Madison Academy baseball team shakes graduation losses
Mustangs enter third round of playoffs this Friday
MADISON – Anyone who tempered preseason expectations for Madison Academy’s 2026 baseball season should be forgiven.
After all, the Mustangs lost 12 seniors – including seven who signed college scholarships – off a team that advanced to the Class 5A semifinals and finished with a 35-9 record.
But here is Madison Academy, again on the precipice of another trip to the semifinals. Standing in the way is a road trip to Moody, a program whose pedigree doesn’t match its opponent, but is no doubt aching to add some history to its resume.
The Mustangs (25-12) and Blue Devils (25-7) are set to tangle in a best-of-three, third-round series beginning with a doubleheader Friday. The winner advances to the semifinals.
Madison Academy rosters just four seniors. The lone returning starter from last season is sophomore catcher Grady Moore. The seniors are Pearson Blue, Ashton Osborne, George Veles, and CJ Whetstone. All start at least parttime and have their roles.
“We started off kind of slow with a lot of people just figuring out the varsity level and getting used to it, but throughout the year we’ve had a lot of people build a lot of confidence,’’ said Blue, the center fielder and team’s table setter in the lead-off spot. “We’ve had a lot of people step up in huge ways.
“We’re hitting our stride right now. A lot of people are really finding their groove as we’re hitting the playoffs right now. So, it’s been great seeing a bunch of younger guys step up.’’
Moody advanced with a 4-0, 6-2 sweep of Sipsey Valley. The Blue Devils got a complete-game, three–hitter from Bryant Hardin in the opener and another complete- game, three-hitter from JB Leatherwood in the second game.
“We know they definitely have two good arms to go through the first two games that have done a good job for them all year long,’’ Madison Academy head coach David Pressley said. “They have been a pitching team at times.’’
Success, Pressley figures, will come to “whoever’s gonna show up and play well and fill up the zone and take care of the ball on defense, that kind of thing. I think the series will kind of go like that.’’
No. 8 Madison Academy Mustangs (25-12)
vs. Moody Blue Devils (25-7)
*What: Class 5A North Sub-State, 3rd round/quarterfinals
*Where: Moody High School
*When: May 8-9 (source: ahsaa.com, 2026 Baseball Sports Book)
*Rounds 1, 2: Madison Academy d. Fairview 6-1, 3-6, 12-5 and Boaz 4-3, 5-0; Moody d. Corner 2-0 and Sipsey Valley 2-0
*Next: Winner plays either East Limestone (25-9) or No. 3 American Christian (32-10) in the semifinals.
*5A finals schedule: Game 1–Thursday, May 21, 2 p.m., Oxford, Choccolocco Park; Game 2 and if Game 3–Friday, May 22, 10 a.m., Jacksonville State University
*2025: Madison Academy–35-9, lost in semifinals to eventual 5A champion American Christian; Moody–15-19, no playoffs
*Playoffs all-time: Madison Academy 1963–current (84-35), Moody 1979-current (8-21)
*State semifinals: Madison Academy (17)–2025, ’22, ’21, ’19 (5A), ’17 (4A), ’16, ’15, ’14, ’11, ’10, ’09 (3A), ’00, 1999, ’96, ’91, ’88 (1A) ’70 (1A/2A); Moody (1)–1992 (3A)
*State championships: Madison Academy (4)—2009, 2014, 2015, 2016 (3A); Moody (0)
*State runner-up: Madison Academy (3)—2017 (4A), ’11 (3A), 1996 (1A); Moody (0)
Notes: David Pressley is in his 10th season as head coach at Madison Academy; Eamonn Kelly is in his 11th season as head coach at Moody. … Though the Mustangs have won more than 20 area championships since their first season (1963), including five straight from 2021-25, they entered the playoffs as Area 15 runner-up this year. … The Blue Devils have won three area championships since 1979, with the last one in 2009. They entered the playoffs as Area 11 runner-up. … The Mustangs graduated 12 seniors from the ’25 team, including seven who signed college scholarships. They have four seniors and no signees as yet this year.
*Sources–Rankings by the Alabama Sports Writers Association (ASWA), Alabama High School Athletic Association ahsaa.com, Alabama High School Football Historical Society ahsfhs.org
