The Southern Zone Age Group Swimming Championships, which start today at the Triangle Aquatic Center in Cary, are just one of the many recreational sports events you'll find listed below in the expanded version of the Play! recreational sports calendar.

The Apex Cougars finished with a top-five performance at the Pop Warner National Cheer & Dance Championships held Dec. 6-11 at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.

Only the top five in each category are scored. The Cougars were awarded 52.60 points, finishing behind the champion Amity (Conn.) Spartans' 59.88 in the Novice Division Junior Midget Small category.

Three North Carolina teams, including two from the Triangle, reached the Pop Warner football national semifinals, but none came home with a national championship this year.

The Division II Junior Midget Silver North Raleigh Bulldogs, the Division II Junior Peewee Durham Screamin' Eagles and the Division I Union Road Jaguars of Gastonia were the top finishers among the eight teams in the Mid-South Region at the 54th annual Pop Warner Super Bowl last week.

Bids by the North Raleigh Bulldogs and the Durham Screamin’ Eagles to win national Pop Warner football championships ended in Tuesday’s Division II semifinal games at Lake Buena Vista, Fla.

In a Junior Midget game, North Raleigh (11-2) was eliminated by the defending champion Far West Jets (12-0) of Glendale, Ariz., 40-8.

In Junior Pee Wee play, coach Joey Strong’s Screamin’ Eagles (12-2) fell to the Yorba Linda (Calif.) Bulldogs, 14-7.

The North Raleigh Bulldogs Silver and the Durham Screaming Eagles football teams, along with five cheerleading teams and one dance team, will continue their quests for national championships after winning regional titles on Saturday in Gastonia.

Each football team won its Pop Warner Mid-South Region championship, and the cheer and dance teams finished either first or second, to advance to the Dec. 4-11 Pop Warner Football Championships and National Cheer and Dance Championships at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.

Six other football teams, like the Bulldogs and Eagles part of the Triangle's Consolidated Football Federation, saw their seasons end in Saturday's regional finals.

Saturday was a great day for the Consolidated Football Federation.

Seven football teams in the Triangle youth sports organization won second-round games, and an eighth, the Division III Pee Wee Apex Cougars, advanced with a bye to reach this Saturday’s Pop Warner Mid-South Regional football championship games at Mount Holly and Gastonia.

Scores and schedule are below.

Nine cheerleading teams and one dance team from the Consolidated Football Federation will have a busy day after Thanksgiving.

The teams have advanced to compete in Friday's Pop Warner Mid-South Region Championships at The Pointe in Fort Mill, S.C., CFF cheer coordinator Julie Sandford said.

The Triangle's Consolidated Football Federation will host the second round of the Pop Warner Mid-South Region playoffs on Saturday in Durham, Garner and Wake Forest, CFF commissioner Tom Goodwin said.

Seven football teams from the CFF will be among the 30 competitors from North Carolina, Virginia and South Carolina. They will be playing for spots in the Mid-South Pop Warner Regional Championships to be played Nov. 27 in Charlotte and in Fort Mill, S.C.

Check out the weekend scores and this week's schedule below.

Check out the Play! Recreational Sports Calendar with listings for camps, leagues, tryouts, instruction, fundraisers, tournaments and events around the Triangle and elsewhere.

The Cary Chargers won the Junior Midget Division III title at the Pop Warner Mid-South Region Championships
on Saturday in Charlotte, and nine cheerleading teams and one dance
team (see the list below) finished in the top three in the region to
advance to the Pop Warner national championships.

All of the teams represent organizations within the Triangle's Consolidated Football Federation.