St. James a win away from the Class 3A state softball championship

Emily Needham’s shut out put St. James in the Class 3A Championship round of the AHSAA State Softball Tourney at Jacksonville State University. (File photo)

By TIM GAYLE

OXFORD -- Emily Needham outlasted Colbert County’s Makayli Davis in a pitching duel to help St. James defeat the Indians 1-0 on Thursday afternoon and advance to the 3A state championship game on Friday.

St. James (37-6-1) will play for the championship on Friday at 4 p.m. at Jacksonville State’s Jana McGinnis Field. Colbert County will play the Madison Academy-Wicksburg winner in a semifinal game, with the winner advancing to the finals against the Trojans. St. James defeated all three teams in games on Thursday.

The Trojans opened play in the 3A state tournament against Madison Academy, winning the opening-round game 5-2. Needham had seven strikeouts and hurled a three hitter. The senior had an RBI at the plate, along with Emily Darby, Lily Sanford and Mary Olive Maddox.

For Madison Academy, Evie Stephenson went 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored. Amiyah Dixon was 2-for-3 with a triple.

Madison Academy dropped into the elimination round of the double-elimination bracket and defeated Randolph County 9-1 and Hanceville 4-0 to earn the right to face Wicksburg.

St. James, meanwhile, defeated Wicksburg 7-1 in a rematch of last year’s 3A finals. The Trojans led 2-0 before a five-run sixth inning broke open the game. Needham was 3-for-4 with a pair of RBIs, while Sydney Johnston had three hits and drove in a run and Lily Stanford added a three-run triple in the sixth inning.

Anleigh Wood’s solo home run accounted for the only run from the defending 3A state champions. Needham allowed just two other hits while striking out seven in six innings of work.

Wicksburg dropped into the elimination round and defeated Glenwood 5-3 to advance to Friday morning’s meeting with Madison Academy.

St. James completed its journey to the 3A finals with a 1-0 win over Colbert County. Needham pitched a one hitter with 14 strikeouts, while Davis scattered five hits and struck out 13. In the bottom of the eighth inning, the Trojans’ No. 9 hitter, seventh grader Koriah Cannon, singled and eventually reached third base before scoring on Sydney Johnston’s grounder to end the game.  

Colbert County had reached the finals of the winner’s bracket with an 8-2 win over Glenwood and an 8-0 win over Hanceville. Now, the Indians will await the winner of the Madison Academy-Wicksburg game to see if they can earn a rematch with the Trojans.

A St. James’ loss will force a second game immediately following the first. The Trojans have reached the finals nine previous times in their fast pitch history, winning championships in 1996, 2001, 2005, 2006 and 2008 and finishing second in 1998, 2002, 2007 and 2025.

All three remaining games were moved to Jacksonville State after heavy rains late Thursday night.