FLORENCE — The Lady Panthers, Aggies, Raiders and Pirates might have weathered the storm physically, but they couldn’t weather it metaphorically in the 2023 AHSAA North Regional softball tournament in Florence last week.
Teams battled through wet conditions, weather delays, reschedulings and extra innings, but in the end, all teams were knocked out of the tournament with two losses, bringing softball season to an end for Marion County.
The Marion County High School Lady Red Raiders were the first to play, taking on the Meek Tigers on Tuesday, May 9.
Seth Ables slides into third.
ONEONTA — Hackleburg’s incredible playoff run has come to an end after two losses against the Appalachian Eagles on Tuesday, May 9.
In their first game of the series, the Panthers simply struggled to keep within arm’s reach of their opponents after letting up four runs in the bottom of the second inning.
After leaking a few runs in the second, their opponents added three more runs in the bottom of the third, making Hackleburg’s task look a lot tougher for the rest of the game.
The 2023 1A track and field state champions, the Marion County High School Lady Red Raiders, is shown. Front row, left to right: Coach Alana Hawkins, Alexis Webb, Brooklyn Parks, Leiporshia Lipsey, Caroline Pyron, Jenna Kay Hollis, McKinna Riddle, Anna Prather and Coach Kelee Williams. Back row: Coach Mineo Lindsey, Zoe Sodl, Claire LeDuke, Lily Robinson, Madison Lipsey, Lilly Franks, Alecia Shack, Adrian Randolph, Adilieigh Webb, Jasmine Wilson and Head Coach Susan Seals.
CULLMAN — The Marion County Lady Red Raiders track and field team won the 2023 AHSAA 1A State Track Meet on Saturday, May 6.
The Lady Red Raiders won with a total of 91 points, defeating second place Winterboro (58 points) and third place Loachapoka (46 points).
Hackleburg’s girls’ team finished in 19th place with 10 points, and Brilliant placed 25th with five points.
Marion County’s boys placed seventh with 46.5 points. Ahead of them was Hackleburg’s boys, who placed fourth with 62 points. Phillips was 22nd with five points.
Marion County
Several Marion County softball teams are headed to regionals this week after advancing through their area tournaments last week.
A Coosa Christian player is knocked off his feet by a slide from Hackleburg’s Seth Ables. Looking on is Panther Jaxon Fincher.
HACKLEBURG — The Hackleburg Panthers have been on a tear this year, and the post season has been yielding incredible results for the Panthers.
Hackleburg matched-up against Coosa Christian on Thursday, May 4, and the force was certainly on their side in their two game series.
In the first game of the series, Hackleburg shut out their opponents 13-0, in a game that saw pitcher Blaise Vickery dominate from the mound.
Hackleburg bats were hot as well as they scored all 13 runs in just four innings of baseball.
WAC
WINFIELD — The Winfield Lady Pirates won the West Alabama Conference Championship on Saturday, April 22.
The Lady Pirates shut out the Lamar County Lady Bulldogs 8-0 and went home early that night after the fifth inning.
The Lady Pirates played a solid defensive game, allowing zero runs from the Bulldogs. Pitcher Kennah Beth Lacy only allowed four hits and threw three strikeouts.
The Pirates scored their first run in the bottom of the second on an RBI by Lexie May.
Ayden Beard takes a run around the bases.
Photos courtesy Amy Marquiss
By Shelly Hess
Courtesy of the Northwest Alabamian
HACKLEBURG — It was a defensive struggle all the way, but the Hackleburg Panthers came out on top in the second round of the high school baseball playoffs, defeating the Lynn Bears in two games at home.
HACKLEBURG — The Hackleburg Panthers won their three game series against Ragland in the first round of the playoffs on April 20-21, in Hackleburg.
Their first of two games on Thursday against the visitors was a close one as Hackleburg had to fight back later on in the matchup to defeat the Purple Devils.
After three scoreless innings for both teams, Ragland took a 2-0 lead in the top of the fourth inning after hitting a two run homer out to center field.
IMAGE TAG HERE
WINFIELD — The Hamilton High School Aggies’ boys and girls’ track and field teams claimed the Marion County championship titles on Wednesday, April 19.
The boys’ team won with 253 points, and the girls team won with 221 points.
In the girls’ meet, Marion County placed second with 205 points, Winfield took third with 72 points, Phillips finished fourth with 48 points and Hackleburg placed fifth with 47 points, leaving Brilliant in sixth with 44 points.
HACKLEBURG — The Hackleburg Panthers won an impressive two game series against Belgreen this past Friday which now crowns Hackleburg as area champions.
Hackleburg won the first game of the series 10-0 with their two pitchers, Blaise and Maddox Vickery, pitching a combined shutout.
The Panthers started their scoring right off the bat as Blaise Vickery drove in two runners off of a single.
From the mound, he allowed just four hits and no runs over four and two-thirds innings while striking out seven batters in the game.
HAMILTON — The Hamilton Aggies were left frustrated after two straight losses against the Central Wildcats on Saturday, April 15, in Hamilton.
In their first game, Hamilton lost 2-0, with Central’s runs coming early on in the game.
Despite early runs being scored, Pitcher Mason Holloway had a strong outing on the mound, surrendering two runs on four hits over four innings while striking out three batters.
Caden Foltz pitched the remainder of the game.
HALEYVILLE — It was a battle to the finish, but the Lady Lions of Haleyville were able to hold off a charge by the Hamilton Aggies to claim an 8-7 victory Wednesday, April 12.
Hamilton was the first team to cross home plate, with Tesney Peoples doing the honors in the top of the first inning. Haleyville came roaring back in the bottom of the inning, with Maddie Wilson getting a home run on a fly ball to left field, bringing Hope Swims and Abby Tidwell home with her and giving the Lady Lions a 3-1 lead.
WINFIELD — On Saturday, April 1, Winfield hosted the Mike Spann Invitational Meet.
Hamilton’s girls claimed third place with 84 points, and Winfield finished in fourth place with 46 points. Marion County finished in eighth place with 32, Phillips was one point lower with 31 and Hackleburg placed 17th with nine points.
In the boys’ meet, Hamilton won with 171.5 points. Hackleburg and Winfield tied for sixth place with 43 points each. Phillips finished 14th with 12 points and Marion County tied with Athens Bible School for 16th with eight points.
Hamilton’s Michaela Otts winds up for a pitch.
The Hamilton Lady Aggies won their home game against Cordova on senior night, April 4.
The Lady Aggies left it late as they snatched victory from the jaws of defeat, winning 8-5 after being down 4-3 in the bottom of the fifth.
The Lady Aggies opened the scoring early in the first inning thanks to an Ella Kelly ground out that led to an RBI.
Emily Jones helped with the scoring, getting one run in from a double in the bottom of the third inning.
FAYETTE — The Winfield Pirates gave their traveling fans much to cheer about following their away game against the Fayette County Tigers on Tuesday, April 4, in Fayette County.
The Pirates, who came into the game with a record of 13-13, were looking to make sure they ended with a positive season record with the season coming to a close.
Brady May scored the first run of the game in the top of the fourth inning after J.D. Ray grounded out to the pitcher.
Pictured are the Marion County Champion Winfield Pirates, front, from left, Molly Kate Elkins, Kylee Harbin, Lizzie Muck, Anna Lynn, Gracie McCarty, Kaylee Parr, Jayci Griffin, Lauren Windham. Back row, Coach William Box, Coach Zac Wakefield, Coach Brad Burroghs, Kylah May, Peyton Burroghs, Ivey Blake Sims, Hanna Kimbrell, Madie Grace Lewis, Lexi May, Kennah Beth Lacey, Willa Simmons, Karrah Parr, Milleigh Miles, Coach Ken Barnett, Makayla May and Aaron Rao.
HACKLEBURG — The Winfield Pirates battled through heavy winds on Saturday, April 1, to win the Marion County softball tournament over the Hamilton Lady Aggies.
The tournament began Friday night, with Brilliant and Hamilton facing off in the first game that afternoon, which Hamilton won.
The second game saw Hackleburg and Marion County play each other.
After the first games, Hamilton and Hackleburg stayed in the winner’s bracket, and Marion County and Brilliant dropped to the loser’s bracket.
WINFIELD — The Winfield Pirates won the West Alabama Conference track meet on Wednesday, March 29.
Winfield hosted the meet, which also included teams from Fayette, Covenant Christian, Lamar County, South Lamar and Sulligent.
The boys’ meet was close, with Winfield and Fayette tied at 168 points after boys’ javelin.
Winfield’s 4x400 team, consisting of Dawson Klein, Wes Estes, Dylan Benton and Dacian Williams, won the relay with a time of 3:51.72 and secured victory for the Pirates.
Runners, throwers and jumpers are back on track this season as the 2022-2023 track and field season continues for Marion County teams.
Winfield hosted its 17th annual Ice Breaker Invitational meet on Saturday, Feb. 25, and several teams from the area showed up to compete.
The Hamilton Aggies’ boys claimed first place with 143 points, and the Lady Aggies finished second place with 136.5 points, behind Brooks’ girls who won with 147.5 points.
Winfield pitcher J.D. Ray pitched 5 scoreless innings to pick up the win versus the West Point Warriors.
WEST POINT — After returning from their annual spring trip to play in the Gulf Coast Classic Tournament in Gulf Shores, the Winfield Pirates once again took to the road to take on the West Point Warriors in Cullman on Friday, March 24.
Winfield got out to an early lead by scoring 2 runs in the first on back-to-back singles by Hayden Ballard and Jarrett Hosch followed by a sacrifice fly by Tyler Mays.
West Point responded with 4 runs in the bottom half of the inning.
Ross Hudson takes a swing for the Panthers.
BEAR CREEK — The Hackleburg Panthers proved why they are tops in their region, walloping Phillips 17-1 Thursday, March 23.
Jaxon Fincher and Blaise Vickery shared pitching duties for the Panthers, with Fincher striking out 7 and allowing 4 hits for 1 run. Vickery struck out 5 and allowed no hits.
Phillips’ Hunter Orman and Bo Green shared pitching duties, with Orman striking out 2 and allowing 9 hits for 15 runs. Green struck out 3 and allowed 1 hit for 2 runs.
Catcher Dalton Davis tries to tag a Deshler player out at home.
HAMILTON — Thursday night ended in disappointment for the Aggies at home as they lost to visitors Deshler.
Hamilton started well defensively giving up very little to Deshler for the first four innings of the game.
The Aggies, however, were not able to get going at the plate and went down looking a few times.
The last four innings of the game is where it all seemed to go wrong for the Aggies as several errors led to runs being scored for the visitors.
Four runs in total were let up in the top of the fifth and sixth innings.
Lady Red Raider Jasmine Wilson, Marion County’s #3, looks to pass her defenders.
Marion County High School’s Lady Red Raiders are the only Marion County team remaining in the regional tournament after every other team’s season came to an end this week.
Marion County
The Marion County varsity girls’ team played against the Shoals Christian Flame on Friday, Feb. 17, and won the game 63-42.
Jasmine Wilson led the way for the Lady Raiders with 15 points, 14 rebounds, 1 assist and 3 blocks.
Lily Robinson scored 11 points along with 3 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals.
MARION COUNTY
Marion County will be sending their boys and girls to the regional tournament this week after both teams won their respective 1A Area 11 championship games.
The Lady Red Raiders tamed the Hubbertville Lions 63-31, and the Raiders won 69-39 over the Lynn Bears.
Both teams will be advancing to the regional tournament this week.
Winfield’s Slate Gilbert (#12) takes his shot over the Hamilton defense.
By Luke Brantley
Staff writer
WINFIELD — The Lady Aggies and the Winfield Pirates won their respective games on Friday night, Feb. 3, at Winfield City High School to wrap up the regular season.
Hamilton’s varsity girls defeated the Winfield Lady Pirates 53-39.
The Lady Aggies took off to an early lead, ending the first half with a 24-19 lead. They continued to outscore the Lady Pirates through the second half to secure the win.
Hamilton’s Aubrey Sorrells led her team in scoring with 20 points and 11 rebounds. Jordan Parker scored 18 points.
Senior Abby Humphries achieves 1,000 points in her basketball career on Jan. 31. Shown are Coach Sawyer Nelson, Head Coach Ryan Sanderson, Humphries and Coach Heath Sanderson.
By P.J. Gossett
General manager
BRILLIANT — The Brilliant High School’s varsity girls basketball team has a 20-8 record and two milestone achievements this season. Senior Abby Humphries is the most recent of these, when she achieved 1,000 career points at the game against Vina on Tuesday, Jan. 31. The other one was by Macy Moore, another 1,000 points achiever, in December.
Hamilton’s Aubrey Sorrells is shown with her 1,000th rebound basketball milestone.
By Louis Mellini
Staff writer
Hamilton’s Aubrey Sorrells was honored for getting her 1,000th rebound in her career for the Hamilton Lady Aggies basketball team.
Sorrells was honored with her milestone basketball and was celebrated by her team and fans at the Hamilton gym before their game against Curry on Friday, Jan. 27.
“Aubrey is special. She’s the type of athlete that every coach wants to coach and that some coaches never get the chance to. I have been very blessed to have that opportunity in my first year,” said Sorrells’ coach Shelby Pace.
Brilliant’s Wes Woodard passes the ball.
By P.J. Gossett
General manager
BRILLIANT — The Brilliant Tigers took on the Hackleburg Panthers on Tiger court Tuesday, Jan. 24. The Lady Tigers won 63-35, and the boys’ game went into overtime with Hackleburg the victor 72-67.
Marion County’s Porshia Lipsey (#11) makes a break toward the lane from the corner.
By Luke Brantley
Staff writer
WINFIELD — The Marion County Red Raiders traveled to Winfield on Friday night, Jan. 27, and won both games.
The Lady Raiders won 61-47, and the Raiders won 69-48.
Marion County’s girls were able to take off to an early lead. They were ahead of the Lady Pirates 35-15 at half time.
Toward the end of the game, the Lady Pirates started to close the gap, but the Lady Raiders held firm until the buzzer sounded on a 61-47 victory for Marion County.
Isabella Cantrell (#33) cheers on Jordan Parker during their win against Curry.
By Louis Mellini
Staff writer
HAMILTON — Both Hamilton’s boys and girls basketball teams picked up a win against visitors Curry on Friday night in the Hamilton High School gym.
The night for varsity basketball kicked off with a huge win for the Lady Aggies.
Hamilton started off a bit slow against Curry, making a few mistakes on the transition but were still able to keep ahead 15-9 after the first quarter.
Hamilton was able to start gaining a slow advantage in the second with the score reading 29-16.
Brilliant’s Tennie Easterwood (#2) winds up to take a three-point shot during the game.
By Luke Brantley
Staff writer
GUIN — The Marion County High School Red Raiders hosted the Brilliant Tigers on Tuesday night, Jan. 10th.
Above: Hamilton’s Meg Wiginton goes for an uncontested layup. Right: Hamilton’s Joshua Webb beats his defender and lays it up.
By Louis Mellini
Staff writer
HALEYVILLE — The Hamilton Aggies varsity boys basketball team fell to rivals Haleyville on Thursday, Jan. 12, in Haleyville.
Hamilton’s boys came into the game with a 3-9 record, having only beaten a few teams in their regular season.
Hamilton’s struggles on both ends of the court continued in their game against Haleyville as the team lost 68-34.
Hamilton’s record currently stands at 3-11, following last week’s three straight losses against Cordova, Haleyville and Marion County High School.
By Luke Brantley
Staff writer
WINFIELD — The Winfield Pirates hosted the Gordo Green Wave on Thursday, Jan. 12.
Both Winfield varsity teams were victorious, the boys winning 60-40 and the girls winning 56-42.
The Lady Pirates took an early 10-8 lead in the first quarter but picked up the pace in the second quarter, scoring 14 more points to Gordo’s 5. Gordo came out of half time and outscored the Lady Pirates in the third quarter but slowed down enough in the final quarter that the Lady Pirates were able to maintain their lead and win the game.
Winfield’s Tinsley Franks goes for a lay up. Shown in the background is Anna Lynn.
By Luke Brantley
Staff writer
WINFIELD — The Winfield Pirates hosted teams from all around the area on Thursday and Friday, Dec. 29-30, 2022, during Winfield’s annual Christmas Classic.
Teams from Marion, Winston, Lamar, Walker and Lauderdale counties competed, and Lawrence County from Tennessee also traveled to play at the Winfield City High School gymnasium.
Brilliant’s girls were the first Marion County team to compete, taking on Lamar County on Thursday. The Lady Tigers lost 52-27.
From left to right, standing: Assistant Coach Brad Cunningham, Coach Derek Trimm, Head Coach Zac Wakefield, Memphis Bowman, Preston Nelson, Hudson Holland, Jarret Hosch, Nick Haney, Drew Cook, Haiden Channell, Dawson Klein, Sean Wyers, J.D. Boman, Thackary Box, Tyler Mays, Miles Miles, Coach Zac Evans, Assistant Coach Jake Elkins and Aaron Rao. Holding trophy: Chris Podmore. Front: Slate Gilbert.
By Luke Brantley
Staff writer
WINFIELD — The Winfield Pirates are the 2022 West Alabama Conference (WAC) champions after a 65-60 victory over the Sulligent Blue Devils on Monday, Dec. 19.
The Pirates defeated the South Lamar Stallions 65-33 in the first round on Saturday, Dec. 17, and advanced to the final round on Monday.
The game was a close, back and forth battle until the very end.
Top: Hamilton’s Kel Battle shoots from downtown.
By Louis Mellini
Staff writer
HAMILTON — The Hamilton Aggies bounced back to winning ways after their win against Sulligent on Tuesday, Dec. 20, in Hamilton.
Hamilton suffered three losses in a row, one of which was to Sulligent, before their rematch against the Blue Devils.
Hamilton and Sulligent were very close in the game, but Hamilton was able to pull away in the later stages of the game with a couple of big three pointers.
Both the Aggie fans and players were pumped up towards the later stages of the game with a rare victory in this season in sight.
By Louis Mellini
Staff writer
TUSCUMBIA — For the first time in the regular season, it’s back to back losses for the Marion County Red Raiders at Deshler.
Marion County came into the game with a 9-2 record after their loss against Midfield on Saturday, Dec. 17.
Marion County started the game well, scoring 21 points in the first quarter of the game to Deshler’s 16.
Deshler, however, was able to pull away from the Red Raiders quite quickly in the second half, scoring 27 to Marion County’s 15.
Emma Hall is on defense for the She Bears in their win over Hackleburg.
By Shelly Hess
Courtesy of the Northwest Alabamian
BEAR CREEK — The Phillips Bears had a banner week on the court, knocking off two of their area rivals on Tuesday, Dec. 13.
The Bears welcomed Belgreen and came out with a strong 55-41 victory. It was the first time the Bears have defeated Belgreen in seven years, as well as Belgreen’s first area loss in four years.
Hamilton’s Kel Battle tries to shake his defender.
By Louis Mellini
Staff writer
MARION COUNTY — The Marion County Red Raiders have continued their flying form this past week as they bumped their record up to 9-2 for the season.
After winning their game against Brilliant on Friday by an impressive scoreline of 71-13, the Red Raiders were held to a score below 70 for only the second time this season as they lost 78-62 against Midfield on Saturday.
The Red Raiders will play their next game against Deshler away from home tomorrow night.
Winfield’s Jayci Griffin keeps ahead of Fayette Lady Tigers during the West Alabama Conference.
By Luke Brantley
Staff writer
WINFIELD — Winfield City High School is the host of this year’s West Alabama Conference tournament, which began Friday, Dec. 16, and concluded Monday, Dec. 19.
The Winfield Lady Pirates played against the Fayette County High School Lady Tigers in the first round of the tournament on Friday night.
The Lady Pirates and Lady Tigers fought tooth and nail throughout the entire game. The first quarter ended in a 7-7 tie, and at the end of the second quarter, the Lady Pirates led by one point 16-15.
The 2022 Red Raider boys’ varsity team stands with their trophy. Left to right, back row: Assistant Coach Tyler Markham, Landon Morrow, Tye Madison, Jameson Webb and Kaison Bishop. Front row: Head Coach Casey Fox, Zach Lamoureux, Jake Smith, Brooks Junkin, Reese Harris, Dee Lipsey, Joe Aldridge and Assistant Coach Kyle Williams.
By Luke Brantley
Staff Writer
HUBBERTVILLE — The Marion County Red Raiders boys’ and girls’ basketball teams won the Northwest Alabama Conference (NAC) tournament last week.
Marion County traveled to Berry on Thursday night, Dec. 8 for the first round. The Lady Raiders blew Berry away 87-10. The Raiders also won by a wide margin with a score of 86-29.
The Raiders’ top scorer against Berry was Joe Aldridge with 23 points, 11 assists and two blocks. Landon Morrow scored 18 points and recorded 13 rebounds, six steals and four blocks.
By Louis Mellini
Staff writer
HAMILTON — The Hamilton Aggies have had a season of ups and downs so far, and this past week was no different.
With a record of 1-2, Hamilton came into their game against Brooks on Monday, Nov. 28, looking to steady their season with a win.
The Aggies were successful in their battle against Brooks, winning the game 57-47.
Following their win, Hamilton faced off against Russellville at home on Friday, Dec. 2.
Hackleburg’s Braiden Godwin lays it up.
By Louis Mellini
Staff writer
LYNN — The Hackleburg Panthers lost their second matchup of the season against the Lynn Bears on Thursday, Dec. 1, in Lynn.
Hackleburg lost the game 54 to 47 in a game that now brings their season record to 0-2.
Hackleburg started the game well, scoring just one point more than Lynn in the first quarter. Lynn was able to pull away from the Panthers in the second quarter, scoring 20 points to Hackleburg’s 13.
The sides were just one point apart in the third quarter with Hackleburg scoring 10 points to Lynn’s 11.
Brilliant’s Elijah Harding goes up for a shot.
By Louis Mellini
Staff writer
BEAR CREEK — The Phillips Bears defeated the Brilliant Tigers in a matchup that took place on Thursday night, Dec. 1, in Bear Creek.
The home team was good defensively, stopping Brilliant from putting a good run together.
Following their win against the Tigers, Phillips went up against Vina away from home.
As of press time, this game had not yet been played.
After their home game against Brilliant, the Bears’ record sits at 3-1, which is a good start for the season ahead.
Marion County’s Dee Lipsey runs down the court.
By Luke Brantley
Staff writer
GUIN — Marion County beat the Winfield Pirates after taking an early lead and keeping the pressure up the whole game on Thursday, Dec. 1
The score at the end of the game read 66-52, in favor of the home team.
Winfield stayed close but couldn’t put up enough points to overtake the Raiders.
The Pirates’ J.D. Boman was the top scorer for the Pirates with 15 points, five rebounds, one assist and one steal.
Marion County’s Alecia Shack scores.
By Luke Brantley
Staff writer
GUIN — The Winfield Lady Pirates defeated the Marion County Lady Raiders 60-50 on Thursday, Dec. 1
The Lady Pirates’ first victory of the season brings their record to 1-4.
It was a close game through the first quarter, which ended with both teams tied 10-10. But the Lady Pirates pulled ahead in the second quarter, scoring 18 points to Marion County’s nine and going into the locker room at half time with a 28-19 lead over the Lady Raiders.
