Orange Beach, Spanish Fort Reach Finals on Busy Day at AHSAA State Volleyball Tournament

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Two Baldwin County teams will play for championships Thursday after a long day at the AHSAA state volleyball tournament. Orange Beach and Spanish Fort both won twice Wednesday at the Birmingham CrossPlex to reach the Class 4A and Class 5A finals, while Mobile County’s Saraland and Satsuma saw their seasons end in the first round.

Wednesday was the busiest day of the three-day Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) Elite Eight tournament. Four champions were crowned at Bill Harris Arena, while the Class 5A, 4A, 3A and 2A brackets played their quarterfinals and semifinals in the CrossPlex’s other courts. Those four classifications will decide their titles Thursday.

Orange Beach reaches the Class 4A final

Orange Beach, the South’s No. 1 seed in Class 4A, opened its day with a sweep of Moody in the quarterfinals. The Makos then beat West Morgan 3-1 in the semifinals to earn a spot in Thursday’s championship match.

Their opponent will be the defending champion. Guntersville, the top seed from the North, beat Headland 3-1 in the quarterfinals and swept West Point 3-0 in the semifinals as it chases a second straight state title.

Haley May has led Guntersville in Birmingham. She had 18 kills and 15 digs against Headland, then followed with 19 kills and 15 digs against West Point. Shiloh Stanley added 12 kills and four blocks in the quarterfinal win, and Maddie Wilhelmy had 29 assists, nine digs and three aces. Guntersville entered Thursday at 37-14.

The Makos came to Birmingham as the Class 4A South Super Regional champions after beating Mobile County rival Satsuma in the regional final in Montgomery. Earlier in the postseason, Orange Beach swept Williamson 25-3, 25-5, 25-7 to win the Class 4A, Area 2 title. The Makos reached the state semifinals last season, and this year they took the next step.

Saylor Rambo leads the team in assists, and Ava Capri leads the Makos in aces. The varsity roster, which includes two junior varsity call-ups, features Harleigh Owen, Tynleigh Rowlett, Charlee McInnis, Jane Shilston, Isadora Wall, Jenna Shaver, Livie Clark, Mary B Murphy, Sadie Orrell, Dakota Ford, M’kenzie Glossom, Bailey Turner, Jmo Moss, Bella Rumley, River Grace Gomien and Sloane Stephens.

Satsuma’s run ends in the opening round

Satsuma, the South’s No. 2 seed in Class 4A, was eliminated by North No. 3 West Point in a 3-0 quarterfinal. Satsuma had reached Birmingham by finishing second at the South Super Regional, where they beat Beauregard and Headland before falling to Orange Beach in the final.

Spanish Fort chases a third straight title

In Class 5A, Spanish Fort kept alive its bid for a third consecutive state championship. The Toros, who won the past two Class 6A titles before moving to Class 5A this year, swept Southside-Rainbow City in the quarterfinals behind 12 kills and 16 digs from Cayden Dorger.

Spanish Fort then beat Mountain Brook 3-1 in the semifinals. The Spartans, who finished 43-6, had swept Pike Road in their quarterfinal, with Adele Moffatt recording 13 kills. Spanish Fort entered the day 57-3.

The Toros will face Jasper in Thursday’s 10 a.m. final. The Vikings, the North’s top seed, swept Gardendale in the quarterfinals behind nine kills and seven digs from Allie Rigsby, then beat Austin 3-0 in the semifinals. Jasper was 44-9 entering the day.

Gardendale’s appearance was its first at state since 2005. The Rockets are coached by Merritt Beason, who plays professionally for the Omaha Supernovas of the Pro Volleyball Federation.

Saraland falls in five sets

Saraland, the South’s No. 2 seed in Class 5A, pushed North No. 3 Austin to a fifth set in the opening round before the Black Bears advanced with a 3-2 win. Myah Skanes finished with 22 kills for the Spartans. Saraland reached the state semifinals last season in Class 6A.

McGill-Toolen and Montgomery Academy win private titles

Two of Wednesday’s four championships went to schools in the AHSAA’s new private school classifications, which are being contested for the first time this season after the association separated public and private schools for championship play.

McGill-Toolen swept Briarwood Christian in the Private Class AA final, taking the first set and then the second 25-21 before closing out the match. The Mobile school’s victory was the first state championship ever awarded in a private school classification in any sport, and it gave the Dirty Dozen a fifth consecutive state title after four straight in Class 7A.

Late in the afternoon, Montgomery Academy swept Mobile Christian to win the first Single-A Private championship. The Eagles were chasing their ninth state title and their first since 2023, when they won in Class 5A. Mobile Christian had won the previous two Class 3A championships.

Bob Jones outlasts Thompson for 6A crown

The first title of the day went to Bob Jones, which beat Thompson in five sets for the Class 6A championship. The Patriots won the first set 25-14 and the second 25-16 before Thompson rallied, taking the third set 25-23 and the fourth 25-14 to force a deciding set. Bob Jones won the fifth to claim its third state championship and its first since 2013. The program’s earlier titles came in 2008 and 2013.

Thompson was chasing its third championship and first since 1982 after finishing as the Class 7A runner-up last season. Both Class 6A finalists came from the North. Mobile-area teams Daphne and Fairhope were eliminated in the first round Tuesday.

Addison repeats in Class 1A

Addison beat rival Meek to win the Class 1A championship for the second straight year. The teams were tied at one set apiece after Meek took the second, but Addison pulled away. The title is the Bulldogs’ 16th in volleyball, tied for third-most in AHSAA history.

Class 3A and 2A finals set

In Class 3A, Plainview swept Curry in the quarterfinals and swept DAR in the semifinals. Central-Florence needed five sets in both of its matches. Senior Ta’maya Coman had 31 kills and 15 digs as Central rallied in the fifth set to beat Fayette County in the quarterfinals, and Central then came back to beat T.R. Miller in a five-set semifinal. T.R. Miller had reached the semifinals with a 3-0 win over Wilson.

In Class 2A, Carbon Hill swept Isabella in the quarterfinals, with Addie Mae Crumbley recording 11 kills, and then beat Ariton in the semifinals. G.W. Long swept Pisgah behind 10 kills apiece from Kaylie Foster, Sophie Grace Stephens and Sophie Martin-Tibbets, then beat Fyffe in the semifinals. Fyffe had reached the final four with a 3-0 win over Lamar County, as Natalie Koger posted 15 kills, four blocks, five digs and two aces and Shelby Sisk added 10 kills, 11 digs and four aces.

How the state volleyball tournament works

The AHSAA state volleyball tournament brings together eight teams in each classification, four from the North Super Regional and four from the South Super Regional. Seeds are based on where teams finished at their regionals, with the No. 1 seed from one region facing the No. 4 seed from the other in the opening round.

This year’s tournament features four public school classifications playing a full Elite Eight bracket at the CrossPlex, plus Class 6A, Class 1A and the two new private classifications, which began play Tuesday and finished Wednesday. All championship matches are played at Bill Harris Arena.

Thursday’s championship schedule

All four remaining finals will be played Thursday, Oct. 29, at Bill Harris Arena at the Birmingham CrossPlex.

• 10 a.m.: Class 5A — Spanish Fort vs. Jasper
• Noon: Class 4A — Orange Beach vs. Guntersville
• 2 p.m.: Class 3A — Plainview vs. Central-Florence
• 4 p.m.: Class 2A — Carbon Hill vs. G.W. Long

Wednesday’s champions

• Class 6A: Bob Jones def. Thompson, 3-2
• Class 1A: Addison def. Meek
• Private Class AA: McGill-Toolen def. Briarwood Christian, 3-0
• Private Class A: Montgomery Academy def. Mobile Christian, 3-0