GAINESVILLE – Gainesville High has ascended to the spot it has held in the Class 6A rankings the past few weeks – No. 1.
GHS (6-0) routed Citrus (Inverness), 56-7, but got some help as top-ranked Fletcher (Neptune Beach) turned the ball over five times and was upset at home by district foe DeLand, 30-28. That vaulted the 2nd-ranked ‘Canes to the top spot of this week’s Prep Zone Power Poll where it received all seven first-place votes.
Meanwhile, the Class 8A Senators (5-1) tumbled six spots to seventh. They travel to Flagler Palm Coast in two weeks in what could be a must-win game.
Class 3A Madison County (6-0) rolled to a 51-7 win over 7A West Port (Ocala) and moved up one spot to third.
First Coast (Jacksonville) rallied from a 13-0 deficit to defeat previous #7 Fleming Island (Orange Park), 19-16, in a key Class 7A-District 2 game, which moved the Bucs (6-0) up one spot to fourth. The Golden Eagles (5-1) dropped only two spots to ninth.
South Sumter (Bushnell), which is averaging 46.6 points per game, posted its first shutout of the season in a 41-0 win at Bradford (Starke) in a Class 4A-District 4 contest. The Raiders (6-0) moved up one spot to fourth, while St. Augustine (5-0), which was idle, also moved up one spot to round out the top five.
Springstead (Spring Hill) (6-0) and Keystone Heights (5-1) move into the top 20 for the first time this season at Nos. 18 and 19 respectively. Chiefland, which lost to Newberry, and Crystal River, which lost at North Marion, fell out of this week’s poll.
The Prep Zone Power Poll ranks the top 20 high school football, basketball and baseball teams (regardless of 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 – WEEK #7
(School, followed by first-place votes, classification, overall record and total voting points)
1. Gainesville (7) (6A) (6-0) – 140
2. Madison County (3A) (6-0) – 132
3. First Coast (Jacksonville) (7A) (6-0) – 123
4. South Sumter (Bushnell) (4A) (6-0) – 116
5. St. Augustine (6A) (5-0) – 111
6. Columbia (Lake City) (6A) (5-1) – 104
7. Fletcher (Neptune Beach) (8A) (5-1) – 98
8. Union County (Lake Butler) (1A) (6-0) – 89
9. Fleming Island (Orange Park) (7A) (5-1) – 75
10. Trenton (1A) (5-0) – 74
11. Bolles (Jacksonville) (4A) (5-1) – 70
12T Raines (Jacksonville) (4A) (5-0) – 68
12T New Smyrna Beach (6A) (5-0) – 68
14. Trinity Christian (Jacksonville) (3A) (4-1) – 50
15. Bartram Trail (St. Johns) (6A) (5-1) – 43
16. Yulee (4A) (5-1) – 29
17. Warner Christian (South Daytona) (2A) (5-1) – 25
18. Springstead (Spring Hill) (6A) (6-0) – 17
19. Keystone Heights (4A) (5-1) – 11
20. Ridgeview (Orange Park) (6A) (5-1) – 7
Also receiving votes – Baker County (Glen St. Mary) (5A) (4-1) – 4; Newberry (1A) (4-2) – 4; Ponte Vedra (5A) (4-1) – 4; Trinity Catholic (Ocala) (3A) (4-2) – 4; Chiefland (1A) (4-2) – 2; Atlantic (Port Orange) (5A) (4-1) – 1.
