Sports & Recreation: Prep notebook

Athletes shine on football signing day

BRANDON -- One school may have made the most noise, but numerous others also made themselves heard. National signing day came and went Feb. 5, and Armwood, Brandon, East Bay, Riverview and Durant each had players sign college football scholarships. Tampa Bay Tech also saw its athletes acquire sports scholarships in numerous sports.

Durant's Trae Williams, a 5-foot-10, 185-pound running back signed with the University of South Florida. Armwood's Chris Brevi and Allan Davisson will attend Iowa and Fordham, respectively. Brevi is a 6-foot-1, 210-pound defensive back while Davisson (6-foot-2, 200 pounds) plays linebacker.

USF continued its haul of local players by also signing Brandon wide receiver S.J. Green (6-3, 200 pounds) and East Bay defensive back J.B. Garris (6-2, 175 pounds). East Bay's Josh Johnson signed with South Carolina. Johnson (6-4, 220 pounds) will play defensive end for the Gamecocks. And Riverview running back Terrance Reaves (6-1, 195 pounds) signed with Villanova.

Tampa Bay Tech's athletic department was raided. Tech, which already had football player Romae Rucker commit to Southeast Missouri, saw three more athletes sign college scholarships.

Girls soccer teammates Jenna Ball and Erin Dafeldecker signed with South Carolina and USF, respectively. Ball, a midfielder, and Dafeldecker, a forward, helped lead the Titans to the Class 2A state playoffs in 2002. Also, Tech football/baseball player Yuri Higgins has signed with USF. Higgins will pitch for the Bulls and not play football.

WRESTLING: The Hillsborough County divisional championship meets saw Brandon and Riverview dominate their opponents on the way to titles Feb. 8. Brandon swept five teams in the Federal Division meet. The Eagles beat Freedom, Tampa Bay Tech, Wharton, King and Armwood in the title match. Riverview, meanwhile, won the Congressional Division championship after beating Bloomingdale, East Bay, Plant City and Durant. The Sharks beat Durant in the championship match.

GIRLS BASKETBALL: Brandon's Nikki Turner is comfortable shooting from three-point range. In fact, the junior guard is almost more comfortable there than anywhere else on the court. During the Eagles' 58-53 loss against Leto Feb. 3, Turner nailed seven three-point shots. That game marked her third in a row with at least five three-pointers and her fourth of the season.

Two players have joined the 1,000-point club this season. Armwood Moonie Oliver has surpassed the 1,000-point plateau for her career, as has Brandon's Ebani Williams. And, in scores from Feb. 7, Brandon defeated Plant City 46-39, Durant beat Tampa Bay Tech 61-52, East Bay lost to King in overtime 33-30 and Riverview beat Freedom 47-27.