Alabama

Alabama Crimson Tide Softball Wins Three of Four in Tuscaloosa Tournament

Published

1 year ago

March 8, 2025

Alabama Crimson Tide Softball Wins Three of Four in Tuscaloosa Tournament

The weekend began with the grand return of former long-time Patrick Murphy assistant Alyson Habetz, as well as her top aide, former All-SEC Crimson Tide catcher Lacey Prejean (2000-2003). Prejean was also director of operations alongside Murphy and Habetz for the 2008 and 2009 seasons. The weekend ended with the Tide gifting ULL a win.

GAME 1: ALABAMA 3, ULL 0

After giving up a double to begin the game, Bama starter Jocelyn Briski got the next three out with the second and third outs coming on strikeouts. The Tide sophomore really put on a show. She allowed only three hits and two walks in her first career complete game shutout on 100 pitches.

Habetz learned well from the master and used her own Gut® in opting to start Laffy’s No. 3 pitcher Bethaney Noble. The Rajuns hurler was cruising along until Abby Duchscherer walked to open the 4th inning. After an out, Brooke Ellestad tripled and Marlie Giles homered to left field to give the Tide a 3-0 lead.

Unfortunately, following the round-tripper, the Crimson Tide put their bats back on ice and would not create any more scoring threats. Fortunately, Briski was mowing down Rajuns batters. Outside of those two at-bats, ULL’s Noble was pitching well enough to get a win. Had this been an “off-day” for the Alabama pitching, three runs may have not been enough for the home team to earn the win. Hopefully, we will see more of this kind of performance from Briski.

Audrey Vandagriff stole base No. 28.
No errors!

GAME 2: ALABAMA 12, IOWA 3 (6 Inn. Run Rule)

For the second straight game, the opposing lead-off batter got on base with a double. This time, a run was scored when the next Hawkeyes batter singled. Catelyn Riley would only last 2.2 innings while giving up 3 runs on 5 hits. Emily Winstead pitched the remainder of the game, yielding only a single over 3.1 frames.

For the Bama offense, Michigan native Kali Heivilin went downright medieval on the Big Ten Hawkeyes. Alabama’s only 4-year senior twice went deep and had 6 RBI. Down 1-0 in the bottom of the 1st, Heivilin and Ellestad went back-to-back.

In the top of 3rd, two Iowa singles put runners at second and third bases. A fielding error by Ellestad scored one run and a double scored another to cut the Tide lead to one. It was at this point that Riley was lifted from the game for Winstead.

In the bottom of that frame, Bama got two runs back as Heivilin hit her second round-tripper of the game – a laser missile over the left field fence.

In the bottom of 5th, Riley added another Tide run with a solo shot to left field. But Alabama really put the game away in the 6th. With two outs and nobody on base, Alabama exploded for four runs on a pair of singles, a HBP, a Heivilin triple, and a walk-off run rule home run by Ellestad.

I suppose we can forgive her error. ㋡

The first, second, and fourth Iowa batters each went 2 for 3 and accounted for all of the Hawyeyes’ hits. The rest of the team was a big fat 0-fer with one walk.

Vandagriff stole base No. 29.
Ellestad error.

GAME 3: ALABAMA 5, IOWA 1 – Kendal Clark Senior Day

In the 4th inning, Iowa had a single, walk, and single to open the scoring 1-0.

Alabama answered in the bottom of the inning by scoring 3 runs on 2 hits, a walk and 3 Iowa errors. In that same inning, there was a close play called out at third base. The out was challenged and overturned. The Iowa head coach argued the call and was ejected.

Jocelyn Briski had another fine showing, tossing 5.0 innings and scattering 5 hits and two walks with 1 run allowed.

Freshman Braya Hodges made her second appearance of the season, throwing a 1-2-3 6th inning. Alea Johnson duplicated that feat in the 7th.

Vandagriff stole base No. 30.
No errors.

GAME 4: ULL 4 ALABAMA 3

Vandagriff walked and swiped second base to open the game. A Duchscherer sac fly moved her to third base and Pupillo singled her in. Heivilin singled and Kennedy Marceaux picked up an RBI on a single of her own.

The Gut® opted to start Emily Winstead and probably stuck with her a little too long. In the 3rd inning, the Rajuns put runners at second and third with two outs. The next batter singled the two runners in to tie it up.

In the 4th, ULL again put runners at second and third. At this point, Riley entered the game and gave up a bunt single to give the away team a 3-2 lead.

Laffy scored a fourth run on Heivilin’s second error of the game.

The Tide scored on an error in the 7th but left the bases loaded and snapped their 13 game winning streak.

Vandagriff stole base No. 31.
Four errors: Heivilin (2), Hawkins (2).
The Gut® decided to bench red-hot Ellestad for this game.

NOTES

Curb your enthusiasm, Lollipop Rainbow Unicorns.

The inconsistency of this Alabama pitching staff is mind-boggling. Alea Johnson was lights out all last weekend and then she gets knocked around by Samford. Briski has been sketchy and then tosses a pair of gems. Riley and Winstead are intermittently dominant and rocky.
Ellestad has had some issues with her fielding but it is hard to keep her bat out of the lineup.
Abby Duchscherer cooled off (1 for 8, 1 run).
Marlie Giles (HR, 4 RBI) and Riley Valentine (0 hits, 0 BB, 0 HBP, 0 runs, 0 RBI) shared the catching duties with each starting two games. It is clear who needs to be starting.
Lauren Johnson got one at bat.
Kendal Clark was not so great on her Senior Day. She was hitless (0-6) in two starts over the weekend.
Whenever I see or hear the name “Winstead”, I always picture Mary Elizabeth Winstead (10 Cloverfield Lane, Scott Pilgrim vs the World, Grindhouse). And now you will too. You’re welcome.

MVP

HEIVILIN – 5 for 11 (.455), 4 runs, 7 RBI, 3B, 2 HR, 2 BB
ELLESTAD – 6 for 9 (.667), 3 runs, 4 RBI, 3B, 2 HR, 2 BB, SB
BRISKI – 12.0 innings, 8 hits allowed, 1 run, 4 BB, 4 K, 0 WP, 0 HBP, 2 wins

UPCOMING ALABAMA SCHEDULE

MIDWEEK ROAD TRIP

Tuesday, Mar 11 at South Alabama 5pm/6pm Mobile, AL

SPRING BREAK SHOWDOWN

SEC play gets under way with the Bullies (19-3) coming to Tuscaloosa.

Friday, Mar 14 vs Mississippi State 6pm/7pm
Saturday, Mar 15 vs Mississippi State 2pm/3pm
Sunday, Mar 16 vs Mississippi State 1:30/2:30

HOW TO WATCH

¯_(ツ)_/¯ Alabama is not scheduled to have a game televised on regular TV until March 19 vs Florida State. In the meantime, keep shelling out that $12 a month to fill ESPN’s coffers.

#RollTide #Team29

Source link

Click to comment

Alabama

What to know about the Alabama man granted clemency two days before his execution

Published

3 minutes ago

March 10, 2026

Press Room

What to know about the Alabama man granted clemency two days before his execution

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey on Tuesday granted clemency to a man on death row who was scheduled to be executed Thursday even though he did not personally kill anyone.

Ivey commuted Charles “Sonny” Burton’s death sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Burton, 75, was convicted of capital murder for the shooting death of Doug Battle during a 1991 robbery. Another man, Derrick DeBruce, shot Battle after Burton had left the building.

The 1991 murder and legal proceedings

The shooting occurred Aug. 16, 1991, during a robbery at an AutoZone auto parts store in Talladega. Doug Battle, a 34-year-old Army veteran and father of four, was shot and killed after entering the store during the robbery.

Before they went inside, Burton said if anyone caused trouble in the store that he would “take care of it,” according to testimony.

As the robbery was ending, Battle entered the store. He threw his wallet down, got onto the floor and exchanged words with DeBruce. LaJuan McCants, who was 16 at the time, testified that Burton and others had left the store before DeBruce shot Battle in the back.

A jury convicted DeBruce and Burton of capital murder and both were sentenced to death. During closing arguments, a prosecutor argued Burton was “just as guilty as Derrick DeBruce, because he’s there to aid and assist him.” Prosecutors pointed to the statement about handling trouble as evidence that Burton was the robbery leader. Burton’s attorneys have disputed that he was the leader.

DeBruce had his death sentence overturned on appeal after a court agreed that he had ineffective counsel. DeBruce was resentenced to life imprisonment and later died in prison.

Ivey’s reasons for granting clemency

Ivey said she “cannot proceed in good conscience with the execution of Mr. Burton” when the triggerman had his sentence reduced to life imprisonment.

“I believe it would be unjust for one participant in this crime to be executed while the participant who pulled the trigger was not,” Ivey said in a statement. “To be clear, Mr. Burton will not be eligible for parole and will rightfully spend the remainder of his life behind bars for his role in the robbery that led to the murder of Doug Battle. He will now receive the same punishment as the triggerman.”

It is only the second time the Republican governor, who has presided over 25 executions, has granted clemency to a person on death row.

“The murder of Doug Battle was a senseless and tragic crime, and this decision does not diminish the profound loss felt by the Battle family. I pray that they may find peace and closure,” Ivey said.

A mix of praise and criticism

The governor’s decision drew a mix of praise and criticism.

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall said he was “deeply disappointed” in the action and said he believes Burton’s execution should have gone forward. Marshall said Burton organized the armed robbery that led to Battle’s death. He said “longstanding Alabama law recognizes accomplice liability, as has every judge that has touched this case over three decades.”

“There has never been any doubt that Sonny Burton has Douglas Battle’s blood on his hands,” Marshall said.

Alice Marie Johnson, whom President Donald Trump had tapped last year as his “pardon czar,” praised Ivey. She said the governor “showed what courageous and common sense leadership looks like.”

“By commuting the death sentence of Charles “Sonny” Burton, she ensured that justice — not technicalities — guides the most serious decision a state can make,” Johnson wrote on social media.

Other Republican governors have granted clemency where there were concerns the person scheduled to be executed was the less culpable defendant. Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt last year commuted the sentence of Tremane Wood to life, matching the sentence of his brother who confessed to the murder.

What happens next

Burton will be moved off of Alabama’s death row, where he has been imprisoned since 1992. However, it is unclear when that will happen. A spokesperson for the Alabama Department of Corrections did not immediately return an email seeking comment.

Burton will spend the rest of his life in prison since he doesn’t have the possibility of parole.

Source link

Alabama

New Alabama football coach Adrian Klemm faces massive task | Goodbread

Published

12 hours ago

March 10, 2026

Press Room

New Alabama football coach Adrian Klemm faces massive task | Goodbread

Adrian Klemm, meet the challenge of a career.

Alabama football’s first-year offensive line coach is one of three new faces at Kalen DeBoer’s conference table. And, next year, history says there might be three more. At the major college level, heavy turnover among assistant coaches is business as usual. But make no mistake; Klemm was DeBoer’s most important hire of the offseason. He might well be the most important hire DeBoer has made in his 26 months on the job.

That’s the magnitude of the mess that Alabama’s 2025 offensive line left behind.

The Crimson Tide’s 2025 rushing attack was an insult to the word attack. It was more like a rushing surrender; ranked 123rd out of 134 FBS teams, and 15th of 16 SEC teams, at 104.1 yards per game. Rock bottom came in the SEC Championship Game, when Georgia sent it backward for minus-3 yards. It’s frankly remarkable that quarterback Ty Simpson assembled a 28-5 TD-INT ratio, as a first-year starter no less, with virtually zero help from a ground game. And while we’re on the subject of the passing game, Simpson wasn’t very well-protected, either. At 2.13 sacks allowed per game, UA ranked 90th in the country.

If Klemm even bothered to watch film of last year’s offensive line, he had to do it with one eye closed.

UA tried all sorts of combinations up front, looking for a solution to what was plainly its biggest problem. In 45 years paying attention to college football, I never saw so many substitutions on an offensive line as Alabama made in 2025. Backups got every chance that could have asked for. On one hand, it was understandable that now-fired offensive line coach Chris Kapilovic refused to stay with a failing five all season.

But it also smacked of desperation.

In the end, it was clear that no combination was effective; the first-team unit Kapilovic finally settled on late in the season was the one that got manhandled by Georgia in Atlanta.

It was a shock to the system for Alabama fans, who know what a dominant run game looks like whether they’re young or old. Jam Miller led Alabama with 504 rushing yards on the season; former UA star Derrick Henry once ran for 557 in a three-game stretch against Tennessee, LSU and Mississippi State.

Miller, of course, is no Henry. But the gap between those two is no bigger than the gap between Henry’s 2015 offensive line and the disastrous line that took the field a decade later.

Klemm is tasked with turning that mess around in a single offseason, with only one returning part-time starter in sophomore Michael Carroll, a promising cornerstone to be sure. But an offensive line is only as strong as its weakest link, and Klemm must find four links to line up beside Carroll. A collection of returning backups, transfers and incoming freshmen have a lot of improvements to make, along with a strong impression on a new position coach.

With spring practice underway, that process has begun in earnest.

And Klemm faces a taller task than any assistant on the practice field.

Tuscaloosa News columnist Chase Goodbread is also the weekly co-host of Crimson Cover TV on WVUA-23. Reach him at cgoodbread@gannett.com. Follow on X.com @chasegoodbread.

Source link

Alabama

Mother who reported AL toddler missing now faces murder charge

Published

1 day ago

March 9, 2026

Press Room

Mother who reported AL toddler missing now faces murder charge

The mother of an Enterprise toddler, reported missing Feb. 16, has been charged with capital murder, said Police Chief Michael Moore.

Adrienne Reid, mother of Genesis Nova Reid, reported her daughter as missing to authorities and said the two-year-old was not in the home and the door was open. On March 9, she was charged with capital murder of a child under the age of 14 and abuse of a corpse, Moore said. March 9 would have been Genesis’ birthday, he said. Adrienne Reid had previously been charged with filing a false report about her daughter’s disappearance.

She is being held without bond, Moore said. Adrienne Reid could not be reached for comment and court records do not show if she has an attorney.

The case shocked Enterprise and southeast Alabama. Hundreds of volunteers searched for her, and people were asked to wear pink to honor her.

Early on in the investigation neighbors told law enforcement that they hadn’t seen the child for several weeks.

Moore said evidence points to the capital murder charge even though Genesis’ body has not been found. The last time she was seen was Christmas night while visiting family in Dothan, Moore said. Video footage at the apartment complex where they lived showed Adrienne Reid about 11:30 p.m. Christmas night pulling a rolling duffle bag to a dumpster at the complex, and throwing the duffle bag inside, he said.

Coffee County Sheriff Scott Byrd said his office began the process of planning to search the landfill early in the investigation. The landfill covers 100 acres. He said the area where the contents of the dumpster that allegedly contained Genesis’ body was likely dumped has been narrowed down to an area covering a few hundred feet.

Active searches will begin soon, he said. District Attorney James Tarbox said the state will be seeking the death penalty.

Contact Montgomery Advertiser reporter Marty Roney at mroney@gannett.com. To support his work, please subscribe to the Montgomery Advertiser.

Source link