Jim Withers sat in the back room of his small barbershop smoking a cigarette and studying his computer screen. ...more

July 13, 2008

SEBRING — Looking ahead is never a good idea for any team heading into the state tournament, but Sebring head coach Bobby Cannon couldn't help talking about the competition in the upcoming Dixie AAA (ages 9-10) state tournament at East Lakeland, which begins Saturday. ...more

July 4, 2008

Zach Osha smacked a solo homer over the right field fence in the fifth to cap off an offensive outburst, as the Sebring All-Stars defeated the Clewiston All-Stars 10-0 in six innings in an elimination game in the Dixie Boys (age 14) District 8 tournament at Okeechobee Sports Complex on Wednesday. ...more

July 2, 2008

Relentless rain forced officials to postpone the 13-year-old and 14-year-old Dixie District 8 baseball tournaments until Wednesday. ...more

July 1, 2008

OKEECHOBEE — After seeing their potent offense limited to three hits in Saturday's extra-inning loss to Okeechobee, the Sebring All-Stars, paced by Tommy Bertoniere's three-run homer and four RBI, beat Avon Park 15-3 on Sunday in the second round of the Dixie 14-year-old boys District 8 tournament at the Okeechobee Sports Complex. "We came back strong and played a good game after a tough loss to Okeechobee," said Sebring coach Bill Westergom. "We swung the bats, took the base-on-balls and got good pitching. "Our defense has been solid in both games and we just need to be aggressive with the bats and score some runs." ...more

June 30, 2008

OKEECHOBEE — It's never easy against Okeechobee. The first-round game between Sebring and Okeechobee in the Dixie 14-year-old boys District 8 tournament was dominated by outstanding pitching and stellar defensive plays by both teams. But in the end, it came down to Okeechobee's Noah Wilcox and his shirt. Wilcox –– or, more correctly –– his shirt was brushed by a pitch from Sebring reliever Zach Osha with the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning to force in Justin Morgan for a 2-1 Okeechobee victory. The close call brought an uproar from the Sebring fans and coaches, but the run counted to end the game. ...more

June 30, 2008

OKEECHOBEE — Clewiston's bats were as hot as the weather in Saturday's game against Avon Park in the opening-round of the Dixie 14-year-old boys District 8 tournament at the Okeechobee Sports Complex. Clewiston, which banged out eight hits, was led by third baseman Tyler Yebba, who went 3 for 4 with three RBI and Trey Pruitt, who scored two runs in an 11-3 victory. The win moved Clewiston into a winners' bracket game against Okeechobee on Sunday night, which beat Sebring 2-1 on Saturday night. The loss dropped Avon Park into an elimination game against Sebring on Sunday afternoon. See highlandstoday.com/sports and Tuesday's Highlands Today for complete coverage. Clewiston got rolling early against Avon Park by putting up five runs in the top of the first inning. ...more

June 30, 2008

Clewiston's Trey Pruitt allowed one hit and one run in 3 2/3 innings and Tyler Yebba went 3 for 4 with three RBI on Saturday to lead Clewiston to an 11-3 victory in the opening round of the Dixie 14-year-old District 8 tournament at Okeechobee Sports Complex. ...more

June 28, 2008

SEBRING — A barbeque has been scheduled to honor John "Johnnyman" Richards, 56, of Ft. Lauderdale, who died June 13 in a motorcycle accident near Clewiston. He was on his way to his second home in Sebring. ...more

June 26, 2008

AVON PARK — The fastball thrown from Trey Perry's arm mowed down the final batter of Avon Park's 8-4 win over Clewiston just as the darkened heavens' thunderclap signaled the coming rain on Durrah Martin Recreational Complex. ...more

June 21, 2008