Saraland Claims 6A Crown as State Softball Tournament Continues at Choccolocco Park

Oxford shows grit through extra innings in heat while falling to No. 2 Saraland, No. 1 Hartselle. Munford gets win while breaking state-tourney drought.

State softball

(At Choccolocco Park)

CLASS 7A
Wednesday, May 20
Daphne vs. Austin, 9 a.m.
Central-Phenix City, 9 a.m.
Hewitt-Trussville vs. Baker, 9 a.m.
Thompson vs. Fairhope, 9 a.m.
(Winners and losers play at 12:30 p.m.)

CLASS 6A
Monday, May 18
Wetumpka 4, Gardendale 1
Helena 13, Athens 3
Spain Park 7, Hartselle 4
Saraland 5, Oxford 3
Winners bracket
Helena 10, Wetumpka 0
Sarland 3, Spain Park 2
Helena 6, Saraland 3
Elimination bracket
Gardendale 9, Athens 7
Hartselle 17, Oxford 1
Spain Park 7, Gardendale 3
Hartselle 1, Wetumpka 0
Tuesday, March 19
Spain Park vs. Hartselle, 10:45 a.m.
Saraland vs, TBD, 2:15 p.m.
Finals
Helena vs. TBD, 5:30 p.m.
“If” game to immediately follow

CLASS 5A
Tuesday, May 19
Houston Academy vs. Springville, 10:45 a.m.
Holtville vs. Boaz, 10:45 a.m.
Lawrence County vs. Beauregard, 10:45 a.m.
Moody vs. Faith Academy, 10:45 a.m.
(Winners and losers play at 2:15 p.m.)

CLASS 4A
Monday, May 18
Orange Beach 2, West Limestone 0
American Christian 2, Hamilton 1
West Morgan 13, Munford 3
Plainview 10, Geneva 0
Winners’ bracket
Orange Beach 12, American Christian 0
Plainview 6, West Morgan 5
Orange Beach 11, Plainview 2
Elimination bracket
West Limestone 3, Hamilton 0
Munford 17, Geneva 5
West Limestone 6, West Morgan 1
American Christian 9 Munford 0
Tuesday, May 19
West Limestone 2, American Christian 1
Plainview vs. West Limestone, 10:45 a.m.
Finals
Orange Beach vs. TBD, 2:15 p.m.
“If” game to immediately follow

CLASS 3A
Thursday, May 21
Wicksburg vs. Randolph County, 9 a.m.
St. James vs. Madison Academy, 9 a.m.
Colbert County vs. Glenwood, 9 a.m.
Hanceville vs. T.R. Miller, 9 a.m.
(Winners and losers play at 12:30 p.m.)

CLASS 2A
Wednesday, May 20
G.W. Long vs. North Sand Mountain, 10:45 a.m.
Southeastern vs. Sumiton Christian, 10:45 a.m.
Lamar vs. Ranburne, 10:45 a.m.
Cleveland vs. J.U. Blacksher, 10:45 a.m.
(Winners and losers play at 2:15 p.m.)

CLASS 1A
Tuesday, May 19
Kinston 10, Skyline 0
Maplesville 11, Athens Bible 1
Hackleburg 7, Woodland 1
Leroy 5, Ider 0
Winners’ bracket
Kinston vs. Maplesville, 12:0 p.m.
Hackleburg vs. Leroy, 12:0 p.m.
Elimination bracket
Skyline vs. Athens Bible, 12:0 p.m.
Woodland vs. Ider, 12:0 p.m.
(Winners and losers play at 12:30 p.m.)

By Joe Medley

OXFORD — Oxford’s softball team deserves the Life Ain’t Fair Award after its extended two-game stay in the state softball tournament Monday.

The Yellow Jackets opened with a 5-3 loss to second-ranked Saraland in a game that saw Jayla Jackson pitch all 12 innings in near-90-degree heat, and shortstop Kylee Stephens left the action with heat exhaustion.

As fate and the tournament schedule would have it, Oxford had to play No. 1 Hartselle in an elimination game with no rest. Predictably, the exhausted Yellow Jackets lost 17-1 and finished their season (21-18).

By day’s end, Stephens received fluids at St. Vincent’s Hospital, and Jackson lie on the Yellow Jackets’ dugout floor, crying out as a trainer worked out her leg cramps.

Long-time Oxford coach Wendy McKibbin saw the positives.

“I’m proud of my kids,” she said. “We fought.

“The first game was a journey. Anything could’ve happened, but more than anything, we’ve got kids that compete. If you’re going to compete when you’re back’s against the wall and never give up, then you’re going to be successful in life. Every one of my kids is going to be successful.”

Jackson pitched 142 pitches against Sarland, spreading out 14 hits with no walks and three strikeouts. Three of Saraland’s runs were earned.

“It was very, very hard,” Jackson said. “My muscles started cramping, and I really wanted to give up, but I never did.”

Saraland took the lead with back-to-back RBI singles from Jadyn Byrd and Anna-Claire Cole in the top of the 12th.

Oxford tied the game 3-3 on RBI singles from Stephens and Emma Tims-Becerra in the bottom of the sixth.

Jackson went 2-for-5 with a triple and two runs, and Tims-Becerra finished 2-for-4 with a double, a run and an RBI.

McKibbin started freshman Marianna Becerra in the circle against top-ranked Hartselle, which opened with a 7-4 loss to Spain Park and came into the Oxford game playing for its tournament life. She exited after three innings, with Hartselle leading 11-0.

Jackson came on to pitch the final two innings after playing the first three innings in left field. Her numbers reflected fatigue against strong competition … five hits, three earned runs and three walks allowed with no strikeouts.

After Tymeria Smith-Lindsey’s two-out single in the bottom of the fifth, Jackson popped out to center field in the day’s final sequence for Oxford.

“She competes,” McKibbin said. “She almost passes out in here (the dugout), but she wanted to have her last at bat out here.

“You can’t take that fight, that hunger that she has inside of her. She’s a true competitor. She’s got grit. She’s going to give it everything she’s got.”

Class 4A

MUNFORD; The Lions fell to West Morgan 13-3, eliminated Geneva 17-5 then lost 9-0 to American Christian to finish 36-14 on the season.

Brooklyn Pressley went 2-for-4 with a home run, four RBIs and two runs against Geneva. Addyson Britt went 3-for-5 with a double, two RBIs and a run, and Madison Arnold went 3-for-5 with two RBIs.

Chloe Pickette went 3-for-4 with a double, two runs and an RBI, and Kastin Lathem went 2-for-5 with a double, a run and an RBI.

Ashtyn Bishop went 2-for-4 with a triple, four runs and an RBI, and Saryn Goodson went 2-for-3 with a double, two RBIs and two runs.

Arnold got the win, allowing four hits, one walk and no earned runs with two strikeouts in four innings.

Britt had a double and two RBIs against West Morgan, and Lathem had a single and an RBI. Pickette had two doubles and a run.

Munford won the Class 2A-A slow-pitch state title in 2001, but the Lions’ state-tournament appearance ended a fast-pitch era drought.

The Lions beat Montgomery Catholic and Prattville Christian at the Central Regional in Montgomery on the way to taking the regional’s second state qualifying spot for Class 4A.

“We haven’t made it in about 15 years,” Lions coach Darrell Smith said. “We couldn’t ever get out of that regional and get to the state tournament.

“(To get a win in the state tournament) means a lot. I took this job four years ago, and getting out of that regional, we always had to deal with ACA (American Christian) and Pratville Christian. We finally got over the hump this year and was able to beat some of the private schools in that Montgomery region and able to get here.”