SPORTS

The hunt is on for the Horace O’Bryant Middle School football team as, following a 44-14 route on Westminster Christian on Saturday, Sept. 23, at the Key West High Back Yard, the Buccaneers are top contenders for a fourth Tri-County Conference title in just the program’s eighth year of existence. Thus far, Horace O’Bryant has scored a conference-best 100 points through the first three wins of the season, are the lone 3-0 team in the conference, and Saturday’s 44-point explosion is more than any team...

Once again, the Key West High football team was right there with University Christian, which entered the contest on Friday, Sept. 22, ranked No. 30 in all classifications across the state. Midway through the second quarter, it would seem as if the Conchs were going to be able to keep it tight the entire way, trailing by just 10 points while the Key West student section began to chant “overrated” as the Christian Knights took the KWHS Back Yard gridiron. That was about the point...

In a tight battle between new Monroe County rivals, the Horace O’Bryant Middle volleyball team took a pair of victories against Marathon Middle on Tuesday, Sept. 19, in Key West. Both the Buccaneers A and B squads were able to prevail 2-1 in each match versus the Lady ’Fins, in the start on a rivalry for years to come.

Playoff hope is not all lost for the Key West High football team despite winning just one of its first four contests to open the 2023 campaign, as due to one of the Top 25 strongest strengths on schedule in all of Class 2S, the Conchs remain on the cusp of an-large berth, currently seeded ninth in Region 4-2S, according to MaxPreps. Key West’s strength of schedule will only improve on Friday, Sept. 22, when nine-time state champion University Christian makes the trip from Jacksonville for a 7 p.m. kickoff during Senior Night at the KWHS Back Yard. ...

The Key West High volleyball team has faced adversity nearly every weekend during the 2023 campaign, while the Coral Shores High squad has controlled the action in most of its matches, so on Tuesday, Sept. 19, when the Lady ‘Canes took a lead in every game of the Monroe County matchup, the Lady Conchs drew upon their experiences to fight back for a 3-0 (25-15, 25-21, 25-17) victory in Tavernier. In the first game, the Hurricanes opened with a 4-1 advantage and held through 8-6...

Q: How long have you been playing your sports? A: I started football when I was 7, I started basketball in eighth grade and played on JV in high school but I missed last year and am coming back my senior year, then I have run track since my freshman year. Q: Did you play any other sports growing up? ...

On paper it looked to be an even match between the Key West High and South Dade swim teams during the dual meet at The College of the Florida Keys Aquatic Center on Saturday, Sept. 16. The Conchs and Buccaneers had nearly the exact same number of entries in the dual meet, but when the water had settled, Key West had a first-place finish in 20 of the 22 events, 10 of which were first-second place finishes, as the Lady Conchs pulled away to a 120-47 victory and the boys tallied a 108-53 triumph. ...

On Monday, Sept. 11, the Marathon High golf team hosted its first home match of the season against Coral Shores and Key West at The Florida Keys Country Club, with the Conchs wearing red, the Hurricanes in white and the Dolphins in blue to honor those lost in terrorist attacks upon the United States 22 years prior. During the match, the Dolphins turned in the top two finishers with Michael Merryman going for a round-low 44, while teammate Mason Thornton scored a 47. There was...

The narrative for the Key West High football team seems to be the same for every loss this season: the Conchs are in the lead or within striking distance by the second quarter, only to have turnovers allow the game to slip away. That is exactly what happened again on Friday, Sept. 15, against University High, as a second-quarter touchdown run put Key West in front by five, but the Conchs then allowed three unanswered scores in the second half, two off turnovers, which helped the Titans cruise to a 38-14 victory at the KWHS Back Yard. ...

That is what Key West coach Johnny Hughes said of his team’s victory over Oxbridge Academy on Sept. 8 when the Conchs rolled the Thunder Wolves 44-15. With starting running back Jaden Fox out with a shoulder injury suffered a week prior, the Conchs found some depth in Leandro Batista. The sophomore, who played basketball for Key West but is new to football, was convinced to give it a try, and Hughes believes Batista may be on the road to becoming a dual athlete after running for three touchdowns against Oxbridge.

In order to maximize the number of opponents the Key West High volleyball team would face this season, Lady Conchs coach Sarah Eckert loaded up on tournaments that she knew would challenge her program to play at a higher level. In fact, of the first eight matches of the season, only one was a single match against Monroe County rival Marathon High, leading Key West into its annual home tournament, the Conch Cup, on Friday and Saturday, Sept. 15-16, at the Bobby Menendez Gymnasium. Five...

A HALF DOZEN SIOUXLAND MIRACLE RIDERS ROLLED OUT OF THE THOMPSON ELECTRIC PARKING LOT MONDAY MORNING, ON THEIR 8TH ANNUAL MOTORCYCLE RIDE TO RAISE MONEY FOR OUR SIOUXLAND CHILDREN’S MIRACLE NETWORK. MATT THOMPSON IS ONE OF THE ORGANIZERS AND RIDERS WHO ARE HEADED THIS YEAR TO KEY WEST ,...

Key West and baseball are synonymous, and during the last quarter century, the continued success of the high school’s program is largely attributed to legendary coach Ralph Henriquez, who during his 17 years with the Conchs has claimed three state titles, won more than 538 games and now is being inducted into the inaugural class of the High School Baseball Network Hall of Fame. During his tenure, his Conch baseball teams have been ranked as high as No. 1 in the nation, with more than...

THURSDAY, SEPT. 14 Prep football Gulliver Middle at Marathon Middle, 4 p.m. Miami Sunset at Marathon, 7 p.m. Prep volleyball Marathon at Coral Shores, JV...

Looking at the results of the past half-decade for the University High football team, admittedly Key West High coach Johnny Hughes thought it might be a good tune-up game for the month ahead; after all, the Titans have amassed a 20-29 record in that span and are coming off a 3-7 season. The 2023 campaign has shown a much different side of the Titans, outscoring their opponents 136-71 in three straight wins to begin the season, entering the contest on Friday, Sept. 15, on the...

We are absolutely thrilled to present the first break-out edition of the Keys Weekly Sports Wrap. The publication you are holding is the culmination of more than a year of collaboration and vision between our writers, editors, photographers and business staff, and we couldn’t be more honored to be the one and only locally-owned media outlet bringing you Keys prep sports coverage from Coral Shores High School all the way to Key West.

Karissa Kilby (Honolulu) and Isabella Perez (Key West) hail from hometowns that are 4,779 miles apart.