QUEEN CREEK — Queen Creek Benjamin Franklin held visiting Combs to just one touchdown in each half to roll to a 31-14 win Friday at the teams’ first-ever meeting on the gridiron.

SAN TAN VALLEY — When two teams clash in a playoff rematch from the previous season, everyone hopes for a competitive, tough-nosed matchup between football players with something to prove.

QUEEN CREEK – Benjamin Franklin and Combs will meet on the football field for the time ever Friday, giving fresh oxygen to a long-running local debate over who’s best.

SAN TAN VALLEY – The Combs swim team doesn’t have a local pool, so they make the jaunt up to Apache Junction three days a week to practice in a pool that’s typically about 93 degrees.

QUEEN CREEK — Excitement and fireworks were in the air on Chandler Heights road just west of Ellsworth on Friday night, but the fireworks were not the only thing booming at American Leadership Academy-Queen Creek.

SAN TAN VALLEY — The Poston Butte and American Leadership Academy — Queen Creek football programs both have a chip on their shoulders from how last season ended.

QUEEN CREEK-- Looking for their first win in nearly three years, the Queen Creek American Leadership Academy Ironwood Warriors played a tight first half with Fountain Hills but found themselves on the wrong end of three second half touchdowns as they fell, 35-12.

SAN TAN VALLEY – The Combs football team became very good at adapting on the fly last season due to the chaos caused by the pandemic.

SAN TAN VALLEY - Over the noise of a train that runs behind Poston Butte High School’s football fields, head coach Dain Thompson can be heard reciting a mantra to his team: “let’s be awesome.”

SAN TAN VALLEY — After many years on football sidelines as an assistant coach, Mike Carlin is taking on a big test in his first stint as a head coach on the gridiron.

SAN TAN VALLEY - The American Leadership Academy-Ironwood Warriors have had a tough stretch of seasons over the last few years. With their last win dating back to the 2018-19 season, the 3A Central region competitors are looking for the players to buy into the process, instead of focusing so…

SAN TAN VALLEY — At the age of 16, Combs High School junior Hailey Linnastruth is the top female shooter in her school-based club trap shooting conference.

SAN TAN VALLEY — Competing in four events at the Division III state track meet didn’t seem like much of a challenge for Poston Butte’s Octavious Joe, so he tried out his skills at the Arizona Decathlon State Championships.

PHOENIX — Taniela “Bubba” Taunima walked around the athletic fields of Desert Vista High School on Saturday carrying a chocolate cake almost as big as him.

PHOENIX — Poston Butte had a good day at the finals of the Division III state track meet, taking ninth in the boys team standings. And that was mostly due to the efforts of electric junior Octavious Joe.

PHOENIX — George Costanza once proclaimed it was the Summer of George. Perhaps now it’s the Summer of Bubba.

SAN TAN VALLEY — The Poston Butte baseball program had already broken records and achieved things no other team in school history had done. Why not add one more accomplishment to the resume and send four players to the next level?

MESA — There’s an old adage in baseball about not giving a good team extra outs. Gilbert Mesquite took advantage of additional opportunities it received against Poston Butte in the 4A state semifinals.

SAN TAN VALLEY — Poston Butte’s first batter, Junior Lopez, hit the ball out of the park Saturday, which may have told Coconino High School they were in for a tough day.

QUEEN CREEK — Regent Benedict ran the final stretch of his 1600-meter race Friday with his next closest competition barely in view behind. It’s not his ideal arrangement, as he prefers a closer competition, as evidenced by his final time of 4:55:49 being a full 11 seconds off his personal be…

SAN TAN VALLEY — Many spring teams enter this season with a lot of questions and uncertainty following last season’s abrupt cancelation due to the pandemic.

SAN TAN VALLEY — Of all the Pinal County baseball teams that had to cancel their 2020 seasons due to the COVID-19 pandemic, none was dealt a more cruel blow than San Tan Foothills.

SAN TAN VALLEY — The baseball teams with very talented rosters had it toughest when the spring sports season was canceled one year ago. Poston Butte was one of those teams, but with zero seniors on the 2020 roster, the Broncos are primed for a championship run.

SAN TAN VALLEY — The Combs baseball program doesn’t have the same participation as other sports at the school, and that impact is particularly felt during a pandemic-shortened season.

SAN TAN VALLEY — It’s only fitting that three San Tan Valley high schools had reason to celebrate at the Division III wrestling state tournament, and that includes American Leadership Academy-Ironwood.

SAN TAN VALLEY — A wrestling season that often seemed cursed ended in charmed fashion for the Poston Butte Broncos.

SAN TAN VALLEY — Six Pinal County schools competed at the Division III state tournament Thursday, but Combs outshone them all on wrestling’s biggest stage.