Bishop Kenny (Jacksonville) still No. 1 heading into regional play
GAINESVILLE – The Bishop Kenny (Jacksonville) girls basketball team is on a mission.
After four straight FHSAA state semifinal appearances, they are looking to finish the task this year.
Last week, the Crusaders (26-1) ran their win streak to 23 game by defeating No. 10 Bolles (Jacksonville), 45-31, to win the Class 4A-District 4 title. That kept them on top of the all-classification regional rankings.
Bishop Kenny, which is ranked 6th overall in Florida by MaxPreps, claimed all 10 first-place votes to remain No. 1 in The Prep Zone Power Poll.
As the No. 1 seed in 4A-Region 1, the Crusaders will No. 8 West Florida in a regional quarterfinal.
Oakleaf (Orange Park) remained No. 2.
The Knights (23-2) won the 6A-District 3 championship with a dominating 56-21 win against previous No. 10 Ponte Vedra in the district championship game.
They are ranked 24th overall in Florida and will be the No. 1 seed in 6A-Region 1 and will host No. 8 seed Pace.
Class 7A-District 2 champion Spruce Creek (Port Orange), which is 11th overall, remained third. The Hawks (21-5) are the No. 1 seed in 7A-Region 1 and will host No. 8 seed Mandarin (Jacksonville), which is receiving votes in this week’s poll.
Class 1A No. 1 Wildwood (21-1), which hasn’t lost since a 62-44 setback at No. 15 Gainesville High on Dec. 16, and 5A Ridgeview (Orange Park) (20-7) round out the top five.
St. Johns Country Day (Orange Park) leads off the second five at No. 6.
The Class 2A-District 3 champions, who defeated No. 16 University Christian (Jacksonville) in the title game, are 16-5. The Spartans are the No. 1 seed in 2A-Region 1 and will host No. 8 seed St. Joseph Academy (St. Augustine).
Nease (Ponte Vedra), Providence (Jacksonville), Mainland (Daytona Beach) and Bolles round out the top 10.
There are three teams in the Mainstreet Daily News coverage area who are ranked in the top 20.
P.K. Yonge (14-3) is ranked 12th. The Lady Blue Wave won the Class 3A-District 2 titile with a 51-47 win against previous No. 19 Trinity Catholic (Ocala). They are the No. 2 seed in Class 3A-Region 1 and will host No. 7 seed Trinity Christian Academy (Jacksonville).
Gainesville moved up five spots to No. 15 after winning the 6A-District 2 title. The Lady Hurricanes (14-7), who defeated Chiles (Tallahassee), 52-37, in the title game are the No. 3 seed in 6A-Region 1 and will host No. 6 seed Niceville.
Hawthorne moved into the rankings at No. 20 after winning the 1A-District 6 title with a 64-48 win against Newberry in the championship game. The Hornets (11-5) are the No. 1 seed in 1A-Region 3 and will host No. 4 seed Madison County.
The Prep Zone Power Poll ranks the top 20 high school football, girls basketball, boys basketball, softball & baseball 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, Madison, Marion, Nassau, Putnam, Sumter, St. Johns, Suwannee, Taylor, Union & Volusia counties). It is voted on weekly by sportswriters and sportscasters and it is powered by Anytime Fitness of Gainesville.
THE PREP ZONE POWER POLL – 2022-23 GIRLS BASKETBALL POLL #6
(School, followed by classification, first-place votes, current record, and total voting points)
1. Bishop Kenny (Jacksonville) (4A) (10) (26-1) – 200
2. Oakleaf (Orange Park) (6A) (23-2) – 188
3. Spruce Creek (Port Orange) (7A) (21-5) – 181
4. Wildwood (1A) (21-1) – 161
5. Ridgeview (Orange Park) (5A) (20-7) – 146
6. St. John’s Country Day (Orange Park) (2A) (16-5) – 137
7. Nease (Ponte Vedra) (6A) (20-6) – 135
8. Providence (Jacksonville) (3A) (19-5) – 127
9. Mainland (Daytona Beach) (5A) (16-8) – 112
10. Bolles (Jacksonville) (4A) (18-9) – 107
11. Ponte Vedra (6A) (15-9) – 106
12. P.K. Yonge (Gainesville) (3A) (14-3) – 93
13. Ribault (Jacksonville) (4A) (14-7) – 81
14. Lake Minneola (6A) (19-5) – 74
15. Gainesville (6A) (14-7) – 52
16. University Christian (Jacksonville) (2A) (12-5) – 42
17. Andrew Jackson (Jacksonville) (4A) (17-10) – 41
18. West Port (Ocala) (7A) (19-6) – 27
19. North Florida Educational Institute (Jacksonville) (2A) (14-8) – 26
20. Hawthorne (1A) (11-5) – 21
Also receiving votes: St. Augustine (5A) (18-7) – 16; Mount Dora Christian Academy (2A) (20-6) – 10; Mandarin (Jacksonville) (7A) (14-9) – 9; Trinity Catholic (Ocala) (3A) (16-10) – 8.