Last week was a great one to be a Bulldog.
Not only did St. Cloud defeat arch-rival Harmony in their 20th meeting, but it also crowned three individual Orange Belt Conference (OBC) champions and, more importantly, the Bulldogs won four team titles.
The Bulldogs captured the OBC titles in boys and girls golf and cross country, earning all 28 possible points and left them in first place following the conclusion of fall sports for the OBC All-Sports Trophy.
Points are earned in all sports that at least five schools sponsor. (Football is not counted because no round robin or tournament is possible.)
St. Cloud collected 48 fall sport points, closely followed by Harmony (46) and Celebration (44). Gateway (35) is fifth, Tohopekaliga (30) sixth; followed by Osceola (22), Poinciana (9) and Liberty (7).
Celebration took titles in boys and girls swimming and Osceola grabbed the girls’ volleyball title. Although they did not capture a single championship, the Longhorns did what they seem to do every year — be the model of consistency. Harmony had five second-place finishes and were fourth or better in all seven fall sports.
“We had a great week and a great fall,” St. Cloud Athletics Director Bryan Smart said. “But obviously there is a lot of competition left. After fall sports last year, I think we were five points behind Harmony, so it’s great to be a few points ahead this year. It’s probably going to go down to the wire again this year.”
For the winter, OBC championship points will be contested in boys and girls soccer and basketball, wrestling, girls weightlifting and competitive cheer. Spring sports include softball, boys and girls track boys weightlifting, baseball, boys and girls tennis, girls flag football and possibly fishing, if enough schools participate.
Harmony has won the last four All-OBC Sports Awards (2021-24) and nine of the last 13. St. Cloud won three straight from 2019-21 but narrowly lost last year (155-151.5), with the championship being determined in the last week of competition.
