Gainesville – After a tough non-district schedule, there is only one team that stands out as the top overall team in the Prep Zone Power Poll.

Providence (Jacksonville) recently won the Beach Ball Classic in Myrtle Beach, S.C., against some of the top teams from South Carolina, Ohio and New York, and they received all seven first-place votes in the first poll of the new year. In fact, all three of the Stallions’ (11-3) losses this season have been to nationally-ranked teams, proving that they are not only one of the top teams in the area, but in the state too, regardless of classification.

But The Villages (16-0) are right behind them with their unblemished record in 4A. They went 5-0 during the break, winning their own holiday tournament, and beat 6A Columbia (Lake City) on the road, 68-66.

Ribault (Jacksonville), which was tied for second with the Buffaloes, dropped to third following its first loss of the season. The Trojans (15-1) fell to Raines (Jacksonville), which is ranked 12th in this week’s poll, 73-72, but they had wins against Cocoa, 8A First Coast and previous No. 5 Sandalwood and No. 19 North Florida Educational Institute (Jacksonville) over the holiday break.

Lake Minneola suffered its first defeat at No. 13 Vanguard (Ocala) on December 19, but the 6A Hawks (15-1), who are ranked fourth, have won four in a row.

Another 6A team, Ed White (Jacksonville), rounds out the top five. The Commanders (13-2) moved up three spots from eighth following wins against 8A schools Coral Reef (Miami) and South Plantation.

Bolles (Jacksonville) continues to be a surprise with its perfect start. The Bulldogs (15-0) survived their first scare, a 40-38 win over Oakleaf (Orange Park) last Thursday, and moved up one spot to No. 6 in this week’s poll. Sandalwood (Jacksonville) (9-3), Gainesville (11-4), Bishop Kenny (Jacksonville) (12-3) and Palatka (11-3) round out the top 10.

Deltona (12-5), which went 2-2 at the Kingdom of the Sun with wins against Sandalwood and Vanguard, enters the poll for the first time this season at No. 20.

The Prep Zone Power Poll ranks the top 20 high school football, basketball, baseball & softball teams (regardless of FHSAA classification) across 26 counties in North Florida (Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Citrus, Clay, Columbia, Dixie, Duval, Flagler, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Hernando, Jefferson, Lafayette, Lake, Levy, Marion, Nassau, Putnam, Sumter, St. Johns, Suwannee, Taylor, Union & Volusia counties). It is voted on weekly by sportswriters and sportscasters.

PREP ZONE POWER POLL – 2013-14 BASKETBALL POLL #3
(School, followed by first-place votes, classification, current record and total voting points)

1. Providence (Jacksonville) (7) (3A) (11-3) – 140
2. The Villages (4A) (16-0) – 131
3. Ribault (Jacksonville) (4A) (15-1) – 123
4. Lake Minneola (6A) (15-1) – 121
5. Ed White (Jacksonville) (6A) (13-2) – 107
6. Bolles (Jacksonville) (4A) (15-0) – 106
7. Sandalwood (Jacksonville) (8A) (9-3) – 88
8. Gainesville (6A) (11-4) – 86
9. Bishop Kenny (Jacksonville) (5A) (12-3) – 67
10. Palatka (5A) (11-3) – 65
11. Nature Coast (Brooksville) (5A) (10-3) – 64
12. Raines (Jacksonville) (4A) (12-2) – 59
T13 Chiefland (1A) (12-0) – 55
T13 Vanguard (Ocala) (6A) (10-4) – 55
15. Hawthorne (1A) (13-3) – 52
16. Atlantic (Port Orange) (4A) (10-2) – 45
17. Baker County (Glen St. Mary) (5A) (10-2) – 27
18. Fort White (4A) (9-2) – 16
19. Spruce Creek (Port Orange) (8A) (10-5) – 15
20. Deltona (6A) (12-5) – 10

Also receiving votes: Forrest (Jacksonville) (6A) (11-4) – 8; First Academy (Leesburg) (2A) (9-0) – 7; Episcopal (Jacksonville) (4A) (10-3) – 7; Bartram Trail (St. Johns) (6A) (11-4) – 4; Father Lopez (Daytona Beach) (3A) (9-6) – 3; Eastside (Gainesville) (5A) (7-4) – 3; PK Yonge (Gainesville) (4A) (10-5) – 2; DeLand (8A) (10-5) – 2; Suwannee (Live Oak) (5A) (7-7) – 1; Fleming Island (Orange Park) (7A) (10-4) – 1.

Gainesville – Heading into the Christmas holiday, most of the teams in the Prep Zone Power Poll top 10 remained intact.

There was a little movement, but only one team dropped out.

Despite losing to nationally-ranked Montverde Academy in the semifinals of the prestigious City of Palms Classic in Fort Myers, Providence (Jacksonville) was a unanimous selection as the top overall team. The Stallions (9-2) picked up a couple of wins against out-of-state competition in collecting all six first-place votes to remain No. 1.

The biggest surprise last week was Ocala Vanguard’s 68-67 overtime win over previously unbeaten Lake Minneola, which dropped the Hawks (12-1), who were outscoring opponents by an average of 35 points per game, from second to fourth. Meanwhile, the Knights (7-2), who will host the 40th annual Kingdom of the Sun this Friday, moved into the poll for the first time at No. 15.

Last week senior Daishon Smith hit two free throws with 0.8 seconds to play as Ribault (Jacksonville) defeated Sandalwood (Jacksonville), 60-59, in a battle of unbeaten top five teams. With the win, the Trojans (12-0) moved up three spots into a tie for second, while the Saints (8-1) dropped two spots to fifth.

The Villages are tied for second with Ribault. The Buffaloes (11-0) won both of their games by more than 30 points in moving up two spots in this week’s poll.

Gainesville (9-1) is ranked sixth, followed by Bolles (Jacksonville) (12-0), Ed White (Jacksonville) (10-2), Nature Coast (Brooksville) (10-1), and Palatka (9-1) & Bishop Kenny (Jacksonville) (10-2), which are tied for 10th. Spruce Creek (Port Orange) (10-4), which is ranked 12th, was the only team to fall out of the top 10 following a 1-3 week which included two losses at the Kreul Classic.

Mainland (Daytona Beach) (7-4) moved into the poll for the first time following a 2-0 week that included an 85-83 win against previous No. 12 Palatka.

The Prep Zone Power Poll ranks the top 20 high school football, basketball, baseball & softball teams (regardless of FHSAA classification) across 26 counties in North Florida (Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Citrus, Clay, Columbia, Dixie, Duval, Flagler, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Hernando, Jefferson, Lafayette, Lake, Levy, Marion, Nassau, Putnam, Sumter, St. Johns, Suwannee, Taylor, Union & Volusia counties). It is voted on weekly by sportswriters and sportscasters.

PREP ZONE POWER POLL – 2013-14 BASKETBALL POLL #2
(School, followed by first-place votes, classification, current record and total voting points)

1. Providence (Jacksonville) (6) (3A) (9-2) – 120
2T Ribault (Jacksonville) (4A) (12-0) – 110
2T The Villages (4A) (11-0) – 110
4. Lake Minneola (6A) (12-1) – 98
5. Sandalwood (Jacksonville) (8A) (8-1) – 97
6. Gainesville (6A) (9-1) – 92
7. Bolles (Jacksonville) (4A) (12-0) – 81
8. Ed White (Jacksonville) (6A) (10-2) – 76
9. Nature Coast (Brooksville) (5A) (10-1) – 63
10T Palatka (5A) (9-1) – 59
10T Bishop Kenny (Jacksonville) (5A) (10-2) – 59
12. Spruce Creek (Port Orange) (8A) (10-4) – 53
13. Hawthorne (1A) (10-1) – 48
14. Chiefland (1A) (9-0) – 32
15. Vanguard (Ocala) (6A) (7-2) – 31
16. Fort White (4A) (7-0) – 29
17. Atlantic (Port Orange) (4A) (7-2) – 21
18. Father Lopez (Daytona Beach) (3A) (6-4) – 20
19. North Florida Educational Institute (Jacksonville) (2A) (10-5) – 13
20. Mainland (Daytona Beach) (6A) (7-4) – 12

Also receiving votes – Williston (1A) (7-2) – 9; Raines (Jacksonville) (4A) (9-2) – 8; PK Yonge (Gainesville) (4A) (9-5) – 6; Englewood (Jacksonville) (6A) (10-4) – 4; Baker County (Glen St. Mary) (5A) (7-2) – 3; Forrest (Jacksonville) (6A) (10-3) – 3; First Academy (Leesburg) (2A) (8-0) – 2; DeLand (8A) (10-4) – 1.

Gainesville – Providence (Jacksonville) begins the season where it left off last year – on top of the Prep Zone Power Poll.

The Stallions (8-1) won the Class 3A state title and finished on top of our final all-classification poll last year. They return the nucleus of their team, which includes Duke commit Grayson Allen. Providence is nationally-ranked and already has a win over nationally-ranked Arlington Country Day on this year’s resume.

That’s probably the only reason that Lake Minneola isn’t the top-ranked team. The Hawks (12-0) are second after a dominant start to the season in which they have outscored their opponents 82.3-47.1 per game.

Sandalwood (Jacksonville) is ranked third. The Saints (7-0) are ranked top 10 in the state in the Associated Press Class 8A poll.

Following the transfer of several players into their program, who had led their previous teams to state semifinal appearances, the Villages (10-0) now have enough in the arsenal to make a run in the 4A state playoffs. The Buffaloes are ranked fourth in our preseason poll.

Rounding out the top five is unblemished Ribault (Jacksonville). The Trojans (10-0) are senior-laden and primed for a run in 4A as well.

Despite the loss of three all-state players to other schools the past two years, the Gainesville Hurricanes to shine. Following a state semifinal appearance in 2013, GHS (9-1) is back among the top 6A programs in the state. The ‘Canes are ranked sixth in the preseason poll.

Bolles (Jacksonville), one of six unbeaten teams in the top 10, is ranked seventh. The Bulldogs (11-0) are followed by Spruce Creek (Port Orange) (9-2), Ed White (Jacksonville) (10-2) and Nature Coast (Brooksville) (7-0), and Father Lopez (Daytona Beach) (6-3), which are tied for 10th.

The Prep Zone Power Poll ranks the top 20 high school football, basketball, baseball & softball teams (regardless of FHSAA classification) across 26 counties in North Florida (Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Citrus, Clay, Columbia, Dixie, Duval, Flagler, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Hernando, Jefferson, Lafayette, Lake, Levy, Marion, Nassau, Putnam, Sumter, St. Johns, Suwannee, Taylor, Union & Volusia counties). It is voted on weekly by sportswriters and sportscasters.

PREP ZONE POWER POLL – 2013-14 BASKETBALL POLL #1 – PRESEASON POLL
(School, followed by first-place votes, classification, current record and total voting points)

1. Providence (Jacksonville) (7) (3A) (8-1) – 140
2. Lake Minneola (6A) (12-0) – 125
3. Sandalwood (Jacksonville) (8A) (7-0) – 124
4. The Villages (4A) (10-0) – 116
5. Ribault (Jacksonville) (4A) (10-0) – 107
6. Gainesville (6A) (9-1) – 103
7. Bolles (Jacksonville) (4A) (11-0) – 81
8. Spruce Creek (Port Orange) (8A) (9-2) – 80
9. Ed White (Jacksonville) (6A) (10-2) – 62
10T Nature Coast (Brooksville) (5A) (7-0) – 53
10T Father Lopez (Daytona Beach) (3A) (6-3) – 53
12. Palatka (5A) (7-0) – 52
13. Bishop Kenny (Jacksonville) (5A) (10-2) – 48
14. Hawthorne (1A) (9-1) – 40
15. Atlantic (Port Orange) (4A) (6-2) – 38
16. Chiefland (1A) (7-0) – 36
17T North Florida Educational Institute (Jacksonville) (2A) (5-2) – 35
17T Fort White (4A) (6-0) – 35
19T Baker County (Glen St. Mary) (5A) (7-2) – 30
19T Williston (1A) (6-2) – 30

Also receiving votes – Eastside (Gainesville) (5A) (5-2) – 16; Raines (Jacksonville) (4A) (8-2) – 16; PK Yonge (Gainesville) (4A) (7-4) – 11; St. Francis Catholic (Gainesville) (3A) (7-2) – 10; Lake Weir (Ocala) (5A) (7-3) – 6; Forrest (Jacksonville) (6A) (9-2) – 5; Vanguard (Ocala) (6A) (6-2) – 5; Columbia (Lake City) (6A) (4-3) – 3; Hamilton County (Jasper) (1A) (8-2) – 3; First Academy (Leesburg) (2A) (7-0) – 2; Dunnellon (5A) (7-3) – 2; Wildwood (1A) (7-2) – 2; Trinity Catholic (Ocala) (4A) (7-3) – 1.