
by Bill Vilona / photo Tim Vizer / UWF for NorthEscambia.com
Wahoos’ Sixth In A Row Is Milestone Win for Randel
September 10, 2023
The Pensacola Blue Wahoos won their sixth straight game on Saturday night, 6-1 over the Rocket City Trash Pandas, and gave manager Kevin Randel a piece of history.
Randel, wrapping up his third season at the helm of the Blue Wahoos, became just the second manager in franchise history to reach 200 wins. The win was his 519th in an eight-year managerial career that began with Class-A Greensboro in 2015.
Evan Fitterer worked around five walks and two hit batsmen to put together 4.0 scoreless innings for Pensacola, and Will Banfield broke a scoreless tie in the top of the fifth with a three-run homer off of Michael Darrell-Hicks (L, 0-2). The Blue Wahoos added another three-run frame in the seventh, with RBI singles from Bennett Hostetler and Norel González, to pad their lead.
Rocket City scored their lone run with a Bryce Teodosio RBI single in the fifth against Chandler Jozwiak (W, 1-0), but stranded 13 men on base and left the bases loaded three different times.
In his Double-A debut, new arrival Breidy Encarnación (S, 1) coaxed a pair of double plays and got the final 10 outs to earn the save.
The Blue Wahoos go for the six-game sweep in their final road game of the regular season on Sunday afternoon.
written by Erik Bremer
High School Football Scoreboard
September 9, 2023
Here are high school football scores from around the North Escambia area:
- Pine Forest 53, Pensacola High 0
- Jay 41, Franklin County 18
- Pace 24, West Florida 21
- Milton 28, Washington 0
- Escambia 39, Gulf Breeze 27
- Pensacola Catholic 24, Fairhope 10
- Navarre 45, Rickards 18
- Tate 42, Northview 14 (Game story, photos from Thursday)
ALABAMA
- Banks Academy 60, Escambia Academy 38
- Escambia County 46, Satsuma 6
- T.R. Miller 47, Wilcox Central 12
- Mobile Christian 38, W.S. Neal 6
- Flomaton 21, Hillcrest-Evergreen 13 (Thursday)
Pictured: The Tate Aggies defeated the Northview Chiefs 42-14 Thursday night. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Home Run Barrage Helps Wahoos Win Fifth Straight
September 9, 2023
The Pensacola Blue Wahoos won their fifth game in a row on Friday night, overcoming an early deficit to beat the Rocket City Trash Pandas 8-4.
A night after scoring all 11 of their runs on four homers, Pensacola’s first six runs came on three long balls. Before adding two insurance runs in the ninth, they had scored 17 consecutive runs on home runs.
Jonathan Bermúdez (W, 4-5) struggled early, needing 39 pitches to escape a first inning that saw him serve up a three-run homer to Tyler Payne. Adrian Placencia added his first Double-A homer in the third to give Rocket City a 4-0 edge.
The Blue Wahoos couldn’t solve Trash Pandas starter Bryce Osmond (L, 0-1) until the fourth, when Cobie Fletcher-Vance launched a three-run homer to left-center to draw the score to 4-3.
In the fifth, Paul McIntosh hit a go-ahead two-run shot and Will Banfield followed it up with his team-leading 21st home run of the year to put Pensacola ahead 6-4.
Bermúdez settled into a groove and got through 5.0 innings, racking up 10 strikeouts to tie a season and career high, before Zach Willeman and Luarbert Arias (S, 3) worked scoreless relief for the final four innings.
Victor Mesa Jr. added an RBI single in the ninth, and Jake Thompson capped a 2-for-3 night with a sacrifice fly for a final score of 8-4.
The Blue Wahoos continue their series against the Trash Pandas on Saturday night.
written by Erik Bremer
‘Oh Man That Was Fun’ — Tate Aggies Defeat The Northview Chiefs In The ‘Summerford Bowl’
September 8, 2023
The Tate Aggies defeated the Northview Chiefs 42-14 at Tate’s Carl Madison Field in the second annual “Summerford Bowl” that pits head coach Rhett Summerford and his Aggies against brother head coach Wes Summerford and his Chiefs.
“Oh man that was fun,” Rhett Summerford said after the big win over his little brother. “It’s fun seeing him; it’s just a cool moment. They have a good team, and he’s going to get them rolling. After this season, they are going to be there. That’s just the way it is. He’s a great coach. It was fun. I hope he does it again next year.”
For a photo gallery, click or tap here.
For a bonus photo gallery with the band, fans and cheerleaders, click here.
Officially, it was the FFA Ag Bowl with a cowbell as the big trophy Friday night. Last year, washing the family Thanksgiving dinner dishes was also on the line when Northview topped Tate 34-25.
“We are still getting better,” Rhett Summerford said of his Tate Aggies, who celebrated another big milestone Thursday night with their second win of the season. The Aggies have not won more than one game in a season since 2018.
“We’ll continue to work. Our kids are hungry and It was a big win for our program tonight. That’s just the truth,” the Aggies coach said, seconds before he was dunked with a Gatorade bucket of ice water by players Christian Neptune and Trey Edwards. They had waited patiently for the interview with NorthEscambia.com to end so our camera wasn’t soaked.
“Man they all look a lot better,” Northview’s Wes Summerford said of his brother and the best Tate team in five years. “In that time frame to get those kids like that and believing — he’s just done a great job.”
“I don’t know if I can get away with playing him again,” Wes Summerford said. “We may tuck tail and run, both of us just go separate ways. But it’s been fun, and it’s awesome to play here (at Tate). It’s awesome to bring our team down here and see this facility and everything, and it’s a good experience for them.”
Senior Andre Colston put the Aggies on the board 7-0 with 7:41 in the first on a 20-yard touchdown run. Still in the first, quarterback Taite Davis found Christian Neptune on a 74-yard touchdown play, 14-0. To round out the first, the Aggies did again, this time Davis to Neptune for a 30-yard TD.
In the second quarter, Davis hit Brayden Beck for a 24-yarder and C.J. Autrey was across the goal line for a 27-yard touchdown.
Northview scored their first touchdown just over a minute before the half on a pass from Wyatt Scruggs to Joe Wright from 24-yard out. The Chiefs added their final score on a 7-yard pass to Devin Kelly.
Tate (2-1) will hit the road to take on Navarre on September 15. The Northview Chiefs, off to a rough 0-3 start, will host Lighthouse Private Christian Academy September 15 in Bratt.
For a photo gallery, click or tap here.
For a bonus photo gallery with the band, fans and cheerleaders, click here.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Blue Wahoos Blast Rocket City In 11-4 Victory
September 8, 2023
The Pensacola Blue Wahoos launched four home runs, including a pair of milestone shots, in an 11-4 victory over the Rocket City Trash Pandas on Thursday night.
Josh Zamora’s three-run blast in the second inning was his first Double-A homer, and Jake Thompson followed suit with a game-breaking grand slam in the eighth for his first home run in a Blue Wahoos uniform.
All 11 runs were scored on long balls, as Victor Mesa Jr. and Bennett Hostetler also went deep in Pensacola’s fourth straight win. They made a winner of Patrick Monteverde (W, 10-4), who allowed four runs in 5.0 innings to become just the fifth pitcher in team history to win ten games in a single season.
Mesa’s two-run homer in the first inning and Zamora’s three-run blast in the second were a rude greeting for Sammy Natera Jr. (L, 0-1), who took the loss for the Trash Pandas in his debut performance. While Rocket City climbed back in the game with homers from Sonny DiChiara and Tyler Payne, Monteverde stranded a pair of runners to end the fifth with a 5-4 lead.
After an effective 2.1 innings of relief from Zach McCambley, Thompson gave the Blue Wahoos breathing room in the eighth with a grand slam, his first homer since arriving in Pensacola last week. Hostetler added an opposite-field blast in the ninth for good measure before Jefry Yan shut the door on an 11-4 victory.
The Blue Wahoos continue their series against the Trash Pandas on Friday night.
written by Erik Bremer
Palacios Pitches Gem in Pensacola’s 1-0 Win
September 7, 2023
Luis Palacios was masterful in a matinee performance, twirling 8.0 scoreless innings as the Pensacola Blue Wahoos defeated the Rocket City Trash Pandas 1-0 in a combined three-hit shutout on Wednesday afternoon.
Palacios (W, 9-7) became the first Pensacola pitcher since 2019 to complete 8.0 innings, and did so on only 79 pitches, in the best outing of his Double-A career.
The Blue Wahoos were only 1-for-10 with men in scoring position, but strung together three singles from Cody Morissette, Josh Zamora and Tanner Allen to scratch across a run against Rocket City long reliever Cole Percival (L, 1-4). It proved to be the only run of the game, marking Pensacola’s first 1-0 win since their victory over Montgomery in Game Three of the 2022 Southern League Division Series.
Palacios was perfect through 4.0 innings, and allowed only three hits over his 8.0 innings with one walk and seven strikeouts. He was lifted in the ninth for Matt Pushard (S, 2), who worked around a two-out walk to lock down the save.
The Blue Wahoos continue their series against the Trash Pandas on Thursday night.
Jay Royals Defeat Northview
September 6, 2023
The Jay Lady Royals defeated the Northview Chiefs 3-1 high school volleyball action Tuesday evening.
The Jay won the match at Northview in four sets, 25-9, 21-5, 25-20, 25-20.
Northview (3-2) will host L.E.A.D Academy of Pace (0-6) Thursday at 6 p.m.
Jay (5-0) will host Milton (5-5) Thursday at 6 p.m.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
McIntosh’s Late Homer Leads Pensacola Past Trash Pandas
September 6, 2023
Paul McIntosh hit a go-ahead ninth-inning homer as the Pensacola Blue Wahoos opened up their final regular season road series with a 3-2 win over the Rocket City Trash Pandas on Tuesday night.
Deadlocked in a 2-2 tie from the fourth inning on, the Pensacola designated hitter mashed a solo blast over the left field wall to begin the top of the ninth inning for the first Blue Wahoos lead of the night.
The game was dominated by pitching, as M.D. Johnson turned in a quality start with 6.0 innings of two-run ball and five Trash Pandas relievers held the Blue Wahoos to only five hits in a scheduled bullpen game.
Rocket City took a 2-0 lead in the second as Mac McCroskey blooped a two-out, two-run single to shallow right. Pensacola tied the game in the fourth with a Victor Mesa Jr. RBI double and McIntosh sacrifice fly.
Chandler Jozwiak held the Trash Pandas hitless through 1.2 innings of relief, and Dylan Bice (W, 2-2) entered to record the final out of the eighth and preserve the 2-2 tie. McIntosh then turned around a Hayden Seig (L, 0-1) breaking ball for his sixth Double-A homer of the season, giving the Blue Wahoos a late road lead for the second time in as many weeks after a similar eighth-inning blast two weeks ago in Biloxi.
Bice worked a quiet ninth to lock down Pensacola’s 71st win of the season.
The Blue Wahoos have a quick turnaround, playing their Wednesday game in the late morning as part of a field trip day at Toyota Field.
Wahoos Wait Out Rain, Beat Lookouts 5-3
September 4, 2023
A long day and tough week ended in a gratifying way for the Blue Wahoos.
After the start of Sunday’s game at Blue Wahoos Stadium was pushed back nearly two and a half hours, the Blue Wahoos jumped to an early lead, then had their bullpen hold under pressure in a 5-3 victory against the Chattanooga Lookouts. A good portion of the crowd of 3,425 waited out the weather and remained at the end of the game.
It earned the Blue Wahoos (70-54) a series split against a team they may see again in the Southern League playoffs. This year’s Blue Wahoos team now becomes the fourth in franchise history to attain 70 or more wins. The club record is 81 wins.
The Blue Wahoos won a championship last year with just 68 wins.
The Lookouts (68-57), the Cincinnati Reds affiliate, won the first half North Division in the Southern League. Their deep lineup of hitters enabled wins in nine of the 12 games in regular-season meetings this season with the Blue Wahoos.
Sunday’s game was to start at 4:05 p.m. By the time it finished, the time was 9:35. Continuous bands of rain kept pushing back the start time and forcing the Blue Wahoos grounds crew of staff members into extra duty to keep the field dry with tarp pulls. It was the fifth time in the week that inclement weather affected either pregame workouts for each team, or the game itself.
Once Sunday’s game began, the Blue Wahoos gained an early edge.
Victor Mesa Jr. continued his strong production with a two-run homer in the first inning that followed a leadoff walk from Nasim Nuñez.
Will Banfield made it 3-1 in the third with a solo homer, his 20th of the year.
Mesa later produced a 4-1 lead with successful gamble on the basepaths. He was on second when an errant pickoff attempt from Lookout catcher Matheu Nelson bounced away from shortstop Jose Torres. Mesa raced around third and made a terrific slide to avoid Nelson’s tag at the plate on Torres’ throw.
The Blue Wahoos got their fifth run when Paul McIntosh reached on a walk, went to second on a wild pitch, stole third and scored on an errant throw.
Blue Wahoos starter Evan Fitterer picked up his seventh win by working into the sixth. He got out of a bases loaded jam in the fourth inning with a 95 mph fastball to strike out Torres.
In the sixth, with two runners on, Blue Wahoos reliever Brady Puckett recorded a strikeout to end that inning. In the eighth inning, after two out, reliever Zach McCambley allowed three consecutive walks before freezing Torres with a fastball to escape another jam.
And in the ninth, after a leadoff homer by Blake Dunn and a single that followed, closer Luarbert Arias recorded his second save with a pair of strikeouts, including the final out against Quincy McAfee.
The win pushed the Blue Wahoos’ second half record to 29-27 with 12 games to play. They will leave late Monday morning for Madison, Alabama, to begin a six-game series against the Rocket City Trash Pandas on Tuesday.
Their final series of the regular season will be at home, beginning on September 12 against the Mississippi Braves. The Southern League divisional playoffs begin September 19 with the Blue Wahoos having home field in the final two games of the best-of-three series against either Biloxi or Montgomery.
by Bill Vilona, photo Nino Mendez / Pensacola Blue Wahoos