Fairwinds Foundation, a nonprofit organization 501(c)(3) that serves as the philanthropic arm of Fairwinds Credit Union, has announced the recipients of its 2022 grants for more than $250,000, improving the financial well-being of Central Floridians. Twelve Central Florida organizations, including two in Volusia County, were named as recipients.
The two in Volusia County are FUTURES Foundation for Volusia County Schools and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Volusia/Flagler Counties.
FUTURES Foundation received a $5,000 grant to support the “Your Financial Success!” high-school program. The program is offered through the school system’s economics course that teaches students financial literacy concepts, terms and processes that relate to personal finance and the economy. The program also exposes students to college and career opportunities related to finance and banking through guest speakers from Fairwinds Credit Union. FUTURES Foundation anticipates the program will impact approximately 2,500 high-school students.
The Boys & Girls Club of Volusia/Flagler Counties received a $20,000 grant. The funding from this partnership will be utilized to provide capacity for local clubs to run Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) financial-literacy programming and provide training opportunities for club staff to implement and facilitate programming relevant to each club’s needs. BGCA’s partnership with Fairwinds Foundation can help address the root causes that can limit financial success and hinder possibilities for club youth.
Spring Holiday begins Monday, March 14, with students returning to the classroom Monday, March 21.
DeLand High School athletics
The DeLand High School Bulldog track team competed in the East Coast Classic Invitational Track Meet at Flagler Palm Coast High School in Bunnell. The Bulldogs placed 12th out of 18 teams competing. One of the Bulldogs’ highlights was senior Kevar Williams taking first place in the 200 meters by outrunning more than 90 other athletes and achieving a 22.17 clocking.
Other highlights included DeLand senior Ian York placing third in the triple jump with a 41-foot-2.5-inch effort; freshman Avian Edwards-Pla placing fourth in the 100 meters at 11.24; and senior Fabian McKnight having two top-eight finishes, as he placed sixth in the 300 intermediate hurdles at 43/14 and seventh in the 110-meter high hurdles at 16.87.
Also, the DHS 4X400 relay squad finished seventh with a 3:36.7 timing.
The Bulldog weightlifters placed second at a meet at Spruce Creek High School. Those taking firsts were Lane Wishart and Jaycee Kane, while Colin Montero-Blushiy gained a second. Those in third were Christian Moller, Reed Wilgers, Isaiah Steitz, Jayden Lewis, Tripp Koshiol and Dyllon Kimsey.
The DeLand baseball team won three by downing Viera, 4-2, Seabreeze, 7-0, and Spruce Creek, 2-1, while the Lady Bulldog softball team stopped Ocala Trinity Catholic, 10-4, and Seven River Christian, 11-1, while losing to East Bay, 8-4.
The DeLand High sports calendar places the softball team at Flagler Palm Coast at 4:30 p.m. Friday, March 11, and the track team goes to Spruce Creek at 8 a.m. Saturday, March 12.
During Spring Holiday, the Bulldog baseball team will be competing in the Spring Baseball Tournament at Sanford. Game times and dates have not been scheduled at this writing, but the tournament takes place March 14-18.
On Saturday, March 19, the Bulldog track team travels to partake in the Bob Hayes Invitational Track and Field Meet in Jacksonville at 8 a.m.
Pine Ridge High School
The Panther boys’ basketball team from Pine Ridge High School in Deltona was defeated in the semifinal round of the FHSAA regional tournament by Lake Highland Prep of Orlando, 69-42. The Panthers closed out the season with a 19-8 record.
Deltona High School developmental track meet
The opening meet of the season for many of the local track teams took place at Deltona High School. The eight-school meet found Seabreeze winning the boys’ division, with DeLand placing second, Deltona third, Pine Ridge fourth, Orange City University fifth, and Deltona Trinity Christian seventh. The girls’ division was also won by Seabreeze, with Orange City University second, DeLand third, Pine Ridge fourth, Deltona Trinity fifth and Deltona seventh.
The DeLand Bulldogs won eight events: Fabian McKnight won the 110 hurdles at 16.66, Avian Edwards-Pla the 100 at 10.88, Magdalena Schricker the 1,600 at 5:48.42, Kevar Williams the 400 at 49.26, Ethan Myrick the 800 at 2:06.03, Shamia Allen the long jump at 17 feet 2.25 inches, and Ian York the triple jump at 39 feet 11.25 inches and the javelin at 137 feet 6 inches.
Nyrania Barr-Miller won three events for the Orange City University Lady Titans, claiming first place in the 100 at 133.65, in the 200 at 27.65, and the high jump with a 4-foot-6-inch effort.
The Deltona team gained three first-place finishes: Alexander Anglero won the high jump for boys at 5 feet 5.25 inches; Tyree Weatherspoon won the long jump at 20 feet 9.25 inches; and Deltona High took first place in the 4X8 boys’ relay at 9:18.02.
Stetson University
Graciela (Chela) Dufour will be Stetson University’s associate vice president for human resources and organizational development. Dufour arrives with a wealth of knowledge, and has been a respected leader in the human resources field for more than 20 years, with a specific focus in higher education. She comes from Lewis University in Illinois.
Stetson University Athletics
Stetson University freshman Alyssa Hargrove has been named ASUN Freshman of the Week for the third time this basketball season. During the week in which she was honored, Hargrove averaged 15.5 points per game and 3.5 rebounds per game, and made 55 percent of her field-goal attempts.
The Lady Hatter basketball team won two games during this writing period by defeating Kennesaw State, 75-64, and North Florida, 59-47. In the Kennesaw State game, Yazz Wazeerud-Din scored 19 points and Jamiya Turner added 15 points while collecting 11 rebounds. Mali Morgan-Elliott made 15 points, and Hargrove contributed 12. In the North Florida game, Wazeerud-Din led the scoring with 18 points.
The Hatter men’s basketball team played two very close games, but came up on the short end of the score against Kennesaw State and North Florida. The final score in the Kennesaw State game was 75-71, with Chase Johnston scoring 23 points, Wheza Panzo finishing with 19 points, and Stephan Swenson getting 15. The North Florida game went into overtime after the Hatters knotted the score at 56. The Ospreys won the game, 74-69, with Johnston notching 25 points, and Christiaan Jones scoring 18 points and grabbing 12 rebounds.
The Stetson baseball team outscored Manhattan, 6-4, with Cameron Hill getting a triple. The Hatters next lost to the University of Florida, 8-1, and Columbia, 8-3, before bouncing back with a win over Columbia, 12-8.
In the first Columbia game, Anthony DeFabbia had a triple, while in the second game he collected two doubles.
The Lady Hatter softball team picked up four wins out of six games. The Stetson squad defeated Hofstra, 4-0, and Monmouth, 4-1, then lost to Harvard, 9-1, and Marist, 3-2, but recovered with wins over Rhode Island, 7-0, and Harvard, 6-5.
In the second Harvard game, Evette Morgan hit a home run with three RBIs in the bottom of the seventh inning to win the game.
The Lady Hatter beach volleyball team played host to the Stetson Spring Fling and achieved four victories. They stopped the College of Charleston, 5-0, then 20th-ranked Florida Gulf Coast, 4-1, followed by a 5-0 win over Mercer and a 4-1 win over 18th-ranked South Carolina.
The Stetson home sports calendar finds Friday, March 11, very busy, as the baseball team greets Florida A&M at 6:30 p.m., the rowing team hosts Embry-Riddle, the men’s tennis team plays at UCF at 5 p.m., and the men’s golf team competes at the Sacred Heart Spring Invitational played at LPGA in Daytona Beach.
On Saturday, March 12, the Stetson beach volleyball team plays Tampa at 8 a.m. and Florida Atlantic at noon. That same day, the Stetson baseball team faces Florida A&M at 6:30 p.m.
On Sunday, March 13, the Stetson beach volleyball team greets FSU at 8 a.m. and Southern California at 1 p.m.; the Lady Hatter lacrosse team hosts Long Island University at noon; the Stetson tennis squad plays Nebraska Omaha at 1 p.m.; and the Hatter baseball team faces Florida A&M at 1 p.m.
On Tuesday, March 15, the Stetson lacrosse players meet Monmouth at noon; the Lady Hatter softball team greets the University of Florida at 6 p.m.; and the Hatter baseball team hosts Maine at 6:30 p.m. The baseball team plays Maine again at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 16.
The Florida Gulf Coast baseball team comes to town for games against the Hatters at 6:30 p.m. Friday, March 18, and Saturday, March 19, and at 1 p.m. Sunday, March 20.
On Saturday, March 19, the Stetson lacrosse team hosts Gardner-Webb at noon, and, that same day, the Stetson rowing team meets Jacksonville University on the water.
On Sunday, March 20, the Stetson women’s tennis team faces North Florida at 11 a.m., and the Stetson men’s tennis team plays North Florida at 3 p.m. that same day.
College honors
Hiram College men’s basketball senior Brodgie Gordon, of DeLand, was named Honorable Mention All-North Coast Athletic Conference. This season, Gordon appeared in 25 games, making 23 starts, averaging 14.4 points, 3.4 assists and 3.2 rebounds per game, and shooting 40.9 percent from the field and 76.8 percent from the free-throw line.
— Send school news to Tony Tussing via email: at flacoach43@hotmail.com.
