SPRING ROUNDUP: Brew Tech, Tallassee advance in region softball; Pike Liberal wins AISA title

Pike Liberal Arts does the “dogpile” after a sweep of Bessemer Academy in the AISA Class AAA state championship at Paterson Field on Wednesday. (Tim Gayle)

Compiled by TIM GAYLE
TUSCALOOSA -- Area 5 rivals Brewbaker Tech and Tallassee advanced to the state tournament qualifier with a pair of wins in the 5A regional at Bowers Park on Wednesday.

Brew Tech won its regional opener against Elmore County 6-2, then defeated John Carroll 4-3 to reach the finals of the winner’s bracket against Tallassee. The Tigers won their opener against Marbury 8-1, then defeated Demopolis 5-4 in a second-round game.

The two area rivals will face each other on Wednesday at 1:45 p.m., with the winner advancing to the state tournament in Oxford. The loser will play in the finals of the elimination round on Wednesday at 4:45 p.m., with the winner of that game also advancing to the state tournament.

In the Rams’ opener against Elmore County, Taniyah Brown limited Elmore County to a pair of hits while striking out 10 in a complete-game performance. Brew Tech trailed 2-0 before rallying with six runs in the sixth inning. Gabbie York had three hits and drove in a pair of runs while Brown had one hit and three RBIs. 

Both Tallassee and Brew Tech faced challenging games in the second round. Tallassee scored four runs in the bottom of the sixth to take a 5-3 lead and hold on against Demopolis as Chloe Davidson drove in four runs and Alexis Walls threw a complete game for the Tigers.

Brew Tech scored two runs in the fourth and two more in the fifth to hold off John Carroll. Romona Mcleod struck out four in a complete-game performance for the Rams, while Khamiyah Brown and Taniyah Brown each had a pair of hits and Grace Hunter drove in a pair of runs.

 Class 6A schools eliminated from tourney

GULF SHORES -- Park Crossing and Robert E. Lee were outscored 71-2 in four games on Tuesday, marking another quick exit for MPS schools from the 6A regional at the Gulf Shores Sportsplex on Wednesday.

Park Crossing lost the opener 17-0 to McGill-Toolen and 17-1 to Eufaula, while Lee lost 16-0 to Saraland and 21-1 to Valley as the city’s largest schools extended their streak to 18 years without reaching the state tournament.

In the regional opener, Saraland scored 16 runs in the first inning to make quick work of the Generals. Saraland pitcher Chloe Mosley threw a no-hitter and Gracie Dees, Mandi Hart and Sydney Tuggle all had one hit to lead Saraland’s three-inning rout of the Generals.

In Park Crossing’s regional opener, Makayla Meeks had the Thunderbird’s only hit as Paris Rodgers threw a one-hitter for McGill-Toolen, who opened up the game with 11 runs in the second inning of the three-inning rout of the Thunderbirds. Kinstin Davis went 1 for 1 and scored four times, Katie Ann Hites went 1 for 2, scored four runs and drove in three more and Rodgers went 2 for 2, scored three runs and drove in a pair of runs. 

In the second game, Sydney Wiggins struck out five and pitched a three-hitter as Eufaula scored 11 runs in the first inning on the way to another three-inning rout.

While LAMP and Brew Tech have had some success, MPS non-magnet schools have lagged in fielding competitive teams. A large MPS school hasn’t won a regional game since 2018 and hasn’t advanced to the state tournament since Lee’s appearance in 2003. 

The five large MPS schools, in fact, have just three state tournament appearances in the 26-year history of fast pitch softball.

Pike Liberal cruises to AAA baseball title

There was a lot of pressure on Pike Liberal Arts’ baseball team this year.

The Patriots had won Alabama Independent School Association state baseball championships in 2018 and 2019, but changed coaches -- and, obviously, some personnel -- after the 2020 season was cut short by the coronavirus pandemic. 

Just to heighten the expectations a little, the football team went out and won the AISA Class AAA title and the boys’ basketball team followed suit in February.

“This team had unrealistic expectations from the start,” said first-year coach Rush Hixon, a former Pike Liberal baseball standout who was serving as a graduate assistant at Troy after his playing days with the Trojans. “They were expected to three-peat, had a COVID year last year and didn’t get the chance to, a new coach in myself and then football and basketball won championships. So everybody thought when that group rolled onto the field, they were going to win just because of the letter on their chest.”

Well, it wasn’t quite that easy, but the Patriots (29-7) did a pretty good job of dismantling a good Bessemer Academy team by winning the first game 6-2 and the second one 12-0 in three innings to sweep the best-of-three championship series on Wednesday at Paterson Field. 

In the first game, Walker Stallworth didn’t allow a hit until the fifth inning and struck out 10 while allowing one earned run on two hits. Stallworth never factored into the pitching rotation during the playoffs until Wednesday’s game, but he set the tone despite early struggles by the Patriots that allowed an unearned run to score in the first inning.

“We didn’t know he was pitching until two days ago,” Hixon said. “We went back and forth on it. He’s a competitor, he’s a leader, he’s a good kid on the field, he deserves every bit of what he got out there.”

The Patriots scored three runs in the third to break a 1-1 tie with the help of a two-out throwing error that allowed a pair of unearned runs to score. In the seventh, pinch hitter Danny Cooper’s two-run single put the finishing touches on the win.

The second game was never in doubt as Pike Liberal scored eight runs in the second inning to take a 10-0 lead and Auburn commitment Drew Nelson pitched a no-hitter for Pike Liberal.

“Drew wasn’t his normal Drew today,” Hixon said. “His command wasn’t like he wanted it to be, but what people don’t know about Drew is he works as hard as anybody I know. I don’t have to say a lot about him, he does his talking with his glove and his bat.”

The Patriots added two runs in the third to end the game on the 12-run mercy rule, but game officials mistakingly allowed two more batters, resulting in a walk, a hit and another Pike Liberal run before officials corrected the error and called a halt to the game.

And while it could have been easy for the Patriots to lose focus on a team expected to reach the finals ever since an upset of Morgan Academy in the 2019 championship series, Pike Liberal went out and took care of business on Wednesday.

“They stayed grounded when it mattered,” Hixon said. “In big games, they were here to play. It was a challenge throughout the year, but they answered it. Eleven seniors will do it for you.”

Making the all-tournament team were Hunter Lopacki, Tyner Patterson and Landon Dial of Bessemer Academy and Stallworth, Jayden Jordan, Skylar Kidd and Scott Taylor Renfroe of Pike Liberal Arts.