By james art Ohatchee wins five-set thriller over St. Luke’s to earn first place in the state final. Spring Garden reaches the final, a chance to defend its title.
Pairing
STATE TOURNAMENT
CLASS 4A
Tuesday, Oct. 29
Birmingham CrossPlex
Alexandria def. Strawn, 3-0
Orange Beach beat Central-Florence, 3-0
Prattville Christian defeated Cherokee County, 3-0
Madison County beat St. Michael’s, 3-0
Semifinals
Alexandria def. Orange Beach, 3-0
Prattville Christian 3, Madison County 2
Wednesday, Oct. 30
championship
Bill Harris Arena
Prattville Christian defeated Alexandria, 3-1
CLASS 3A
Wednesday, Oct. 30
Birmingham CrossPlex
Ohatchee def. TR Miller, 3-1
St. Luke’s beat Lauderdale County, 3-1
Mobile Christian def. Geraldine, 3-0
Donoho def. Alabama Christian, 3-0
Semifinals
Ohatchee def. St. Luke’s, 3-2
Mobile Christian def. Donohoe, 3-0
Thursday, October 31
championship
Bill Harris Arena
Mobile Christian vs. Ohatchee, 2 p.m
CLASS 2A
Tuesday, Oct. 29
Birmingham CrossPlex
Pleasant Valley def. Horseshoe Bend, 3-0
Mars Hill Bible def. Tuscaloosa Academy, 3-0
Winston County beat GW Long, 3-1
Lindsey Lane defeated Washington County, 3–0
Semifinals
Pleasant Valley def. Mars Hill Bible, 3-2
Lindsay Lane defeated Winston County, 3-1
Wednesday, Oct. 30
championship
Bill Harris Arena
Pleasant Valley def. Lindsay Lane, 3-1
CLASS 1A
Wednesday, Oct. 30
Birmingham CrossPlex
Spring Garden beat Millry, 3-0
Ider def. Kinston, 3-0
University Charter def. Faith Christian, 3-0
Addison defeated Brantley, 3-0
Semifinals
Spring Garden beat Ider, 3-0
University Charter def. Addison, 3-0
Thursday, October 31
championship
Bill Harris Arena
Spring Garden vs. University Charter, Lunch\
Editor’s note: WEIS Sports Director Shannon Fagan contributed to this report.
By Joe Medley
East Alabama Sports Today
BIRMINGHAM — The moment Ohatchee secured its first state final berth was perfect enough to stop Rebecca Henderson in the nexus of tears and a joyous smile, but teammate Alana Fitch gave her the signal.
Not a sign of things to come, but an actual white cardboard sign with a marker-made message asking Henderson for her autograph.
It’s an inside joke between Henderson and Fitch, Henderson said, but it encapsulates a moment for a player and a program that was left behind when a generational player named Jorda Crook graduated two years ago and took her considerable talents to UAB.
“It was tough,” Henderson said. “A lot of people doubted us, especially without Jorda, and we wanted to come back and make our mark and I felt like I had to fill her place since she was gone.”
Ironically, Crook won’t have to go far to see his high school team on Thursday. The Indians (41-9) will play Mobile Christian in the Class 3A state final at 2 p.m. at Bill Harris Arena.
Ohatchee became the third team from Calhoun County to reach this year’s finals and the fourth from the area. Pleasant Valley won the 2A state title on Wednesday and Alexandria finished as the 4A runner-up.
Spring Garden will attempt to defend its 1A title against University Charter at noon Thursday.
Ohatchee got there by defeating TR Miller 20-25, 25-18, 25-14, 25-14 in the quarterfinals on Wednesday, then won in five setters against St. Luke’s, 25-21, 14-25, 22 -25, 25-23 and 15-4.
Mobile Christian swept Geraldine and Donohoe on Wednesday.
Ohatchee made its first Elite Eight appearance since 2009 in 2022, and Crook finished his high school career at the CrossPlex. They will be able to play across the property this year, at Bill Harris Arena, the site of the finals.
“We knew we wanted one more to get there, and this is the team that’s going to do it,” Ohatchee coach Rebecca Hughes said. “This is their heart. They don’t give up.”
This was seen against St. Luke’s on Wednesday when Ohatchee rallied from a 1-2 hole and rallied a few more times to win the fourth set.
They gained momentum as they dominated the fifth set.
Hughes lifted the Indians’ resolve in the fourth set.
“I basically just told them, ‘You don’t want this to be your last set of volleyball,'” she said. “I told them nobody deserved it more than them and we believed in them and they just had to believe in themselves.”
When it was all over, Henderson had to mark a remarkable achievement by signing his signature.
“I tried to advocate for these girls and be a leader,” she said. “It was fun.”
Ohatchee’s top performers on Wednesday:
— Alanna Fitch: 25 kills, 57 assists, two aces, 23 digs.
— Brett Finn: five kills, six aces, five digs, one assist.
— Rebecca Henderson: 54 kills, two aces, 20 digs, one block, one assist.
— Kate Ryan: 26 assists, nine steals.
— Emily Riddle: 18 kills, six assists, two digs, four blocks.
— Isla Crook: four kills, one ace, 12 digs.
— Bailey Fowler: five kills, five digs, one ace, two blocks.
— Savannah Reeves: one kill, five assists, 19 digs.
DONOHO: Donoho advanced to the quarterfinals, defeating Alabama Christian 25-23, 25-17, 25-11, before falling to Mobile Christian 25-, 25-. 25- to finish the season 36-18.
Their season included runs to the Calhoun County semifinals and state semifinals. Seniors Samantha Wakefield, Ryals Jones and Lindsey Brewer saw their careers where the Falcons have spent many late Octobers and early Novembers in recent years … in Birmingham.
This after the Alabama High School Athletic Association’s competitive balance rule for private schools forced Donoho, a Class 1A school in enrollment, to make its second move up, to Class 3A.
“I really didn’t know where the season was going to end,” Donoho coach Anna Taylor said. “I thought we had a solid team at a new level.
“We had a lot of ups and downs throughout the year, we had a lot of players grow into positions, but we got here.”
Donoho’s Top Wednesday Artists:
— Kate Williamson: 10 kills, one assist, three aces, 17 digs.
— Samantha Wakefield: 22 kills, 14 digs.
— Ryals Jones: 11 kills, two digs, three blocks, three aces.
—Kali Taylor: three kills, 44 assists, seven digs, one ace.
— Ava Michaels: three kills, eight digs.
—Bentlee Pahman: one kill, one assist, two aces, 12 digs.
— Chloe Melton: one kill, three aces, seven digs.
— Alana Maldonado: Two kills, two blocks, one ace.
— Lindsay Brewer: a sod.
— Anna Kate Whitson: one ace, four hits, one ace.
Class 1A
SPRING GARDEN: The defending state champion Panthers advanced to the semifinals by defeating Millry 25-4, 25-10, 25-4, then Ider,
The Panthers (38-11) will play University Charter in the Class 1A final Thursday at Bill Harris Arena.
Spring Garden senior outside hitter Ace Austin summed up the Panthers’ time in Birmingham as a business trip, and the proof is in the pudding.
Moments after Spring Garden defeated Ider, Austin and her teammates hurriedly packed up and headed to the Birmingham CrossPlex to watch the other state semifinal game, between University Charter and Addison.
University Charter swept Addison in three sets, setting up a rematch of last year’s state championship. The Panthers swept that match last year 25-12, 26-24, 25-12 to win their first state volleyball title since 2007.
“As a coach, I really like that they’re so pulled together,” Spring Garden coach Ricky Austin said of his team’s focus. “They’re sitting there trying to take on the competition. Maybe they were around me a bit. Maybe I’m getting rid of them a bit.
Like father, like daughter.
“We weren’t too high for that (Ider) win,” Ace Austin said. “We are on a business trip. We know it’s going to be a battle (with a university charter). It’s been kind of an up and down year for us, but I think we’ve picked up after the district tournament.”
“Up” might be understating things a bit.
Since the postseason began with the Class 1A, Area 12 tournament, the Panthers (38-11) have cruised through all of their playoff games.
Spring Garden swept Ider twice during its perfect playoff streak, defeating the Hornets last week in the North Super Regional in Hoover, 25-9, 25-15 and 25-12.
“That’s a tough one to do,” Coach Austin said. “That’s why we try to play above our heads all year, so when you get to your level, you’re still above your level.”
Spring Garden Wednesday’s Top Performers:
—Ace Austin: 42 kills, 16 digs, three aces, one block.
— Avery Steward: 65 assists, four steals, one kill, one ace.
— Maggie Jarrett: six aces, 12 digs, 12 kills, two blocks.
— Olivia Lo: 10 kills, nine digs, two aces, one assist, one block.
— Kristen Lewis: 20 digs, three aces.
— Chloe Fennell: three kills.
— Montana Highfield: two murders.
— Hollis Jane Petty: three aces, one spade.
— Lacie Jo McMurray: two digs.
UNIVERSITY CHARTER 3, CHRISTIAN FAITH 0: The Lions fell 19-25, 11-25, 25-27 to finish the season 22-22.
Top Faith Christian Artists:
—Cheyanne Rice: one dig, eight kills, five blocks.
— Anna Kate Robertson: eight rebounds, 16 assists, one kill, one ace.
—Serenity Pate: two digs, four kills.
— Cason Cronan: 20 digs, four assists, one ace.
— Annie Rickard: five digs, seven kills, three blocks.
— Anna Daniel: five digs, two kills.
— Amy Hubbard: three digs.
— Emma Shaw: three digs, two kills.