All-Star Week was a great experience for local athletes

MADISON – Sparkman rising senior Brenner Van DeWynckel had one of his fondest experiences of his years in athletics by participating in the 47th annual North-South All-Star Week baseball competition.

“I would recommend others who have the chance to participate in the All-Star Week to do so as you get to see how many other players who are good and worked hard to get to this elite event,” said the 6-foot-1, 180-pound left handed Van DeWynckel who played outfield and as a left-handed pitcher for the North squad in the twogame matchup. The 13-sport event held in Montgomery was hosted by the Alabama High School Athletic Association and featured rising seniors who were nominated for the event with a committee choosing the elite selected athletes for the competition over a four-day period. Competition was held in volleyball, softball, soccer, tennis, basketball, cross country, golf and baseball.

The results in the matchups which featured local athletes included:

Baseball

The South pounded out a 16-6 win and a hard-fought 7-7 tie with the North to take the 2025 competition with the North still holding a 24-18-5 series lead.

In game one, both squads scored four runs in the second inning before the South exploded for 12 runs over the final three innings for the 16-6 victory. As the lone local athlete participating, Van DeWynckel played right field and pitcher. At the plate, the Sparkman Most Valuable Pitcher from a season ago, went 1-2 hitting a single between third and shortstop in the sixth inning driving in one of two runs the North scored in the final inning of the game. On the mound, he pitched two innings where he gave up four hits and seven runs, three of which were earned, while striking out three among the 14 batters he faced.

“Everything felt good on the mound and I threw some good pitches, but with so many good players on the South lineup they were able to hit some of those pitches,” said Van DeWynckel. “In the second game, I played all three outfield positions with three putouts.” The left handed hitter hit a hard ground ball between second and first for his only hit. In his second at bat in the game he grounded to short. “It was a fun day, but very hot. Overall, I loved the experience as I met some great coaches and phenomenal players.”

Basketball

The South All-Star girls’ team finally snapped the streak. Combining a swarming defense with three-point shoot- ing and tenacious play in the paint, the South beat the North 85-75 to claim its first win since 2016. Despite the loss, the North still holds a commanding lead of 24-4 in the series.

The game featured one local player in Sparkman’s Khloe Bradley. The 6-foot, 135-pound Lady Senator was a substitute in the game first seeing action in the second quarter playing a small forward position for the North. After being a little nervous going onto the court against some great competition and a large crowd on hand at the Cramton Bowl Multiplex Arena, Bradley finally locked in and played the role she was put in the game for. “Yes, I held my own against some good players as I hit a threepoint shot off a good pass, dished out some good passes of my own and played good defense,” said Bradley. “I showed I deserved to be on the court.”

Bradley finished with four points by adding one of two free throws in her eight minutes of action. The game was close before the South outscored its opponent by 10 points in the fourth quarter.

“We only had one short practice and we had to get to know each other very quickly. Before the game, we visited the local Boys & Girls Club where he held a mini-camp with several different skills workouts with the attending kids. Overall, it was a good experience,” added Bradley, who has looks from Austin Peay, Alabama State, Wake Forest and Ole Miss for college play.

Golf

The South golf teams swept the sixth annual competition held at Arrowhead Golf Club. In the series, the North girls have a 4-2 lead while the North boys lead 5-1.

Three local girls helped represent the North, which fell 43.5-28.5 in the match-play format competition. In the first match, Hana Crockatt of Bob Jones teamed up with Katherine Taylor of Tuscaloosa Academy but fell to the South twosome 15-3. The third match featured Lora Prince of James Clemens and Ellasyn Strickland of Northridge and was defeated 10.57.5. The fourth and final match included Ava Solley of Sparkman. She was teamed with Piper Teal of Pell City, but the twosome fell to the South 10.5-7.5.

Volleyball

The South battled for a 3-1 victory over the North in the always exciting volleyball competition held at the Cramton Bowl MultiPlex Arena. Match scores were 25-22, 25-19, 17-25, 25-19 and featured two players from Bob Jones in Mya Lacey and Kendall Buckley. With the victory, the South cut the North’s lead in the series to 16-11.

The South won games one, two and four for the victory. The North did have some outstanding play, especially from the two Lady Patriots. Buckley posted 11 kills on 27 total attempts with 10 digs. Lacey had 13 total attempts with five kills with one dig.

Softball

The South swept the North in the softball twin bill including a no-hitter in game one. The North still leads the overall series 29-27-2.

Madison Academy All-State pitcher Cataryna Schreiber took to the mound in both games. In game one, where the North suffered a 2-nothing loss on a three-pitcher combined no-hitter by the South, Schreiber tossed two shutout innings, allowed no hits and struck out three to finish the game. In game two, Schreiber had two hits at the plate and took to the mound for three innings of work where she gave up three hits and two runs, had one base-on-balls and posted six strikeouts. Despite some outstanding play, the North fell to South 4-2.

Additional results from All-Star Week and series records include: Girls Soccer- South 4 North 3 (North 19-4-1) Boys Soccer- North 3 South 1 (North 17-4-1) Girls Tennis- South 6 North 3 (North 4-1) Boys Tennis- North 6 South 3 (North 4-1) Boys Basketball- South 76 North 65 (North 51-31) Girls Cross Country-North 22 South 37 (North 6-2) Boys Cross Country-North 25 South 35 (North 6-2) Boys Golf- South 56.5 North 33.5 (North 5-1)