SHS GIRLS WIN STATE POLO
For the second time in three years, the Seminole High School girls water polo team (31-0) went unbeaten to win the 2026 FHSAA State Championship with an 8-4 victory over West Orange on Saturday.
The Fighting Seminoles came into the contest as the No. 1 ranked team in the country by MaxPreps, almost assuring the tribe of being named National Champions.
A full story and photos will appear in the May 6 Sanford Herald.
SOAP BOX DERBY
The City of Sanford Recreation Services Department and Central Florida Soap Box Derby 2025-2026 Rally/Derby Season will come to an end on Saturday with the running of the 37th All-American Soap Box Derby Local Race, that will decide the three individuals that will represent Sanford and the CFSBD at the 88th FirstEnergy All-American Soap Box Derby.
Check in will be at 7 a.m., with racing beginning at 8 a.m. and the event will consist of a Double Elimination race for each class.
Once again, the three division winners in Stock, Super Stock and Masters will earn a spot in the First Energy All-American Soap Box Derby at Derby Downs in Akron the week of July 11-through-July 18 and capped by the elimination runs on Saturday, July 18. The CFSBD will also be represented in Akron by several drivers in the All-American Rally Derby after earning enough points during the 2025-26 Rally Derby Season to qualify for the nationals.
Following the races, the group will move to Downtown Sanford and the Sanford Civic Center for a banquet and Awards Ceremony.
Everyone, especially interested non-racers, is invited to attend any of the family friendly events, free of charge, at the beautiful Mike Kirby Park facility located on the west side of Sanford at 2199 Oregon Avenue, north off of CR-46A (25th Street/H. E. Thomas Parkway) or east off of Rinehart Road, just south of the GreeneWay entry. The track is East of Bentley Elementary School.
For more information or to download a registration form, please check out the websites at www.AASBD.com or www.centralfloridasoapboxderby.com; Eric Griffin, [email protected], 407-353-6228, or call the City of Sanford Recreation Services Department at 407-688-5120. More information is also available at _ https://www.facebook.com/CentralFloridaSoapboxDerby/ _ especially photos and flyers.
UCF/NFL DRAFT
UCF football edge rusher Malachi Lawrence has become the fifth first-round pick in program history, as he was selected 23rd overall in the 2026 NFL Draft by the Dallas Cowboys. The pick makes him the highest drafted Knight on the defensive side of the ball.
A Knight for the entirety of his career, Lawrence becomes the 53rd NFL Draft pick from UCF, the 18th from UCF since 2017 and fifth during the Knights’ tenure in the Big 12 Conference. He’s the seventh defensive lineman in program history to be selected in the NFL Draft and the second since 2022.
Lawrence etched his name on UCF’s career sacks list, finishing 10th all-time with 20, including seven in 2025. He snagged a pair in back-to-back contests against West Virginia and Baylor.
Earning All-Big 12 First Team honors for his standout redshirt senior campaign, Lawrence tallied a career-best 11 tackles for loss and forced two fumbles. He totaled 72 career tackles, 47 of which were solo and 28 for a loss. He added five pass breakups, three forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.
Lawrence shone bright at the 2026 NFL Combine, ranking top 25 all-time for his position group out of over 2,000 performances. He tallied a 4.52 40-yard dash, a 10’10” broad jump and posted a 40” vertical, all elite measurements among defensive ends.
Quarterback Blake Bortles (Oviedo) remains the highest selected Knight in program history, going No. 3 in 2014. He’s followed by Quarterback Daunte Culpepper (11th, 1999), edge rusher Lawrence (23rd, 2026), wide receiver Breshad Perriman (26th, 2015) and cornerback Mike Hughes (30th, 2018).
Two of the last three defensive lineman drafted from UCF have been by the Cowboys, selecting Trysten Hill in 2019 while the San Francisco 49ers took Kalia Davis in 2022.
ORLANDO SPEEDWORLD
Coming up at Orlando Speed World Dragway:
* Today: Wheels Up Wednesday _ “All Welcome Test and Tune and Grudge Racing” with gates opening at 6 p.m. and racing from 6 p.m.-to-10:30 p.m.
* Thursday-thru-Sunday _ BRACKETAZO Para Papa VIII.
The Dragway information Hotline is at (407) 568-5522 and the website is at _ www.raceosw.com/dragway/.
SpeedWorld is located 17 miles east of Orlando in Bithlo at 19164 East Colonial Drive, between Orlando and Titusville on Highway 50 at the 520 Cocoa Cutoff.
SANFORD ADULT SOFTBALL
Here is the schedule for this week in the City of Sanford Parks and Recreation Department Adult Softball Spring League.
The Semi-Co-Ed/Fun League on Wednesday has Throwbacks vs. FedUp at 6:30 p.m.; Longhorns vs. The West End Trading Company at 7:30 p.m.; and Parkway Punishers vs. Bucks at 8:30 p.m. Pat's Liquor will have the Bye.
The Men’s League on Tuesday (May 5) will have playing the doubleheader against the Bokey Batters playing Venezolanos en Sanford at 6:30 p.m. and the Celery City Gamecocks facing The Handicapps at 7:30 p.m. The West End Trading Company will have a bye.
Everyone is invited to watch the games for free at Pinehurst Park on West 24th Street.
For more information contact Dominic Pascuzzo, City of Sanford Recreation Supervisor, at the City of Sanford Parks and Recreation Department at 407-688-5120, extension 5004; Fax _ 407-688-5121; facebook.com/SanfordFLCityGovt; instagram.com/cityofsanfordfl; visit the city website _ www.sanfordfl.gov _ or email: [email protected].
UCF BASEBALL
Fresh off a midweek victory at in-state foe Bethune-Cookman, the UCF baseball team was in Salt Lake City this past weekend for a Big 12 series at Utah.
The Black and Gold had won two of their last four games after taking one of three against Cincinnati last weekend and following that up with a 5-4 midweek victory at Bethune-Cookman in Daytona Beach on Tuesday. The Knights are currently receiving votes for this week’s USA TODAY Coaches Poll.
With UCF trailing by a run late in the game at B-CU on Tuesday (April 21), senior catcher Zak Skinner delivered a clutch go-ahead two-out two-run single to put the Knights on top. Senior Kevin Schoneboom then finished his third inning of scoreless relief in the bottom of the eighth, and fellow senior Kris Sosnowski came on and retired the Wildcats in order in the ninth to secure the win.
Senior right-hander Roman Kimball went a career-long 5.0 innings and allowed just two runs while also tying a season-high with four strikeouts. Schoneboom then earned the win after going a season-high 2.2 innings of hitless and scoreless relief to improve to 2-1 on the year. Sosnowski earned his team-leading third save after facing the minimum in the final inning.
Offensively, Skinner drove in a game-high two runs, while Andrew Williamson and John Smith III collected three hits apiece and drove in a run apiece. Javier Crespo also had a nice day at the plate by going 2-for-4 with a walk.
On Deck:
The Knights will be in Lakeland tonight (Wednesday) to face longtime rival Stetson in the Tigertown Collegiate Classic Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium at 6:30 p.m. and will return to John Euliano Park to host No. 23 Arizona State in an important Big 12 Conference series as the teams are tied for second in the league standings.
The series will run Friday to Sunday with games set for 6 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 1 p.m. on Sunday. All three games will air live will be on FM 96.9 The Game and ESPN+. Live stats will be available for each contest by visiting UCF.StatBroadcast.com.
ORLANDO CITY
Orlando City SC will be on the road for the Round of 16 of the 2026 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup tonight (Wednesday) against the New England Revolution at Centreville Bank Stadium at 7:30 p.m. on Paramount+.
In MLS play, the Lions (1-6-1, 4 points) fell to Houston Dynamo FC (3-4-0, 9 points) by a 1-0 score last Saturday (April 18) at Inter&Co Stadium. The result marked the first home loss in club history for the Lions against the Dynamo.
Goal Highlights:
* 75’ - Hector Herrera – HOU 1, ORL 0.
OCSC (2-6-1, 7 points) then defeated Charlotte FC (4-3-2, 14 points) 4-1 behind a Martín Ojeda brace on Wednesday (April 22) at Inter&Co Stadium.
Goal Highlights:
* 21’ - Luís Otávio (Zakaria Taifi) – ORL 1, CLT 0.
* 33’ - Morrison Agyemang (Pep Biel) – ORL 1, CLT 1.
* 49’ - Martín Ojeda (Justin Ellis, Tiago) – ORL 2, CLT 1.
* 61’ - Martín Ojeda – ORL 3, CLT 1.
* 87’ Ignacio Gomez (Iván Angulo) – ORL 4, CLT 1.
Orlando City SC (2-7-1, 7 points) fell 3-2 to D.C. United (3-4-3, 12 points) in its visit to Audi Field on Saturday night (April 25).
Goal Highlights:
* 10’ - Jackson Hopkins (Keisuke Kurokawa) – DC 1, ORL 0.
* 57’ - Justin Ellis – ORL 1, DC 1.
* 67’ - Tyrese Spicer (Adrián Marín, Robin Jansson) – ORL 2, DC 1.
* 84’ - Louis Munteanu (Nikola Markovic, Jared Stroud) - ORL2, DC 2.
* 90’ - Kye Rowles (Nikola Markovic) - DC 3, ORL 2.
Next Match:
Orlando City will continue a stretch of four consecutive road matches in Miami on Saturday at Nu Stadium. Kickoff on Apple TV and FS1 is set for 7 p.m.
For more information on Orlando City SC, visit OrlandoCitySC.com or follow us on X, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok.
UCF SOFTBALL
Led by another freshman arm in the circle, the No. 17 UCF softball team generated enough offense late to set yet another new program benchmark in its latest winning effort.
A pair of two-run frames in the bottom of the fifth and sixth innings proved enough for right-hander Tori Payne Wednesday (April 22) evening, as the Knights downed the visiting North Florida Ospreys, 4-1, at the UCF Softball Complex.
The team’s latest triumph marked the program’s 36th overall win of the season, surpassing the 2025 squad’s 35 for the most in a single season since UCF joined the Big 12 Conference prior to the 2024 slate.
The Black and Gold have eclipsed 30 victories in each of the last eight non-COVID-19-shortened seasons, and now sit just four wins shy of notching their first 40-win season since 2023 and the fourth 40-win campaign of head coach Cindy Ball-Malone’s tenure.
The Knights’ latest win also lifted the squad to an overall 6-0 mark against in-state opponents this season, with the program having bested Florida Atlantic, Florida A&M, FGCU, FIU, Stetson and now North Florida this spring.
UCF’s offensive corps broke through in the bottom of the fifth, ignited by a leadoff double off the right field wall by third baseman Coco Jaimes. An Ospreys error and a walk drawn by Aubrey Evans soon loaded the bases with one out for Knights left fielder Izzy Mertes, who came through for her squad with a go-ahead two-run single through the middle of the infield.
The Black and Gold then tacked on two more in the bottom of the sixth, courtesy of a sacrifice fly by Jaimes and a one-out RBI double off the bat of sophomore outfielder Zoe Calvez, representing the first two-bagger of her collegiate career.
Lena Elkins handled the game’s final two frames with a pair of scoreless innings to lock down her second save of the season and UCF’s seventh overall.
The team saw the latest byproduct of its historic offensive exploits this spring over the weekend series in going 2-1 against No. 24 Kansas, as the program broke its all-time single-season home run record with its 58th of the spring...sophomore utility Kendall Yarnell provided the record-breaking long ball in dramatic fashion, clubbing a game-winning, walk-off three-run home run out to dead center field to lift the Knights to their 6-3, eight-inning victory in the series-opener, representing the first walk-off home run of her career and her second career game-winning home run against the Jayhawks...the Black and Gold would later add two more home runs in game two of the series, one by senior shortstop Aubrey Evans and another by Yarnell to push UCF to the 60-home run mark in a single season for the first time in program history.
Up Next:
UCF faced powerful Florida (No. 5) in home-and-home games last weekend and will close out the Regular Season with trip to Ames, Iowas, to face Iowa State at Cyclone Sports Complex on Friday (5 p.m.), Saturday (2 p.m.) and Sunday (noon). All of the games will be on ESPN+.
ORLANDO PRIDE
The Orlando Pride (2-2-2, 8 points) fell 3-2 to Racing Louisville FC (1-3-1, 4 points) in their visit to Lynn Family Stadium on Friday night.
Goal Highlights:
* 19’ - Lauren Milliet (Kayla Fischer) – LOU 1, ORL 0.
* 45+6’ - Barbra Banda (Angelina) – LOU 1, ORL 1.
* 47’ - Sarah Weber (Katie O’Kane) – LOU 2, ORL 1.
* 50’ - Lauren Milliet (Emma Sears) – LOU 3, ORL 1.
* 90+3’ - Barbra Banda (Hannah Anderson) - LOU 3, ORL 2.
Next Match:
The Pride will return home to Inter&Co Stadium to face off against the Washington Spirit on Saturday. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. on ION.
NEW SMYRNA SPEEDWAY
New Smyrna Speedway will be hosting the “Mayday Meltdown Pro Late Model 60” this Saturday.
In addition to the Hoosier Pro Late Models, also on the card will be the Sportsman, E-Mod, Midatlantic Marketing 602 Tour Type Modifieds and Stephen Smith Inc.com Bomber B divisions.
Ticket booths and grandstand gates open at 4 p.m. Heat Races are at 6 p.m., followed by Feature Racing at 7:30 p.m.
The track is located at the corner of SR. 44 and CR 415, between New Smyrna, DeLand and Daytona.
For information on New Smyrna Speedway, visit _ www.newsmyrnaspeedway.org _ or call the track office at 386-427-4129.
VALKYRIES HIT THE ROAD
It was a déjà vu performance for the Orlando Valkyries against the San Diego Mojo, as for the second straight match Orlando lost in straight sets, 3-0 (25-17, 25-19 and 25-23) falling to a 10-14 record on the year
Coming into the Sunday (April 19) match, Orlando trailed San Diego by a game and a half for one of the final two spots in the Major League Volleyball playoffs, held in Frisco, Texas. San Diego, who started the season 1-6 and have reversed it to a 13-11 record, completely controlled the tempo from the opening set.
Notes:
* Hannah Maddux and Natalie Foster both led the Valkyries with 10 points.
* San Diego outblocked Orlando 12-3.
* Natalie Foster notched her 50th ace of the season.
* Zoe Weatherington (7) and Adanna Schad (4) both set new career highs in kills for the Valkyries this season.
Looking to get back on track and gain some momentum against the league’s top team, the Valkyries were unable to turn the tide against the Indy Ignite, falling in straight sets, 3-0 (25-20, 25-15 and 25-18) and dropping their fourth match in a row and on the verge of missing the playoffs.
Notes:
* The Valkyries were led by Zoe Weatherington with nine points.
* Adanna Schad came off the bench and grabbed four kills, hitting .273.
* The Valkyries have lost four in a row, the longest losing streak this season.
After a tough stretch that saw the Valkyries drop four straight matches, they responded in a big way last Saturday night, ending their four-match losing streak and snapping Grand Rapids’ five-match win streak in five sets (25-20, 20-25, 23-25, 25-23 and 15-11).
Notes:
* Bre Kelley set a career-high in points (14) and blocks (6).
* Brittany Abercrombie led all-scorers with 25 points.
* Orlando snapped Grand Rapids’ five match win streak, while also snapping a four-match losing streak of their own.
Up Next:
The Valkyries (11-15) will host the Atlanta Vibe (9-16) for their final home game at Addition Financial Arena on Friday at 7 p.m. on Scripps Sports Network and close out the Regular Season with a road match in Texas on Sunday (May 3) against the Dallas Pulse at Comerica Center at 4 p.m. on VICEtv.
SANFORD ADULT VOLLEYBALL
Here is the schedule in the City of Sanford Parks and Recreation Department Adult Spring Volleyball Season that plays on Sunday’s at the Westside Community Center, located at 919 South Persimmon Avenue across from Crooms Academy.
In the B-Recreation Division _ at 2 p.m., Big Tippers vs. Island Time; 2:50 p.m., Gus Bus vs. Big Tippers; 3:40 p.m., Benchwarmers vs. Derby Smashers; 4:30 p.m., Up In The Air vs. Ovo.
In the A-Competitive Division _ at 5:20 p.m., Iron Wall vs. Ball Busters; 6:10 p.m., Ringers vs. Iron Wall; 7 p.m., Set It Off vs. Setters Alliance; 7:50 p.m., Sand & Sweat vs. Volley Vibes.
Everyone is invited to watch the games for free.
