Check This Out

Land O’ Lakes resident Elli Black took first place in AAU Cross-Country National Championships for the 11- to 12-year-old girls group — clocking a 10:13.24 in last month’s 3K race at Apalachee Regional Park in Tallahassee.

Black’s 3K time set a course record, which equated to a 5:29 minute per mile pace.

Black is a home-schooled seventh-grader who runs varsity cross-country and track for Tampa’s Cambridge Christian School.

Prior to the national meet, the local youth finished runner-up at the Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) Class 1A state championships, registering an 18:28.5 mark in the 5K race. (The winner of the 1A state race was Black’s prep teammate Caroline Lehman, a high school junior who clocked an 18:07.80.)

The South Pasco Predators youth cheerleading organization showcased itself among the nation’s best in the recent Pop Warner National Cheer & Dance Championship in Orlando.

The program took home four titles and one runner-up, among its varsity, junior varsity, mitey mite and junior pee wee squads.

Varsity won medium level 1 show cheer; mitey mite won both sideline and large level 1 show cheer; junior varsity won large level 2 show cheer; and, junior pee wee went second in large level 1 show cheer.

The Pop Warner National Championship was hosted by Florida Citrus Sports at the Orange County Convention Center. The event ran from Dec. 5 through Dec. 7, and included nearly 200 teams from around the country.

The event followed strict safety protocols, including mandatory mask-wearing (except when performing), social distancing and limits on the number of participating teams.

The Northlakes Sports Complex, 2640 North Lakeview Drive in Tampa has gotten a major landscaping upgrade, courtesy of the Greater Tampa Association of Realtors and Hillsborough County Parks & Recreation.

On Nov. 18, volunteers from the Realtors association beautified the Northdale-based park by planting some 40 live oaks, robellini palms, purple tabebuias, crepe myrtles, bald cypress and red maple trees, along with 20 blueberry flax lilies.

Volunteers also deep-cleaned the park’s concession stand and made other landscaping enhancements, according to a news release.

A portion of the November project was funded through a Community Rebuilding Grant from the National Association of Realtors; funds for the trees came through the Hillsborough County Tree Fund.

The popular complex includes baseball, soccer and lacrosse fields; basketball, pickleball, tennis, and racquetball courts; and, playgrounds and walking trails. It is owned and operated by the county’s parks & recreation department.

Local chiropractor Dr. Timothy Bain was able to spend the day with the NHL’s Stanley Cup at his Wesley Chapel-based practice, B3 Medical, at 2818 Cypress Ridge Blvd., Suite 100.

Bain has been the Tampa Bay Lightning’s team chiropractor since 2011, assisting players on injury prevention and body maintenance.

He was part of the team’s exclusive 52-member traveling party (including players and coaches) to the NHL’s quarantine “bubble” for the postseason tournament in Canada. The Lightning won the Stanley Cup on Sept. 28, defeating the Dallas Stars in six games in the finals.

Bain’s B3 Medical practice also has locations New Tampa, Carrollwood and Riverview. He also works with a sports performance facility at Saddlebrook Resort & Spa designed for elite-level athletes.

Time to again show off your school spirit.

The Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) welcomes all member schools to participate in the 2020-2021 Sunshine State Spirit Showdown —  a schoolwide competition designed to promote good sportsmanship and school spirit. It was created in 2013, with the idea of the school community to come as one “to create something exciting and unique.”

The deadline to submit entries will be Feb. 1.

Criteria for submissions have changed slightly this year due to COVID-19 protocols that some schools are following.

There will be two separate category winners this year to accommodate game attendance limitations, restrictions on crowds and gatherings, physical and distance learning, and so on.

The first category will be for schools who have no restrictions or changes due to COVID-19. These are schools that still allow full game attendance, student sections, pep rallies and more.

The second category will be for schools who have had to alter their typical protocols. These are schools that have limitations on game attendance and may not have student sections at all, do not allow pep rallies or large gatherings, and have students who are distance learning and unable to physically be in attendance.

Schools must submit a video that is 90 seconds to three minutes in length. The video must contain a 30-second part on boosting school morale in creative ways, and encouraging positivity and strength through these difficult times; content must be appropriate; and it must be uploaded onto FHSAA’s YouTube channel.

Judging will come from FHSAA’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and social media fan voting.

Videos will be ranked based on the following categories: positive emphasis, spirit, originality, creativity and organization, and student body and community participation while still focusing on safety.

Winners of each category will be announced March 9. A plaque and banner will be presented to each winning school.

Past winners of the contest include Clay (Green Cove Springs), Fort Walton Beach, River Ridge (New Port Richey), Choctawhatchee (Fort Walton Beach), Lake Howell (Winter Park), and Atlantic Coast high schools.

Visit tinyurl.com/yxfnmelp for more information about the Sunshine State Spirit Showdown.

Bishop McLaughlin Catholic High School has turned to a widely known figure to lead its varsity girls soccer program.

The Hurricanes athletics department announced the hiring of Kacey White — a former United States Women’s National Team (USWNT) member and NCAA All-American and National Champion, who also has a lengthy coaching resume as USWNT assistant coach and collegiate coaching.

Most recently, the 36-year-old White served as a development academy director for the Brandon-based West Florida Flames youth soccer club.

She previously served as head coach at Xavier University and Wisconsin-Green Bay, and held assistant positions at Oklahoma, Southern Methodist and Texas Tech, respectively.

White has a decorated background as a player. She was a member of the University of North Carolina’s 2003 national championship team, a two-time All-American (2004,2005) and three-time All-ACC selection. Following her graduation, White earned a spot on the USWNT, where she earned 17 caps and served as an alternate for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. She also played professionally for six years in both the United States and Sweden.

• Carrollwood Day School senior tight end Michael Trigg verbally committed to play collegiate football at Division I FBS University of Southern California (USC), in Los Angeles. Trigg, at 6-foot-4 and weighing 230-pounds, is a consensus four-star prospect rated among the nation’s top football recruits for the 2021 class. The tight end has registered 29 receptions for 581 yards and five scores through six games this season.

Trigg chose USC among nearly 50 scholarship offers. Also a highly regarded basketball standout at shooting guard, he’s received multiple offers from Division I programs allowing him to play on both the gridiron and hardwood.

• Carrollwood Day School 6-foot-2 senior forward Aryana Dixon verbally committed to play collegiate women’s basketball at Division I University of Vermont, in Burlington. Dixon last season tallied 10.2 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.0 steals, 1.2 assists and 1.1 blocks per game, for a Patriots team that won the Class 3A state championship and finished with a 27-2 mark.

Youth football leagues can now apply to Hillsborough County for permission to resume games and tournaments at county parks.

Football leagues already have been allowed to use county fields for non-contact practices and conditioning, but contact practices and games and tournaments have not been permitted since late March due to COVID-19 concerns.

To receive permission to resume games and contact practices on county-maintained fields, each league can now submit a plan that must be approved by Hillsborough County Parks & Recreation.

The plans must outline the social distancing, sanitation, scheduling and other measures the leagues will use to assure the safety of players, volunteers and fans. Safety requirements include temperature checks for all players, spectators, coaches and staff.

Such plans can be submitted for review to . Parks officials will review the plans and respond to the league with changes or approval.

County leaders recently decided to allow the resumption of contact practices, games and tournaments for youth football after extensive consultation with local health officials, emergency managers, Parks & Recreation staff, and others.