Class Notes: Free sports physicals for student-athletes offered on June 2-4

Volusia County Schools and AdventHealth have announced that free sports physicals will be offered on three days in June to those who intend to participate in school athletics during the 2022-23 school year. This offer gives the student-athlete a pre-participation sports physical and an ECG screening.

These exams will be given in the Daytona International Speedway Rolex 24 Lounge.

No student-athlete will be allowed to receive a physical without appropriate signed consent forms. Parent/guardian signatures will be required for minors.

The free sports physicals by AdventHealth will be 5-9 p.m. Thursday, June 2, and Friday, June 3, and 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday, June 4.

These free exams are made available to all Volusia County public-school student-athletes in grades six through 12, including student-athletes, ROTC, band members, firefighting-academy students and others. As of June 1, ECG screenings are required to participate in sports in Volusia County schools.

Those seeking the exams need to create a reservation and have several required forms filled out, with parent/guardian and student signatures. Go to www.vcsedu.org, and look under Community Information Services for required paperwork for “AdventHealth Free Physicals,” or visit your athletic director’s office.

FUTURES Foundation for Volusia County Schools has announced its 2022 First Year Teacher Award recipients during FUTURES’ annual recognition celebration at the Museum of Arts & Sciences in Daytona Beach.

Dayeashia Viel, a second-grade teacher at Palm Terrace Elementary School in Daytona Beach, received the elementary-level First Year Teacher Award, while Shannon Tucker, an ESE teacher at Silver Sands Middle School in Port Orange, received the secondary-level First Year Teacher Award.

This year’s reception was co-sponsored by FUTURES Foundation and Volusia United Educators (VUE).

The elementary-school nominees from West Volusia were Patricia Clunis of Blue Lake Elementary in DeLand; Andrew Fick, Citrus Grove Elementary in DeLand; Jordan Shasteen, DeBary Elementary; Alexis Richardson, Discovery Elementary in Deltona; Dashia R. Haws, Starke Elementary in DeLand; Rowyn Willis, Enterprise Elementary; Mayra Lara-Cotto, Forest Lake Elementary in Deltona; Hannah Pasch, Freedom Elementary in DeLand; Kristi Dalquest, George Marks Elementary in DeLand; Melanie Scibilia, McInnis Elementary in DeLeon Springs; Hailey Whitten-Connolly, Manatee Cove Elementary in Orange City; Yvonne Clark, Orange City Elementary; Claudio Paulino, Pierson Elementary; Elizabeth Hill, Pride Elementary in Deltona; Amelia VanWinkle, Spirit Elementary in Deltona; Kiersten Beckford, Sunrise Elementary in Deltona; Katrina Daniel, Timbercrest Elementary in Deltona; Jessica Richardson, Volusia Pines Elementary in Lake Helen; and Stephanie Wolford, Woodward Avenue Elementary in DeLand.

The secondary-school nominees from West Volusia were Stacy Rizzo of DeLand High; Austin Halterman, DeLand Middle; Taylor Grace, Deltona High; Jenifer Bodine, Deltona Middle; Jeffrey Garcia, Galaxy Middle in Deltona; Sarah Strickland, Pine Ridge High in Deltona; Jason Gussow, River Springs Middle in Orange City; Cassandra G. Dotson, Southwestern Middle in DeLand; S. Shea Smith-Osterkamp, Taylor Middle-High in Pierson; and Kaila Cain, University High in Orange City.

DeLand Football Inc. is presenting the DeLand Bulldog Football 2022 Golf Tournament on Saturday, June 18, at the LPGA International golf course, 1000 Champions Drive in Daytona Beach. The shotgun start will be at 8 a.m.

Other contests involved with the tournament include hole-in-one, closest to the pin, and longest drive, and there will be complimentary food and beverages.

This tournament supports the DeLand High School Bulldog football program.

The cost for one player is $125, while the foursome registration fee is $500.

Online registration can be completed at www.delandfootball.org, or call Jimmy Sieg at 386-804-0881 for more information.

The tournament is also seeking Green and Gold Sponsors, which start with $100-hole sponsorships and go up five different levels of sponsorship. Contact Sieg about sponsorship.

The DeBary youth football team has honored one of their teammates, who is currently undergoing treatment for leukemia. The “Flamethrowers” unveiled a tribute to teammate Bode Wyatt at a football game played at Rob Sullivan Park in DeBary. Bode’s teammates added the words “Bode Strong” to the back of their jerseys.

Halfway through the season, 7-year-old Bode had to cut his season short after being diagnosed with leukemia. Bode’s father was also a part of the Flamethrowers, coaching during the first half of the season.

In honor of Bode, the entire team of second- and third-graders, along with the two coaches, wore jerseys with the orange leukemia ribbon and Bode’s name written on the back. Although Bode will not be able to finish this season with his teammates, the boys and girls who shared the football field with him earlier this year will continue to remember Bode and raise awareness for those battling leukemia.

Bode’s family set up a GoFundMe account to help raise money during this treatment. To help support Bode, visit https://gofundme.com/f/help-hulk-smash-leukemia?qid=339faf34dcdb8891af02d7e11db8a425.

Volusia County Schools students and teachers will not be in class Monday, May 30, Memorial Day.

The last day of school for students will be Friday, June 3, and the last day for teachers will be Tuesday, June 7.

DeLand High School

A number of DeLand High School students took first place in the Volusia County World Languages Festival. These included Rayne Torres and Zaily Ortiz, of teacher Kenny Valcarcel’s Spanish classes; Kaitlyn Anderson, Shreya Chadna, Kensey Derstine, Ella Gannon and Kalista Wagers, of teacher Zachary Prather’s Spanish classes; and Casey Kim, Christina Cebollero, Jamil Cunningham, Sofia Delgado, Jacob Erthal, Santiago Fuentes, Lesli Guzman, Katelynn Hatfield, Nanci Jimenez, Ashlyn Turner and Marc Varada, of teacher Marivel Vega’s Spanish classes.

It has been noted that an incorrect date for DeLand High School’s Senior Awards Assembly was given in a previous column. The correct time, date and location are 7 p.m. Tuesday, May 24, at Spec Martin Memorial Stadium in DeLand.

DeLand High School Athletics

Former DeLand High School athlete Raziel Smith is now a student-athlete at Southeastern University in Lakeland, for whom Smith plays football. The Southeastern team is vying for the national championship in the NAIA program.

DeLand High soccer player Diego Tate has signed to continue his education and soccer-playing days with Oglethorpe University in Atlanta. Tate is an East Coast Classic All-Star and was selected to the FACA All-State and Academic All-State teams after playing four years with the DeLand High School Bulldogs.

The DeLand High Athletic Department has issued a tentative football schedule for the 2022 season, under the direction of head coach Rick Darlington. The Fall Classic game will be played Friday, Aug. 19, at home in Spec Martin Memorial Stadium against Orlando Boone High School.

The regular season starts Aug. 26 with the DeLand High Bulldogs taking a road trip to Mainland, followed by a home game with Neptune Beach Fletcher on Sept. 2.

This will be followed by a trip to Lake City Columbia Sept. 9, and then a game Sept. 23 at Seabreeze.

Spruce Creek comes to DeLand Sept. 30, and Deltona plays in DeLand Oct. 7. This will be followed by Sanford Seminole playing in DeLand Oct. 14.

DeLand High’s Homecoming is Oct. 21, when the Bulldogs will take on University High of Orange City.

Next, DeLand has a road trip to New Smyrna Beach High on Oct. 28. The Bulldogs’ final home game and last regular-season game will be played Nov. 4 against Flagler Palm Coast. That’s also Senior Night for DeLand High.

Two DeLand High track athletes have qualified to participate in the Nike Outdoor Nationals, to be held June 16-19 in Eugene, Oregon: senior Kevar Williams and freshman Avian Edwards-Pla. This is an expensive venture, so a GoFundMe account has been created. If you’d like to donate to this cause, go to https://gofund.me/316c1903.

The DeLand High cross-country program will have an informational meeting 6:30-7 p.m. Monday, May 23, in the DeLand High Auditorium. This meeting is for eighth-grade student-athletes and their parents, and also for any other athletes (and their parents) who are new to the Bulldog team. Coaches Jim Lowenstein and Chris Madzik will be present.

Pine Ridge High School

The end of the school year is approaching, and students at Pine Ridge High School in Deltona need to return their laptop computers. The deadline was May 15 for freshmen, and the deadlines for sophomores and juniors are Thursday, May 26, and Friday, May 27, respectively.

Taylor Middle-High School

The School Advisory Council at Taylor Middle-High School in Pierson will meet at 4 p.m. Tuesday, May 31, in Room 1-120.

FHSAA Softball District Tournaments

Three West Volusia high-school softball teams have earned the right to advance into regional play by winning their FHSAA district tournament:

Deltona High defeated Seabreeze, 21-0, and Mainland, 10-1, to advance. University High in Orange City moved on by stopping Ocala Forest, 10-0, Winter Springs, 2-0, and Spruce Creek, 3-1. Taylor Middle-High in Pierson advanced by downing Fort Meade, 10- 0, and Williston, 7-6.

West Port ended DeLand High’s season, 10-0, retiring the Lady Bulldogs with a 5-18 mark. Pine Ridge in Deltona was eliminated by Mainland, 4-3, with a 13-6 season mark.

FHSAA Baseball District Tournaments

The Orange City University High School Titans were the only West Volusia baseball team to advance to regional FHSAA elimination. The Titans defeated Lyman, 11-1, Spruce Creek, 4-3, and Lake Howell, 8-6, to advance.

DeLand High won their first tourney game over West Port, 6-4, but the Bulldogs were retired by Apopka, 11-1, to close the season with a 15- 10 mark.

Deltona defeated Pine Ridge of Deltona, 5-0, but was topped by Bishop Moore, 3-2, to close the season with a 14-11-1 record, and Pine Ridge closed out the 2022 season at 13-9-1.

The Deltona Trinity Christian Academy Eagles won their first tournament game over Central Florida Christian Academy, 15-0, but were stopped by Legacy Charter, 16-3, to end the Eagles’ season with a 10-12 record.

Taylor Middle-High of Pierson lost its first tournament game to Wildwood, 10- 9, to close out the year with a 7-15-1 mark.

FHSAA regional track meets

Andreas Schulz of Orange City University High School automatically advanced to the FHSAA state track championships. Schulz won the ambulatory shot put with a 28-foot- 11.5-inch effort, the javelin with a 68-foot-5-inch toss, a 23.80 time in the 200, and an 800-meter run of 2:27.89.

Those with a possibility of being picked in the top-10 slots in their event include Chandler Mitzo of Deltona High in the javelin with a 153-foot effort, Emily Lamb of DeLand High in the javelin with a 106-foot-5-inch heave, and Avian Edwards- Pla of DeLand High in the 100 with a 10.79 run.

The following athletes scored points for their teams in regional competition, placing them in the top 8 out of 16 competitors: Raylynn Adcock for Deltona Trinity Christian Academy; Chandler Mitzo for Deltona High; Marc Dessources, Dezire Campbell, Chelsea Hunt and Janiah Massey for Pine Ridge High in Deltona; Shamia Allen, Gabe Snyder, Emily Lamb and Avian Edwards-Pla for DeLand High; and Corey Johnson for Orange City University High.

Stetson University

Stetson University ha s announced that Homecoming will be Oct. 28-30, when Stetson will welcome back alumni after limiting Homecoming activities for the past two years.

Stetson University Athletics

The Stetson University Hatter baseball team shut out FSU, 6-0, with Andrew Estrella hitting a home run with three RBIs, and Yohann Dessureault tripled. The Hatters were downed by North Florida, 8-4, and 4-1; Cameron Hill tripled in the first North Florida game, with two RBIs.

The Stetson beach volleyball team lost to No. 2 in the NCAA tournament, 3-2, to close the season with a 23-17 mark.

The Stetson Lady Hatter tennis team earned its highest D1 Women’s ITA Collegiate Tennis National Team Ranking of 61. The Lady Hatters lost to No. 9 University of Miami, 4-0, to finish their 2022 season.

Former Hatter baseball player Logan Gilbert, who now pitches for the Seattle Mariners, was named by Major League Baseball as the AL Pitcher of the Month for April.

The Lady Hatters softball team lost to Liberty, 4-0 and 8-0, before defeating the hosts, 7-6. Lizzie Shubert hit two home runs, with one of those being a grand slam, which led her to having six RBIs.

College honors

Alicia Pryce, of DeLand, was recently initiated into The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, the nation’s oldest and most selective all-discipline collegiate honor society. Pryce was initiated at the University of West Florida.

— Send school news to Tony Tussing via email: at flacoach43@hotmail.com.