NewsBreak Original

Jay Stilianou, who has worked in the Clay County school district for 18 years, has been named coordinator of District Athletics and Development at Clay County District Schools.

The Clay High Blue Devils baseball team got an 11-5 win at home Tuesday night over the Escambia Gators in the first round of the FHSAA 5A Regional 1 playoffs. Before the game started, former Clay High and San Francisco Giant pitcher Jake Dunning threw out the first pitch. Dunning had a career ERA of 2.77 in 30 MLB games.

The Clay High Blue Devils wore pink in their 1-0 win over the Nease Panthers Wednesday night in honor of former Clay High teacher Claire McCool. McCool tragically passed away from breast cancer in November 2017. McCool was close with head coach Josh Persinger because she taught him when he was a student and they worked together in the math department when he became a teacher.

Clay High softball pitcher Gabby Ellis received Clay County Athletics’ Athlete of the Week Award for the perfect game she pitched against the Orange Park Raiders on Feb. 27. A perfect game is one of the highest honors a pitcher could earn at any level of the game. A perfect game is when a pitcher along with their defense does not let anyone on the opposing team reach first base safely via hits, walks or errors. In that game against Orange Park, the Mercer signee pitched in seven innings and faced 21 batters, striking out 14 of them while Clay’s defense got the other seven outs.

The Clay High baseball team got a mercy-rule win after four and a half innings at home over the Bishop Snyder Cardinals Tuesday night, 12-0. In the first inning, Clay High got the first run of the game after Parker Lowrance hit a ground ball that got past the infield to score Cole Carnell. Clay added an additional run in the first inning after Josh Rouw hit a sacrifice ground ball to score Reef Johnson.

Clay County had a dominant girls weightlifting tournament at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland on Saturday with Clay High winning back-to-back Traditional and Olympic 2A FHSAA State Championships. Multiple girls won individual State Championships.

With the FHSAA baseball season beginning in February, the Clay High School Blue Devils have been preparing for the season in the weight room and on the track for their speed training program.

Clay High Blue Devils head baseball coach Josh Persinger took charge of the program in 2015 and is the longest-tenured baseball head coach in Clay County. Persinger started at Clay High School as a nervous freshman worried about the unknowns of high school in 1999. Little did he know that once he stepped through the doors of Clay High School, that school would be a more important part of his life than he could ever imagine.

Clay High Blue Devils softball pitcher Gabby Ellis signed her letter of intent to play college softball for the Mercer University Bears on her mother’s birthday, Monday night.

The Clay High Blue Devils finished the 2022 football season with a 3-7 record. Clay finished third in the 3S District 4 with a 2-2 district record, a 1-4 home record and a 2-3 record on the road.

The Fleming Island Golden Eagles football team traveled to Green Cove Springs Friday night and dominated the Clay High Blue Devils in the opening game of the season, 49-7. After a brief 15-minute weather delay due to lightning, Clay High held its own for the first half of the first quarter. However, the speed, strength and experience of the Fleming Island roster were too much for a young Clay High team who lost many of their experienced players to graduation or transfer.

GREEN COVE SPRINGS -- A Clay High School Spanish teacher has been arrested by the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office and faces accusations of child abuse of a 1-month-old girl.

Clay High School administrators confirm that three-star cornerback Jarvis Lee Jr will transfer from Clay High to IMG Academy for the 2022-23 school year. Lee plans to stay at IMG for one semester, according to his Twitter. He tweeted on June 7 that he plans to enroll in college early.

Former Super Bowl champion Cliff Avril will return to Clay High School on July 9 to host his 10th annual free youth football camp. Through the Cliff Avril Family Foundation, Avril will return to his former high school along with other NFL players to provide one-on-one instruction for the campers, according to Eventbrite. The event has a limit of 250 campers from ages 12 to 18. The campers must be pre-registered on the Eventbrite website. The campers will receive a T-shirt, a photo with Avril, a goody bag, and a lunch. The campers are encouraged to wear athletic clothing and will wear shirts provided by Avril.

The Clay High Blue Devils softball team’s season came to an end Thursday as they lost in the 4A FHSAA State Semifinal against the Deltona Wolves, 4-0. The Clay High offense failed to get runners on base throughout the game. Clay High only had one hit and walked three times, according to MaxPreps.

(left to right) Gabby Wiseman, Matt Lewis, Sydney Davis, Ema Martin, Abby Rutledge, Kierstyn Mann.Photo taken by Anthony Salazar. Seniors from the Clay High School softball team had a special graduation ceremony dedicated to them Sunday evening because they missed their official graduation to play in the Regional Championship against the West Florida Jaguars. Clay High won the game, 1-0, in extra innings.

As the Clay High seniors back at school tossed their caps in the air to celebrate graduation, the Clay High Blue Devils softball team celebrated an extra innings Regional Championship win against the West Florida Jaguars, 1-0.

(left to right) Ema Martin, Gabby Wiseman, Sydney Davis, Abby Rutledge.Photo via Gabby Wiseman's Instagram. Four Clay High School senior softball players will miss graduation Friday night to travel to Pensacola to play in the Regional Championship against the West Florida Jaguars.

The Clay High Blue Devils are set to face the Suwannee Bulldogs after they defeated the Santa Fe Raiders on Wednesday night in a 10-inning nail-biter, 12-9. Clay High got out to an early lead. In the first inning with two outs, Jayden Long hit a double to deep center field, scoring pinch-runner Connor Chapman. Clay High followed up with four more runs in the second inning. Logan Wilson scored two runs on a single to right field. Long hit another double, scoring two more runs for Clay High.