POST SEASON SOFTBALL RECOGNITION

Winning the 3A Area 15 championship and doing well in the North Regional before their journey was stopped by Colbert Heights, our varsity softball team had a fantastic season this year.  

A number of Lady Devils received post season honors recognizing their outstanding individual seasons. Photos provided by Down Home Portraits

HAVEN KIRBY
*All State first-team selection as a utility player.
*Decatur Daily All Area
A middle infielder who is one of the top hitters in the state at .629, she had 83 hits, including 28 doubles and 11 home runs.
*Athens News Courier All County First Team

AUTUMN DAVIS
*All State second-team selection as a pitcher
*Decatur Daily All Area
The Red Devils' top pitcher went 16-9 with 123 strikeouts in 123 innings.
*Athens News Courier All County First Team

MALENA BUTLER
*Athens News Courier All County Second Team

HANNAH USERY
*Athens News Courier All County Second Team

BRILEE MILLER

*Athens News Courier All County Honorable Mention

DAKOTA'S BIG DAY

Elkmont has a softball program that regularly has players move on to the next level.  Several are at Calhoun Community College; one is Dakota McCurley.  Elkmont native Dakota McCurley had a big day as Calhoun Community College moved to 4-0 on the season with a sweep of four-year college Martin Methodist's junior varsity team February 16. McCurley totaled four hits, including a home run, to lead the Eagles to the sweep. Calhoun won the first game 8-3; in the opener, McCurley led the offensive attack with two hits and three RBI's.  McCurley picked up two more hits and a home run in the second game to help pave the way for 7-5 win.

ATHENS NEWS COURIER ARTICLE LINK

ELKMONT RED DEVILS RECOGNIZED

The 2017 All Limestone County Baseball Team has been released. Several of our Elkmont Red Devils made this team. You can get a hard copy for your scrapbooks from the Athens News Courier office until Monday. 

FIRST TEAM:Jackson Cook

Pitcher/Third Base

*7.5 record with 3.01 ERA in 70 innings pitched, 45 strikeouts and four saves. .345 batting average, 34 RBIs, 32 runs scored and six stolen bases.

Brady Garris

Catcher

*.338 batting average, 37 RBIs, 20 runs scored and four stolen bases.

HONORABLE MENTION:
Hunter Pitman - Short Stop

Brett Parker - Pitcher

Bryce Tyler - Infielder

GOODBYE TO OUR SOFTBALL SENIORS

Each year, Elkmont says goodbye to its seniors.  The Lady Devils Softball program said goodbye to three young ladies that have been a part of this softball program for the past six years.  They have performed at every level of softball play at Elkmont High School.  They may be small in number but big in their leadership roles.  These ladies have represented our school, their teams, and their families well, and we want to recognize them at this time.

Gracen Clinard

Gracen is the daughter of Lynn and Tammy Clinard.  She is a member of Senior BETA Club, Mu Alpha Theta, FCCLA, and Limestone Gifted Program.  Gracen has served as senior class vice president this year.  She was also a member of the volleyball team.  She volunteers with the Dalton Scott Memorial Ride and works the Limestone County Special Needs Rodeo every year.  Gracen is a member of First Union Baptist Church and plans to attend Calhoun in the fall.  

 

Leigha Smith

Leigha is the daughter of Kenney and Tavvy Smith.   Leigha is Secretary of the Senior Class.  Leigha played volleyball and is a member of the FFA Chapter on campus where she has served as Vice-President this year.  Leigha attends Pettusville Church of Christ. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with friends and family. She plans to attend Calhoun in the fall.

Leah Seibert

Leah is the daughter of Wade and Kay Loggins.  She has been a member of the cheerleading squad for the past 6 years.  Leah is a member of the Senior Beta Club, Mu Alpha Theta, and serves as a FFA Student Advisor.  Leah was chosen as Most Friendliest by her senior class peers.  She was Limestone County’s Spirit Award Winner.  On April 10, Leah was honored at the AHSAA Awards Banquet for being the recipient of the Class 3A Bryant-Jordan Foundation Award.  Leah is a member of the Elkmont Church of Christ.  In the fall, Leah plans to attend Calhoun.

photos by Robby Newport

ELKMONT PLAYERS HONORED

The 2016 Coaches All-County Baseball Team has been released. Several of our Elkmont Red Devils made this team. You can get a hard copy for your scrapbooks from the Athens News Courier office this week. 

FIRST TEAM:
JORDAN NELSON

Led the Red Devils with a .412 batting average while stealing 22 bases. 

Jordan Nelson is the son of Kim Robinson and Warren Nelson. Jordan has lettered in Football, Basketball, and Baseball since his freshman year. He received All-Area Honors for Football his senior season, All-Area, All-County, and All-County Tournament Honors for Basketball his senior season, All-County Honors for Baseball as a junior and was selected to the East and West All Star Game his junior and senior seasons.

ELI HOBBS 

Eli Hobbs is the son of Jay and Heather Hobbs. He has played Football, Baseball and Basketball for 6 years. He received All-County and All-Area 1^st Team Honors for Football his junior and senior seasons, All-County Baseball his junior season and was selected to play in the East and West All Star Game his senior season.

ELKMONT AND THE LEGENDS

The Legends is a 10u Allstar team made up of players from East Limestone and Elkmont. They have won the District and Area tournament and will play for a state title this weekend in Madison. 

Elkmont players on the team are

Bryson Miller

Corder Hobbs

Curtis Hobbs 

 Clay Looney 

 *picture not available*

East Limestone Players:
Chase Newby, Cole Carter, Gunnar Lambruschi, Brody Stinson, Caiden Dumas, Andrew Holman, Austin Reynolds, Andrew Boggs and Landon Storey from East Limestone.

THORNE CROWE - AREA DIZZY DEAN CHAMPION

We have an Elkmont connection, Thorne Crowe, to the 6U Limestone County Allstars.  They are the undefeated champions in the district and area Dizzy Dean Tournaments.  Thorne and his team have qualified to play in the 2016 State Dizzy Dean Tournament to be held in Madison later this month.

HANNAH USERY - CLASS "B" STATE SOFTBALL CHAMP

Elkmont had two softball players win State Championships title last weekend. Brilee Miller and the Sidewinders won the 12U Class "A" tourney and Hannah Usery, who plays for the Madison Mayhem 14 U, won the Class "B" State Championship.

Madison Mayhem played last Saturday in Fultondale in pool play. They played The North Alabama Starz, losing 11-0. Next up was the DiamondZ, bounced back for a 6-5 win.  They were seeded second in  pool play.

Saturday evening, double elimination tournament bracket play started. They beat the RS Cleats, 6-2 and the Birmingham Mustangs 02, 6-5.   The Mayham squared off against the North Alabama Starz again and this time, took the win, 2-0. Undefeated in double elimination bracket play and staying in the winners' bracket, they faced the Shoals Rythm in the championship game.  Madison Mayham won, 5-3.

 

Hannah is taking this weekend off, followed by an Exposure tournament scheduled to be in Athens, Al July 8/10th. After that the team will head to Pigeon Forge to play in the SEAA World Series, July 17th/23rd.

Hannah has played with this team for 2.5 years. She's been with the team since Coach Tim Matthews put  the team together in the fall of 2014.  Last year, they placed fourth in the Class C State and fifth in C class World Series.  Later in the fall of 2015, the Mayham took second place in the USSA and NSA State tournaments. 

Hannah will be a sophomore this year at Elkmont High School and plays for the Elkmont Lady Devils.

BRILEE MILLER - CLASS "A" STATE CHAMPION

Brilee Miller, one of our young Elkmont softball players, is part of the 12U Sidewinders team.  She recently brought home some flashy jewelry in recognition of claiming the "A" Class State Tournament championship last weekend.

The USSSA State tournament was held this past weekend in Fultondale. The Sidewinders started out Saturday in pool play going 1-1 and were seeded 2nd in their pool. After a lengthy rain delay, play resumed. The Sidewinders '03 beat Alabama Elite, Comets '03, Sparks Elite '03 to advance to the championship game late Sunday afternoon. 

The Sidewinders went down 0-3 in the early innings . The girls battled back to tie the game, 3-3. In the top of the 5th, the Vipers surged ahead 7-3. The Sidewinders proved they weren't giving this game up without a fight. They scored 4 runs in the bottom of the 5th with time elapsed. 

The game went to the international tie breaker (ITB). In a ITB, the last batter from the previous inning goes to second base and play starts from that point. The Vipers were up first in the ITB and went ahead 8-7.  Now it was the Sidewinders' turn. Kaylee Shierling was placed on second base and Brilee Miller was first up to bat. Brilee hit a double to center field, scoring Kaylee for a RBI and knotting the score at 8-8. Next, Hannah Duncan hit a ball to center field. The ball was thrown to third in an attempt to throw out Brilee but it was too late as she stood on base. The Vipers tried to intentionally walk the next batter, Aiden Bellomy. Aiden was having none of that and she swung, hitting the ball to the short stop and scoring Brilee.  Brilee crossed the plate, crowning the Sidewinders as the "A" Class State Tournament Champions. 

They are coached by Chad Dickerson, David Shedd and Slade Bellomy. The team is based in Albertville. Brilee has played for the Sidewinders '03 for two seasons. She sees action at the diamond's corners, first and third bases.

ELKMONT HAS TWO STATE SOFTBALL CHAMPIONS

Elkmont had two Softball players win a State Championship title last weekend. 

Hannah Usery who plays for the Madison Mayhem 14 U won the State in the Class "B" division. 

This smile makes the 1800 hours Mom spends at the ballpark well worth it!!!

Brillee Miller from the Sidewinders won the State Title in the 12u "A" Class. 

The Elkmont Lady Devils year in and year out have a great season and are one of those teams you don't want to appear on the softball team schedule.  This success starts outside of the high school season.  These girls and their families invest a lot of time to develop this talent. They play on travel teams throughout the summer and into the fall. 

As Hannah's mom states, "This smile is why we are at the ball park twice a week after a long day at work for practice , almost every weekend for 5 to 6 months a year, Sunday pitching lessons, countless hours of at home practice, why we are always broke, (Softball is expensive ), why we have 3 and 4 yr cars that already have high mileage on them, why our yard looks like a jungle most of the time...etc. However ,I wouldn't want to spend my time any other way. This smile is worth any and every sacrifice we make."

ELKMONT CONNECTIONS - 8 YEAR OLD ALL STARS

8 year old All Stars for Limestone County won the District Tournament last weekend. 

Elkmont Players: 

Hayden Hill

Tavien Cannon

Holt Kennedy

Turner Wray

Skyler Adams

Our Limestone All-Stars will be playing in the area tournament this weekend. They played last night against the Good Hope Nationals and won 16-1.

REBEKAH SELECTED AS COUNTY'S MOST VALUABLE PLAYER

Rebekah Inman swung for the fences this season for Elkmont and Limestone County coaches have taken notice. Inman was voted as the 2016 Most Valuable Softball Player, by the county's six head softball coaches.  She was also selected for the
2016 Huntsville All-Region Softball Team and the 2016 Al.com Super All-State Softball Team.

Although she played center field for the Red Devils, Inman was selected as a designated hitter on the Class 4A All-State team earlier this month. It's a position any team would be happy to have her, after the senior hit a county-best 17 home runs this season.

“She really came on as a senior,” said Elkmont head coach Mary Jane Hobbs. “She worked hard in the offseason and made her mind up that she wanted to go out on top.”

Inman led the Red Devils to the Super Regional tournament last month in Huntsville. She finished the season with a .504 batting average, 73 RBIs, 53 runs and struck out only 14 times all season.
“I don't know if I've ever had (a players) that had that many home runs,” said Hobbs. “When you can put together 17 home runs in one season, you are going to win a lot of games. And she saw the ball well enough that she only struck out 14 times. She had the mindset that every time she went to the plate, she was going to try to hit a home run”

Inman really came on for the Red Devils in the Limestone County Tournament in April. In the opening game against Clements, she had a double, two home runs and five RBIs. After that outing, no one in the county wanted to face her. Against East Limestone later in the tournament, Inman was intentionally walked six times.  “That was a disadvantage for us, because we couldn't put enough runs on the board,” said Hobbs. “I surrounded her with hitters to try to keep people from doing that.”

This year was one of the strongest senior classes Hobbs has had at Elkmont.

“Bekah has been to enough hitting classes, that she was another set of eyes on the field,” said Hobbs. “She helped critique people and increase their opportunities to hit the ball. She and all my seniors will be missed. They've worked as hard as any group I've had."

Despite several collegiate softball scholarship offers, Inman has decided to pursue a degree in nursing.  She married Justin Kesler a few weeks ago and will be starting the next chapter in her life in South Carolina. 

source: Athens News Courier
*you still pick up a hard copy of the article thru Friday at Athens office

ALL COUNTY BRANDI BENTLEY

Batting behind Rebekah Inman was Brandi Bentley, who also made the All-County team and was an honorable mention selection to the All-State team. She finished the year with a .466 batting average and seven home runs.  Brandi will be playing for the Calhoun Lady Warhawks this fall.

Bentley and Inman led one of the strongest senior classes Hobbs has had at Elkmont.

2016 SOFTBALL ALL STATE 4A TEAM HONORABLE MENTION

The Decatur Daily (Link) has an article about the All State Softball teams. You can click on the above link to see the complete list of teams.

Down Home Portraits

Brandi Bentley has had a fantastic season this year with a .461 batting percentage, eight homers and 51 RBIs. The latest in her post-season recognition awards is being selected as a honorable mention on the 4A All State team.

Down Home Portraits

Catcher: Brandi Bentley, Elkmont, Sr.

Brandi Bentley is the daughter of Steven and Staci Bentley. She has played softball for 6 years and basketball for 4 years. She received All-county and All-Area 1st team her junior and senior seasons, All-county her 10th grade season, and 1st team All-State honorable mention her senior season. Brandi was a member of Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Senior Beta Club, and Spanish Club. She was voted Most Athletic by her senior class. Brandi will be attending Calhoun this fall on an Athletic scholarship. Her plans are to earn her BSN and certification in radiation. She hopes to find time to continue being involved in softball as a coach. 

This fall Brandi will move to the next level as part of Calhoun Community College's Lady War Hawks softball team.