Story by Cinthia Rico
Skyline softball team finished its 2022 season as Class 1A State Runner-up with a 31-18 overall record, an Area 15 championship, regional title and a Gadsden Umpires Tournament title.
Skyline 4, Woodland 3
The Vikings started its AHSAA State Softball Tournament strong with a 4-3 victory over Woodland last Friday at Choccolocco Park in Oxford.
The Bobcats captured three runs at the top of the third for a 3-0 lead over Skyline. When the Vikings answered with four runs in the bottom of the fifth, for a 3-4 lead.
Jayla Ross, Audra Bellomy, Brinlee Potts and Gracie Rowell all plated runs for Skylines’ big inning. While Dacey Allen led the Vikings on the mound,
Brantley 3, Skyline 2
In game two, the Vikings fell short 3-2 against Brantley in the eighth inning. The teams battled for dominance with strong pitching on both sides when Little singled on a 1-1 count, scoring two runs for the Bulldogs.
Skylines Treece surrendered six hits and three runs while striking out six over seven and third innings.
Ross led the Vikings with three hits in three at-bats.
Navarre led Brantley on the mound allowing five hits and two runs while striking out 11 over eight innings. Little went 2-for-3 at the plate leading the Bulldogs in hits.
The loss landed Skyline in the elimination bracket, where the Vikings clawed their way to the championship.
Skyline 6, Waterloo 5
The Vikings kicked off with tremendous thunder as they bested Waterloo 6-5 in their first elimination bracket game.
Audra Bellomy scored on a passed ball, followed by another run from Brinlee Potts, who scored on a hit from Olivia Treece.
Skyline further increased their lead with four runs in the second when Jayla Ross hit a single and Lauren Woodall scored, followed by Ella Dean, Gracie Rowell and Ross collecting runs for a 6-0 advantage.
The Vikings Olivia Treece led Skyline on the mound as they held Waterloo’s comeback efforts in the third inning despite the Cougars raking up five runs.
Skyline 8, Woodland 1
Skyline blew past Woodland with an 8-1 victory after capturing an early lead.
The Vikings scattered runs across seven innings from Audra Bellomy, Brinlee Potts, Olivia Treece, Dacey Allen, Blakely Stucky, Gracie Rowell and Carley Knight for a Skyline victory.
Skyline 1, Brantley 0
Skyline defeated Brantley 1-0 to advance to the state championship game. Potts scored the Vikings’ lone run of the evening.
The Vikings needed two wins against Holy Spirit to claim the state title.
Holy Spirit Catholic 3, Skyline 1
Skyline (31-18) fell short 3-1 against Holy Spirit Catholic in game one of the championship. The Vikings’ lone run of the game came on an RBI single from Brinlee Potts, scoring Jayla Ross, and hit into three straight groundouts to end its final opportunity in the game.
Dacey Allen was tagged with the loss, over five innings and allowing three runs on five hits while recording four walks and four strikeouts. Potts was 1-for-3 with an RBI single, scoring Ross, and Ella Dean had a single in the third inning. Treece, Allen and Potts were named to the Class 1A All-Tournament Team.
