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The Florida High School Athletic Association(FHSAA) Board of Directors on Sept. 26 approved a new football playoff format. Beginning with the 2017 season, district play will be eliminated in Classes 1A-4A, with teams making the playoffs based on a points system. Classes 5A-8A will retain districts, with the district champion receiving an automatic playoff bid.

The measure was approved by a 14-2 vote.

“Based on the feedback from our membership, the majority of our constituents wanted our old playoff system changed,” FHSAA Executive Director Dr. Roger Dearing said, in a release. “We are hopeful this change will create the most exciting high school football postseason in America.”

For Classes 1A-4A, no region or district play will be required, and each school will control its own schedule. Four teams from each region (16 total) will make the playoffs based on the new points system.

District play for Class 5A-8A will remain, with 32 teams qualifying for the playoffs in each class. District champions will receive an automatic bid to the playoff and will receive a 1-4 seed based on the new points system. Four wild cards will be taken from each region — based on points—following the conclusion of Week 11.

In all eight classes, the higher seed will always host.

For information, visit FHSAA.org.

The Pasco-Hernando State College (PHSC) women’s cross country team placed ninth out of 26 colleges at the Brissman-Lundeen 6K Invitational on Sept. 23 in Rock Island, Illinois. The team also finished second among seven junior colleges participating in the event. Charlene Sanchez (19th overall) was PHSC’s top runner (25:00) in the 6K, followed by Kylyn Burbine (26:24), Cynthia Negron (26:32), Annaliese Besaw (27:28), Aaleigah Knight (27:51), Marffee Simbulan (27:59) and Amanda Atkinson (30:37).

Wiregrass Ranch girls varsity golfer Lex Frenchko sunk an 81-yard hole-in-one at the River Ridge Golf Course on Sept. 13. Frenchko, a senior, used a pitching wedge on the 14th hole during a match against River Ridge High. She is believed to be the third person to ever sink a hole-in-one at the course.

Zephyrhills Christian Academy (ZCA) is off to a 3-1 start after trouncing Cornerstone Charter Academy 71-0 at home on Sept. 19. They next face Lakeland Santa Fe on Sept. 30. The Warriors have also beaten Out-of-Door Academy (14-8) and Bradenton Christian (30-16). In 2015, the ZCA Warriors moved up from 6-man football to 11-man, competing in the Florida High School Athletic Association as an independent. The Warriors, who went 4-4 in 2015, feature one of the top tailbacks in Pasco County—Mykh’ael Chavis. The 5-foot-11, 207-pound senior is averaging 106 yards rushing per game at 11.4 yards per carry.

The Saint Leo women’s cross-country team remains in the top spot in the South Region in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association regional rankings; it is the first time in program history the women’s team has held onto the top spot for consecutive weeks.

Saint Leo rose from second – its placement in the preseason regional rankings – up to first in the South Region, after taking first place in the Florida Tech Invitational on Sept. 10.

Meanwhile, the Saint Leo men’s cross-country team held onto its No. 5 position in the South Region ranking.

The Wiregrass Ranch volleyball team downed top-ranked Fivay in four sets to claim the 2016 SAC (Sunshine Athletic Conference) on Sept. 21. The team, coached by Michelle Davis, is currently 9-3. The Bulls’ top attackers are a trio of juniors—Elanny Breton (85 kills), Alyson Clark (70) and Caroline Eichelberger. Seniors Kristina Odom and Anna Olsen pace the team in digs —Odom has 134, and Olsen has 132, respectively. Last season, the Bulls finished 15-7.

The Wharton boys and girls varsity and junior varsity cross-country teams all captured team titles at the Western Conference National Division meet on Sept. 14.

The boys varsity team scored 19 points, taking five of the top six spots in the meet to top second-place Freedom (55 points) and third-place King (70 points). The JV team recorded a perfect score of 15 points in the meet, taking all top five spots to beat second-place Tampa Bay Tech (59 points) and third-place Freedom (64 points).

Individual standouts include:

• Sophomore Tre Rivers – first place in 17:34 (first varsity win of his career and new personal record)
• Freshman Casey Pleune – third place in 17:46 (new personal record)
• Junior Sahil Deschenes – fourth place in 17:55
• Junior Frankie Godbold – sixth place in 18:01
• Junior Noah Damjanovic – seventh place in 18:18
• Junior Ryan Anders – 12th place in 18:47 (new personal record)

The girls varsity team scored 27 points, taking five of the top nine spots to top second-place King (51 points) and third-place Freedom (54 points). The JV team also recorded a perfect score of 15 points (all five top spots) to best second-place Tampa Bay Tech (60 points) and third-place Freedom (65 points).

Individuals standouts include:

• Senior Rania Samhouri – first place in 19:10 (first varsity win of her career and new personal record)
• Junior Rachel Lettiero – third place in 21:19
• Freshman Nia Rivers – sixth place in 21:49
• Senior Olivia Giarrizzo – eighth place in 22:26 (new personal record)
• Sophomore Kayla McCullough – ninth place in 22:29 (new personal record)
• Senior Shealyn Hammel – 13th place in 23:06 (new personal record)

Saint Leo University’s men’s and women’s tennis coach Pablo Montana has resigned as the Lions’ head coach, citing family reasons.

Montana, who was hired in August, said in a release that he will be returning to the Pittsburgh area with his family. Montana previously served as the head women’s tennis coach at California University of Pennsylvania for 12 seasons.

A national search for a new head men’s and women’s tennis coach will begin immediately. The Saint Leo men’s tennis team finished last season as national runners-up at the 2016 NCAA Division II Men’s Tennis Championship. Meanwhile, the women’s tennis team was a national semifinalist for the second time in three years at the 2016 NCAA Division II Women’s Tennis Championship.

Chase Litton, a former Wharton High School quarterback, threw for 309 yards and six touchdowns in Marshall (West Virginia) University’s 62-0 shutout against Morgan State (Maryland) University on Sept. 10. The 6-foot-6, 211-pound sophomore is looking to build off his freshman campaign, where he threw for 2,605 yards and 23 touchdowns in 11 games. Coming out of high school, Litton was ranked as a consensus three-star recruit, lauded for his arm strength and accuracy.

Janarion Grant, a former Pasco High School football standout, was named the Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week after his performance in Rutgers (New Jersey) University’s 52-14 rout of Howard (Washington D.C.) University on Sept. 10. The senior wide receiver returned a kickoff for 84 yards for a touchdown, racking up 248 all-purpose yards over the course of the game. The honor marks the fourth career conference special teams player of the week award for Grant.