AHSAA CLASS 5A STATE SOFTBALL TOURNAMENT: Wildcats fall to No. 1 Springville, No. 4 Houston Academy

Head coach Jeff Campbell cut his talk with his No. 7-ranked Scottsboro softball team short following their season-ending 7-3 state-tournament loss to No. 4 Houston Academy Monday at Choccolocco Park in Oxford.

“I tried not to talk to much because I didn’t want to get emotional,” Campbell said. “It’s a great bunch of kids.”

Scottsboro was making the program’s sixth all-time appearance in the AHSAA Softball Championships and second in three seasons. The Wildcats finished 0-2 in the state tournament with losses to top-ranked Springville 12-1 and Houston Academy, teams that finished third and second respectively behind the eventual state champion, No. 2-ranked Moody.

“Not our day,” Campbell said. “We made mistakes we don’t typically make and we didn’t hit very well. People who have seen us play know we don’t make those kind of mistakes.”

Scottsboro’s day started on a difficult note, as it was no-hit in a five-inning opening-round loss to Springville

A triple and a wild pitch gave a Springville a 1-0 lead just four pitches into the game, and the Tigers added two more runs in the inning to take a 3-0 lead before upping its advantage to 8-0 after two innings. 

Morgan Perkins scored a run for Scottsboro after reaching on a fielder’s choice in the bottom of the third inning, but Springville added a run in the fourth and three in the fifth to invoke the mercy rule. 

Lana Emanuel and Jurney Hutchins drew two walks each for the Wildcats while Perkins walked and had three stolen bases.

In an elimination game with 2024 Class 4A state runner-up, Scottsboro saw Houston Academy use a four-run fifth inning to take a 5-1 lead. The Wildcats cut the Houston Academy lead to 5-2 in the sixth when Addyson Crumbly singled and scored two batters later on Ali Jones’ RBI single. After the Raiders added two more runs in the top of the seventh, Emanuel walked and scored on Perkins’ RBI double, but a pop-up ended the game.

Perkins finished 2-for-4 with an RBI and Anna Claire Crocker was 2-for-3 for the Wildcats, who got one hit each from Wadkins, Jones, Hutchins and Austin McNeece. 

Campbell said the experience of reaching the state tournament should help the program’s returning players.

“We’ll be back. We’re going to be OK,” he said. “It was good for them to get down here and (experience the state tournament).

Campbell thanked the team’s seven seniors (Crocker, Emanuel, Hutchins, Kylie Horan, Jayda Matayo, McNeece and Perkins) for their efforts this season and throughout their careers.

“Told them to hold their heads up. I don’t think anybody other an than us expected them to be here. We’re going to miss them a lot.”