Written By – Chad Washington

Winter Park, FL – New Era Prep is LIVE from the 407. This Thursday, May 15th, The Dr. Phillips Panthers will travel to Showalter Field to face the Wildcats from Winter Park.

This matchup features arguably the best team from West Orlando and the best team from East Orlando. DP comes off of a 12-2 season, losing to Lake Mary in the 7A State Semis. Winter Park finished last season 7-4 with their season ending in a regional quarterfinal loss to Orange City University. Both teams won their respective districts last year.

If you’re wondering how Orlando compares to the teams around the 561 , DP beat Jupiter 35-0 in round one of states, and beat Vero 21-14 in round two. Winter Park didn’t play any South Florida competition but did beat Berkeley out of South Carolina.

A few players to watch are 4-Star Notre Dame Commit Ayden Pouncey for Winter Park. Ayden was recently ranked the 8th best Safety in the Nation via ESPN. 3-Star Maurice Jones will be hitting for Dr. Phillips. Jones holds offers from FIU, FAU, Mississippi State and Others.

DP head Coach Rodney Wells enters his 15th season at the helm for the Panthers, with a 137-46 record

For The Park, Coach Tim Shiflet enters year 20 with the Cats’ and holds a record of 173-79.

Both teams have a number of district championships with their current coaches and even a few state runs. I have high expectations in 2025 for both programs. Some questions that will be answered: Will DP get back to the State title game? Will Winter Park be able to perform in the playoffs? Will one of these teams be the best team in Orlando?

Two programs with storied backgrounds have consistently been each other’s spring foes, and this year is no different. Tune into @cwsportsmedia and @NewEraPrep on Instagram and X for live coverage and score updates Thursday Night.