Plant High Football Poised for Run at Fifth State Title

Despite a large graduating class, the Plant Panthers have reloaded and look as promising as ever this spring.

Does Plant High have what it takes to win another state title this year? Sound off in the comments section below. Plant High football coach Robert Weiner will say goodbye this fall to 39 seniors from last year's Class 8A state championship team. For most teams in the county, region, state or country that would spell the end of your program, at least for a few years. Not at Plant. No one reloads like the Plant Panthers. Despite graduating more than three dozen players, including three starting defensive backs, two starting linebackers, their top offensive tackle and both starting wide receivers from last year's team, the Panthers may not even skip a beat from last year. It's difficult to improve on a 14-1 season where you won the state …

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Tampa Bay Lightning Star Steven Stamkos to Receive Award of Excellence

Stamkos is excited to be the recipient of the 2012 Award of Excellence from Ronald McDonald House Charities of Tampa Bay.

Submittd by Ronald McDonald House Charities of Tampa Bay Inc: Tampa Bay Lightning star Steven Stamkos is excited to be the recipient of the 2012 Award of Excellence from Ronald McDonald House Charities of Tampa Bay based on Davis Islands. The award presentation takes place at the 13th annual Storybook Ball "The Cat in the Hat" on Saturday, May 19, at A La Carte Event Pavilion in Tampa. This award pays tribute to outstanding role models who give of their time to charitable causes. According to sources at the Tampa Bay Lightning, the 22-year-old Stamkos was excited to hear that he has been selected as the recipient of this prestigious award, which puts him in the esteemed company of former award winners Tony Dungy, General Norman Schwarzkopf…

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Pen Name Jane

Proud to Be a Sports Fan!

Continuing my education in sports during the spring cleaning season.

Last Friday my husband took my sons and I to a game at the Florida Auto Exchange Stadium in Dunedin. It made me realize how great the Tampa Bay area is to live in and raise children! Especially for a batball lover like I am. In case you missed my article in October, I am a new sports fan. I became one after I got to watch my husband’s favorite team, the St. Louis Red Cardinals, win the 2011 America’s Cup. As I explained in October, it took me a while to understand batball because sports vernacular is complicated, intricate and masculine. But I am a quick learner, so after a couple weeks in the fall and one game this spring, l think I can call myself a legitimate sports enthusiast. As I said before, I believe it is important for me to show …

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Plant High School Freshman Girls Win Florida State Championship for Rowing, Team Going to Nationals

Plant High School will participate in the National Scholastic Rowing Association Championship Regatta in New Jersey at the end of May.

Submitted by Ellen Fiss (proud parent of “Garrett”, Freshman Coxswain): Over 100 athletes represented H.B. Plant High School at the Florida State Championships for Rowing held April 28-29 in Sarasota. Congratulations to all the athletes and coaches including the Plant Girls Freshman 8, who brought home gold medals and two trophies - as the fastest Freshman Girls Team and the fastest Scholastic Team in the State of Florida. The Girls Freshman team was in control of the entire 1,500 meter Grand Final race besting second place finisher, Winter Park High School, by 14.9 seconds. The Girls Junior 8 won silver medals in their final race and the Girls Second Varsity 8 won bronze medals. In addition to these teams, the Girls First Varsity and the …

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Checking in with Danell Leyva, U.S. Olympic Hopeful

Leyva is hoping to compete for gold at the London 2012 Olympic Games this summer.

This article is sponsored by Citi. Competitive gymnastics is a family business for Danell Leyva of North Lauderdale. His mother was a competitive gymnast growing up in Cuba and his stepfather, Yin Alvarez, is his coach.  At only 20 years old, Danell is on the U.S. Olympic Committee List of 2012 “Athletes to Watch” as he potentially heads to the London 2012 Olympic Games. He is one of the most promising stars in U.S. gymnastics, having become the 2012 American Cup champion, 2011 U.S. national all-around gold medalist and the 2011 world champion on the parallel bars. He also was the U.S. all-around, parallel bars and horizontal bar champion and a member of the 2009 and 2010 World Championships Teams. Adding to his list of accomplishments, …

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Should Hillsborough Trade Cruise Ships for the Rays?

A county commissioner has floated an idea that could benefit both Hillsborough and Pinellas counties, according to the Tampa Bay Times: Send the Rays across the bay in return for Tampa's cruise ship business.

Here's an interesting plot twist in the ongoing conversation about where the Tampa Bay Rays' next home should be. Hillsborough County Commissioner Victor Crist threw out this idea, according to the Tampa Bay Times: Send the Rays to Hillsborough County in exchange for Tampa's cruise ship business. According to the Times, the newest cruise megaships are too large to squeeze under the Sunshine Skyway bridge. Hillsborough County is trying to figure out how to accommodate them, possibly with a new terminal outside Tampa. Meanwhile, the Rays have proposed to move out of Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, where they are currently contractually obligated to play through 2027. As reported in the Times, a coalition on the issue explored moving the …

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Holly Schwarzmann

9:12 am on Monday, May 7, 2012

I would be a season ticket holder in a heartbeat if I didn't have to drive all the way to St. Petersburg. I'm a huge Rays fan, but I can't make it to as many games as I would like because of the distance.   more ›

Could This Plant High Panther Be The Next Champion?

The Plant Panthers have a good bid for a state qualifier in throwing.

Plant senior thrower Michael Dvornik continues to set new standards for himself and for 4A District 6 as the 2012 champion in both shot and disc. His shot throw of 47 feet 5 inches carried through from preliminary throws. Dvornik fouled in all three attempts in the final. While unofficially, at least two of those throws were fifty feet. Then there's disc. Dvornik admits he prefers the disc to shot. "I think with shot you eventually hit a plateau and there's only so much you can improve on," said Dvornik. "With disc there's so many things you can do, you can add feet week to week." Dvornik has done just last through out 2012. Back in March, at the American Division Meet, he won disc with a 140 foot 9 inch throw. He won shot, too, with a 43 …

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Photo: Robinson High Golf Tournament Fundraiser

Robinson High hosted its 10th annual golf tournament fundraiser on April 15.

Robinson High hosted its 10th annual golf tournament fundraiser at MacDill Air Force Base's south course, Bay Palms, on Sunday, April 15. The tournament has raised more than $100,000 since it began. This year's event raised $9,000, according to DePue, head football coach at Robinson High. DePue said that the event had a "great turnout" and that "local support was outstanding." Many former Robinson athletes and graduates attended and sponsored the event, including Bill Futch, vice president at BrightHouse and Rich Renninger, vice president at Outback. DePue said that some folks flew in from Hawaii and Maine to attend the event.

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Help Robinson High Girls Basketball Win New Uniforms

The Lady Knights are finalists in an online contest by Allen Sportswear that will provide a complete uniform sponsorship to the winning team.

The Robinson High girls basketball team is in the running to win some sweet new uniforms — but it needs your help. The team is a finalist in the Allen Sportswear "Dress the Champions" contest, which will provide a complete sponsorship for new home and away uniforms, a $50,000 value, to a winning squad in five different high school sports. Robinson was selected as a finalist after school parent Ari Fitzgerald submitted an essay for the central Florida company's contest. In it, Fitzgerald wrote about "a team that has risen above the obstacles of relative obscurity, lack of financial resources, and tremendous sadness to post its best season the school has seen since 1996." Robinson junior Kiara Brito, 16, a member of the team, was shot and …

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Alessandra Da Pra

10:57 pm on Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Chek out this website: http://www.maxpreps.com/high-schools/robinson-knights-%28tampa,fl%29/home.htm   more ›