E.A. Sports Today

Softball regionals

Alexandria, Spring Garden win three games apiece to clinch state berths. Pleasant Valley, Piedmont through to winners’ bracket finals. Weaver survives the day.

Cover photo: Alexandria celebrates its state-tournament berth after winning three East Regional games Wednesday in Albertville. (Submitted photo)

Results, pairings

EAST REGIONAL
Sand Mountain Park, Albertville

CLASS 1A
Tuesday
Spring Garden 17, Coosa Christian 1
Winners’ bracket
Skyline 8, Spring Garden 1
Wedenesday
Elimination bracket
Spring Garden 11, Cedar Bluff 4
Spring Garden 5, Ragland 4
Spring Garden 12, Appalachian 6

CLASS 2A
Wednesday
Pleasant Valley 7, North Sand Mountain 2
Pisgah 10, Woodland 0
Winners’ bracket
Pleasant Valley 8, West End 6
Elimination bracket
Sand Rock 10, Woodland 9 (Woodland eliminated)
Thursday
Winners’ bracket
Pleasant Valley vs. Pisgah, 9 a.m.

CLASS 3A
Wednesday
Piedmont 10, Geraldine 3
Hokes Bluff 15, Vinemont 5
Glencoe 11, J.B. Pennington 6
Plainview 8, Weaver 0
Winners’ bracket
Piedmont 8, Hokes Bluff 5
Plainview 6, Glencoe 1
Elimination bracket

Weaver 10, J.B. Pennington 0
Thursday
Winners’ bracket
Piedmont vs. Plainview, 9 a.m.
Elimination bracket
Weaver vs. Hokes Bluff, 9 a.m.
Glencoe vs. Vinemont, 9 a.m.

CLASS 4A
Monday
White Plains 9, North Jackson 2
Cherokee County 5, Cordova 0
Madison County 10, Jacksonville 0
Winners’ bracket
White Plains 7, Corner 5
Cherokee County 3, Madison County 2
Elimination bracket
Cordova 12, Jacksonville 2 (Jacksonville eliminated)
Tuesday
Winners’ bracket
Cherokee County 2, White Plains 1
Elimination bracket
Madison County 18, White Plains 3 (White Plains eliminated)

CLASS 5A
Tuesday
Alexandria 17, Guntersville 2
Southside 3, St. Clair County 1
Scottsboro 12, Central-Clay 0
Winners’ bracket
Moody 12, Alexandria 5
Southside 9, Scottsboro 6
Elimination bracket
St. Clair County 2, Central-Clay 1 (Central-Clay eliminated)
Wednesday
Winners’ bracket
Moody 12, Southside 1
Elimination bracket
Alexandria 8, St. Clair County 1
Alexandria 8, Boaz 7
Alexandria 8, Southside 4 (Alexandria advances to state)

CLASS 6A
Monday
Oxford 6, Mountain Brook 5
Winners’ bracket
Oxford 20, Minor 5
Tuesday
Winners’ bracket
Oxford 9, Pell City 8 (Oxford advances to state)

CENTRAL REGIONAL
Lagoon Park, Montgomery

CLASS 1A
Tuesday

Wadley 15, Central-Haneyville 0
Winners’ bracket
Verbena 10, Wadley 6
Wednesday
Elimination bracket
Berry 10, Wadley 3 (Wadley eliminated)

CLASS 3A
Wednesday

Randolph County 15, Greensboro 0
Winners’ bracket
Alabama Christian 7, Randolph County 5
Thursday
Elimination bracket
Randolph County vs. Southside-Selma, 9 a.m.

CLASS 4A
Monday

Bibb County 10, Munford 9
American Christian 5, Handley 4
Elimination bracket
Sipsey Valley 12, Munford 7 (Munford eliminated)
Handley 16, Dallas County 1
Tuesday
Elimination bracket
Bibb County 6, Handley 2 (Handley eliminated)

By East Alabama Sports Today

ALBERTVILLE — Alexandria took the long route to the state tournament, but the Valley Cubs are back after a year’s absence.

They won three elimination-bracket games Wednesday, beating St. Clair County 8-4, Boaz 8-7 and Southside 8-4. A lightning delay in the Southside game lengthened the Valley Cubs’ day more.

Alexandria (33-13-1) will play an opponent to be determined on May 15 at 9 a.m. at Choccolocco Park.

Allyssa Hunt came through with the clutch hit Wednesday, a two-run single in the top of the sixth inning to give Alexandria an 8-7 lead that held up. Hunt went 3-for-3 and scored three runs in that game.

Other highlights included Christian Hess’ 2-for-3, three-RBI performance with a double against Boaz, and Clancy Bright went 2-for-4 with two RBIs.

Hunt and Bright had three hits apiece against Southsid, each with one RBI. Charlee Parris had a single and two RBIs, and Pressley Slaton wen 2-for-5 with two RBIs.

Briley Bright was 2-for-2 with an RBI.

Jill Cockrell went 3-for-3 with three runs and two RBIs against St. Clair County. Slaton went 2-for-4 with a double and two RBIs, and Clancy Bright had a single and two RBIs.

Slaton got the win in all three games. She struck out 11 combined batters in 11 2/3 innings of work on the day.

Class 1A

SPRING GARDEN ADVANCES: The Panthers (29-10) also had to do it the hard way after falling into the elimination bracket on Tuesday, but they rebounded to beat Cedar Bluff 11-4, Ragland 5-4 and Appalachian 12-6 on Wednesday to clinch a state berths.

Spring Garden will open state tournament play Tuesday at 10:45 a.m. at Choccolocco Park against an opponent to be determined.

The Panthers’ biggest drama Wednesday cam in the second elimination game against Ragland. Olivia Law’s ground ball plus an error scored Lillian McCain to give them a 5-2 led in the bottom of the sixth inning, and Spring Garden halted Ragland’s seventh-inning rally at two runs.

Pitcher Avery Steward induced a two-out fly ball to end it, finishing off a complete game. She struck out eight batters and allowed six runs in seven innings. She also got complete-game wins against Cedar Bluff and Appalachian.

Steward also had a double and two RBIs against Ragland, and Maggie Reedy had a single and RBI. Layla Ingram went 2-for-3 with a triple, a double and a run.

Reedy went 2-for-5 with a double and three RBIs against Cedar Bluff, and Steward was 2-for-5 with two runs and an RBI. Addie Word went 3-for-5 with two runs and an RBI.

Hannah Ingram was 2-for-3 with a triple, a double and three RBIs against Appalachian, and Rylie Ham was 2-for-4 with a run and two RBIs. Steward went 2-for-3 with two runs and an RBI.

Class 2A

PLEASANT VALLEY: Pleasant Valley has played a schedule loaded with higher-classified opponents this season, and it’s starting to show against Class 2A competition in postseason.

The Raiders beat North Sand Mountain 7-2 and West End-Walnut Grove 8-6 in Wednesday’s East Regional action at Albertville’s Sand Mountain Park.

Pleasant Valley (19-17-1), which has won five games in a row, will play Pisgah in Thursday’s winners’ bracket final at 9 a.m. The winner will clinch the East Region’s top state qualifying spot for 2A.

The Raiders punched their ticket to the winners’ bracket final with three runs to take the lead in the bottom of the fifth inning against West End. The Rally included Haylie Lee’s RBI double, Jordan Cheatwood’s RBI single and Abigail Evans’ RBI double.

Gracee Ward doubled while going 2-for-4 with a run and two RBIs, and Lily Henry went 2-for-4 with a triple and a run. Cailey Almaroad was 2-for-3 with a double and a run.

Against North Sand Mountain, Madyson Cromer was 3-for-3 with two RBIs, and the Raiders got a single and RBI apiece from Henry, Lee and Cheatwood. Alexa Cranmer was 2-for-3 with a run.

Class 3A

PIEDMONT WINS TWO: The Bulldogs opened with a 10-3 victory over Geraldine then beat Hokes Bluff 8-5.

The Bulldogs will play Plainview in Thursday’s 9 a.m. winners’ bracket final. The winner will advance to the state tournament as the East Region’s No.1 3A qualifier.

Jaycee Glover went 4-for-4 with a run and two RBIs against Hokes Bluff, and Cacey Brothers was 2-for-4 with two RBIs. Ava Pope and Amiyah Thomas each had a single and RBI, and Savannah Smith went 2-for-5 with a double and a run.

Smith went 2-for-3 with a home run and three RBIs against Geraldine. Carson Young went 2-for-4 with an RBI, and Piedmont got a single and RBI from Cayla Brothers. Pope also had an RBI.

Glover was 2-for-4 with a run and finished 6-for-8 on the day.

Smith won both games in the circle. She spread out eight hits with four strikeouts against Hokes Bluff and allowed one hit with five strikeouts in 2 2/3 innings against Geraldine.

WEAVER SPLITS: The Bearcats opened with an 8-0 loss to Plainview but rebounded 10-0 against J.B. Pennington to stay alive.

Weaver will play Hokes Bluff loser on Thursday at 9 a.m.

Kynlee Fulmer pitched a one-hitter with eight strikeouts in five innings against J.B. Pennington. She also had an RBI.

Jadyn Smith had a single and two RBIs, and Peyton Marvasty was 2-for-3 with an RBI. Ella Kines and Alana Cooper each had a single and RBI.

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