Prep Notebook: Lady Pirates haul in Lookout Valley title

South Pittsburg softball coach Vic Grider talks to his team, including daughter Victoria Grider (22), during a game at Lookout Valley on March 17. The Lady Pirates returned there last weekend and went 5-0 in the Lady Yellow Jackets' home tournament.
South Pittsburg softball coach Vic Grider talks to his team, including daughter Victoria Grider (22), during a game at Lookout Valley on March 17. The Lady Pirates returned there last weekend and went 5-0 in the Lady Yellow Jackets' home tournament.

The South Pittsburg High School softball team put an end to a long championship drought last weekend.

Current Lady Pirates coach Vic Grider was also their coach in an earlier stint in the early 1990s. He told his team before playing in the Lookout Valley Invitational that the program had not won a tournament of any kind since winning the District 6-A championship when he was in the job before.

"I thought if we played well, we'd have a chance to be pretty successful," said Grider, who watched his team go 5-0 in the tournament, defeating the host Lady Yellow Jackets 7-3 in the final.

Hunter Elwood went 4-for-4 in the championship game. Grider also liked what he saw in the title game from freshman Dara Durham, who got the pitching victory in relief of tournament workhorse Kayla Coffelt.

Grider added that he sort of hated to see spring break come this week since the team is on a bit of a roll. He hopes the confidence level will remain when they resume play next week.

Max Shulman, Henley Edge pick University of Alabama in Huntsville

McCallie's Max Shulman and Henley Edge will continue their basketball careers with the University of Alabama in Huntsville, an NCAA Division II power that went 26-8 this past season.

Shulman, a 6-4 forward, and the 6-5 Edge helped the Blue Tornado reach the Division II-AA state final. On a deep team, Shulman averaged 10.4 points, 5.6 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game; Edge averaged 7.2 points and hit 35.5 percent of his 3s and 82.5 percent of his free throws.

"It's a perfect fit for me," said Shulman, son of McCallie coach John Shulman, UTC's head coach from 2005 to 2013. "The coaching staff is great, it's close to home, and I really like their (up-tempo) playing style."

"They've got one of the best coaches in DII in the country, Lennie Acuff, and the system fits how I play," Edge said. "And we decided separately, but it's definitely a bonus for us to be going there together."

"Both of these kids are going to the right fit," Coach Shulman said. "Lennie Acuff does a great, great job, and they've been to something lke five out of seven Sweet 16s. I'm proud for both of them.."

photo Ali King

Ali King chooses Vol State

On Thursday at Walker Valley, senior Ali King signed softball scholarship papers with Volunteer State Community College in Gallatin, Tenn.

Walker Valley coach Lauren Limburg said she has seen great improvement with King's range this year in her second season as the Lady Mustangs' starting second baseman. In three years, she has compiled a .314 batting average with three home runs, 16 doubles and 40 RBIs to go with a .913 fielding percentage.

"Ali is super athletic," Limburg said. "She hits the ball with a lot of power. She can make all the throws. She's really stepped into a leadership role for us this year. She's constantly working to get better. She's a hard worker. She does really well in the classroom. She's going to be a great player for Vol State. They're getting a really good one."

Softball at Summit

The Jim Frost Ooltewah Invitational softball tournament is this weekend at The Summit of Softball Complex. Twenty-three teams will be competing, including two from Alabama and one from Ohio.

Six fields will be in use for pool play, which is scheduled to begin at 3:30 p.m. today. Twenty-four games are scheduled today and two more pool-play games on each field are slated for Saturday, starting at 9 a.m.

Based on pool results, teams will be divided into Gold and Silver brackets for single-elimination, with those games to start at 12:15 p.m. The Gold final is scheduled for about 6 and the Silver final is at approximately 7.

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