Becomes First Three-Time Girls Champ In AHSAA History

         Senior Janie Jackson overcame a second-round 77 at the Robert Trent Jones Grand National Golf Course in Opelika to become the first three-time girls state golf individual champion in AHSAA history.
        Jackson, from Huntsville High, won the Class 6A championship with a 36-hole total 147 to edge Central-Phenix City’s Alex Harrell by two strokes. Harrell shot a 74-75—149.
        Mountain Brook finished with a two-day 491 total to win its second straight 6A team championship. The Lady Spartans beat runner-up Auburn (246-255—501) by 10 strokes.
        Hartselle takes 1A-5A Crown: Arin Eddy, who finished 12^th in 2011, shot a low round of 72 Tuesday to close out the 1A-5A competition with a 153 total and claim the individual title. The Hartselle standout helped the Tigers claim their fourth straight 1A-5A team crown. Hartselle shot 241-233—474 to win by 56 strokes over runner-up Alexandria. Eddy’s teammate Heather Nail finished second, one stroke back at 154.

Class 4A Championship Series

Game 2: Beauregard 13, Guntersville 0 (5 innings)
     Beauregard senior pitcher John Rogers (10-6) fired a two-hitter over four innings and the Hornets pounded 11 hits in a 13-0 win over Guntersville in game two of the AHSAA Class 4A state baseball championship series Friday.
     The two teams were scheduled to meet in the third game of the best-of-three series Friday at Riverwalk Stadium.
      Kyle Coker gave up one hit in the fifth inning to close out the win. Rogers struck out three and Coker one.
      Catcher Zach Rivers had one hit and three RBIs for Beauregard (37-14). Shortstop Dalton Pritchett delivered the crowning blow – a bases-loaded triple to drive in three runs in a six-run third inning. He also had a single and scored three runs. Rogers also had two hits and three RBIs while Zach Walls and Coker added two hits each.
      Clayton Daniel’s double led Guntersville (28-7).  Starting pitcher Justin Nichols gave up seven hits over 1 2/3 innings to get the loss.

Read more: Beauregard Blasts Guntersville To Even 4A Series

        Senior William Sellers led Montgomery Academy to its ninth AHSAA Class 3A boys state golf championship in the last 10 years as he shot a blistering final-round 64 en route to a 139 total. The 139 was the low total of the tournament regardless of classification.
        Sellers won the individual title in 2011 and tied for the championship in 2010.
        Jacob Harper of Beulah finished second for the second straight year shooting a 70-71—141 to finish just two shots back. Montgomery Academy’s Wells Hooper was a close third at 70-72—142 as the Eagles won by 28 strokes over runner-up Lauderdale County.

Read more: AHSAA Golf Championships

May 16, 2012 - Cooper Bateman, one of the top quarterback recruits in the country, has committed to the Alabama Crimson Tide per numerous reports including ESPN. Bateman stars for Salt Lake City (Utah) Cottonwood High School. He stands 6'3 and weighs about 200 pounds. Bateman is a consensus four-star recruit, and a consensus top-ten pocket passer.

Bateman holds offers from Arkansas, Auburn, Cal, Florida, LSU, North Carolina, Washington, Utah and Stanford.

On the field, the first thing that jumps out about Bateman is his arm. It's huge. Bateman can easily make all of the throws. He plays from the shotgun, but shows the athleticism to be able to play from under center. There's really not much to dislike about Bateman's game. Granted, it's a highlight tape, but he is very accurate, leads his receivers well, throws with timing, touch and anticipation, etc. His release doesn't look to have any major issues, and it appears that Alabama has a good one on its hands here.

ON THE MORNING of Feb. 20, 2011, a man from Singapore walked into the central police station of Rovaniemi, Finland, a town that sits along the Arctic Circle. The man told officers that another Singaporean, Wilson Raj Perumal, was in Rovaniemi on a false passport. He offered no other information before leaving the station abruptly.

Though puzzled by the seemingly random tip, Rovaniemi police put Perumal under surveillance. Three days later, they followed him to a French restaurant near the soccer stadium, where the local club, Rovaniemen Palloseura, had just completed a 1-1 draw. Officers watched as Perumal sat down with three Palloseura players. They saw him scold the players, who cowered in fear. The next day, based on the false passport, the Finnish police detained Perumal. They phoned officials at the Finland Football Federation, who in turn contacted FIFA, soccer's international governing body.

One week later, Chris Eaton, FIFA's head of security, arrived in Rovaniemi. He knew exactly who Perumal was. Eaton informed Finnish investigators that they had just caught the world's most prolific criminal fixer of soccer matches, an elusive figure whom Eaton had been chasing for the past six months.

Perumal had rigged hundreds of games across five continents, generating hundreds of millions of dollars in fraudulent gambling winnings for Asian and European syndicates. He was finally in custody. And he had been turned in by one of his own.

Read more: Bribed Soccer players, fake games. Criminal syndicates can fix any match, anywhere.

Class 2A Championship Series

Game 3: Mars Hill Bible 7, Leroy 1
       Senior left-hander Thomas Burrows tossed a five-hitter and struck out nine to lead Mars Hill Bible (43-7) to a 7-1 state championship win over Leroy.
        Mars Hill has now won four state baseball crowns – 1977, 1978, 2010, and 2012 – including two of the last three at Montgomery.
        Burrows (9-1), named the series MVP, also delivered a go-ahead RBI single in the bottom of the fifth inning which started a six-run rally and broke open the final game. The big senior hit a two-run homer in the first game of the series for the game-winning hit and was walked six times.
        Shortstop Colby Smith also had two hits and two RBIs and J.T. Hudson added a double and two RBIs.
        Leroy (35-9), winners of 2A titles in 2001, 2007 and 2008,  took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first when Cole Dunn walked and pinch-runner Ronnie Reed scored on Joseph Alday’s single. Alday, who got the mound win in relief in game two, finished with two hits. Starting pitcher Chris Ervin also had two hits for Coach Matt Braun’s Bears, who were runners-up in 2011 and 2010.

Read more: Mars Hill Bible Captures Class 2A State Title; Trinity Holds 1-0 Series Advantage In Class 3A

How much trouble can you find going after a foul ball?

According to Tom Weir of USA Today, plenty.

A high school baseball player in New Jersey found that out chasing after a foul ball during a game between Union Catholic and Scotch Plains, as he was physically attacked by a 44-year-old man.

What started with a foul ball apparently ended in foul play.

A township man is facing a charge of simple assault after allegedly attacking a Union Catholic High School senior who ventured onto his property to retrieve a baseball, police said Monday.

And on Senior Day, no less.

“No doubt about it: It was the most surreal experience I’ve had in 11 years as a baseball coach,” Union Catholic assistant principal and varsity baseball coach Jim Reagan Jr. said Monday. “But the kid is fine. I think other than being shocked and surprised at what occurred, he’s OK.”

Read more: Baseball player attacked while retrieving foul ball

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The University of South Alabama softball team will go head-to-head with Georgia Tech Friday at 3:30 p.m. at Rhoads Stadium on the campus of the University of Alabama to open play at its first-ever NCAA Regional.

The Jaguars hold a program-best 39-15 record after going 4-0 to win the Sun Belt Conference Tournament last week in Boca Raton, Fla. USA beat Louisiana-Monroe 6-0, downed FIU 9-1, topped Western Kentucky 4-2 and defeated No. 6 Louisiana-Lafayette 3-1 to take home its first SBC title ever.

South Alabama has six student-athletes hitting .250 or better this season with junior Brittany Fowler leading the way at .346. Fowler also leads the club with 55 hits including 14 doubles, a triple and seven home runs and 40 RBI. Fellow junior Meghan Collins is right behind Fowler batting .336 on the year with 49 hits including a team-best eight home runs.

Read more: USA SOFTBALL TO FACE GEORGIA TECH IN FIRST-EVER NCAA REGIONAL