Gainesville – The No. 1 team in the softball Prep Zone Power Poll remained the same.
Columbia (Lake City) went 4-0 last week, including at 16-0 win over previous No. 13 Suwannee (Live Oak) and held on to the top spot. The Tigers (14-0) improved from three first place votes from last week’s first softball poll of the season to four this week.
PK Yonge (Gainesville) is ranked second. The Blue Wave (14-0) received three first place votes and remained a close second to Columbia after a 3-0 week that included a 6-4 win over district rival Santa Fe and two shutout victories over another district opponent, Fort White.
Ponte Vedra (16-0) remained in third after a 5-0 week that included four wins at the South Florida Slam Fest at Palmetto Bay in Miami and a win over district foe and previously fourth-ranked Creekside (St. Johns) Nature Coast (Brooksville) and Baker County (Glen St. Mary) are in a tie for fourth after both teams also went undefeated last week. Forest (Ocala) lost to previous No. 19 Belleview and is now in a tie for sixth with Bradford (Starke). The Tornadoes were off last week for Spring Break.
Creekside dropped games to Ponte Vedra and Atlantic Coast (Jacksonville) and dropped from fourth to eighth. East Ridge (Clermont) and undefeated Dixie County (Cross City) round out the top ten.
The second ten is led by Bartram Trail (St. Johns), who fell one spot from 10th to 11th after a loss to St. Augustine. The biggest movers up this week include Hernando (Brooksville), who moved up four spots from 16th to 12th after going 3-0 last week, and Belleview, who moved up from No. 19 to No. 14 after a 3-0 week that included the win over Forest. Mandarin (Jacksonville) moves into the poll this week at #20 replacing Bishop Snyder (Jacksonville), who dropped from #18 to out of the rankings after a 1-3 week.
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 – 2014 Softball Poll #2
(School, followed by first-place votes, classification, record through March 17 and total voting points)
1. Columbia (4) (6A) (14-0) – 137
2. PK Yonge (Gainesville) (3) (4A) (14-0) – 133
3. Ponte Vedra (5A) (16-0) – 129
T-4. Baker County (Glen St. Mary) (5A) (12-1) – 112
T-4. Nature Coast (Brooksville) (5A) (12-0) – 112
T-6. Forest (Ocala) (6A) (13-1) – 98
T-6. Bradford (Starke) (4A) (7-2) – 98
8. Creekside (St. Johns) (6A) (10-3) – 91
9. East Ridge (Clermont) (7A) (13-2) – 87
10. Dixie County (Cross City) (1A) (13-0) – 74
11. Bartram Trail (St. Johns) (6A) (10-3) – 66
12. Hernando (Brooksville) (5A) (11-1) – 60
13. Citrus (Inverness) (5A) (10-3) – 54
14. Belleview (5A) (9-2) – 51
15. Montverde Academy (4A) (10-3) – 46
16. Clay (Green Cove Springs) (5A) (10-4) – 34
17. Aucilla Christian (Monticello) (2A) (9-2) – 20
18. South Sumter (Bushnell) (4A) (7-1) – 18
19. Suwannee (Live Oak) (5A) (12-6) – 16
20. Mandarin (Jacksonville) (8A) (9-3) – 9
Also receiving votes:
Lafayette (Mayo) (1A) (12-6) – 9; Bishop Snyder (Jacksonville) (4A) (6-6) – 4; Chiefland (1A) (9-2) – 4; Mount Dora Bible (3A) (10-3) – 4; Oakleaf (Orange Park) (6A) (11-6) – 2; Santa Fe (Alachua) (4A) (11-6) – 2; Seven Rivers Christian (Lecanto) (2A) (8-2) – 1
