TL;DR
Hatton's Eva Armstead set a new Class 4A-7A state record in the 400 meters with a time of 53.31 seconds. Her performance ranks among the top 15 high school times in the U.S. for 2026.
May 2—GULF SHORES — Hatton's Eva Armstead set a new Class 4A-7A outdoor state meet record on Friday, winning the girls Class 4A 400 meters with a time of 53.31.
Armstead's mark was more than 2.5 seconds better than Anniston's Liberty Lewis and ranks among the top 15 times clocked among high school runners in the United States in 2026, according to the AHSAA.
Armstead's performance highlighted a good day for local athletes at the outdoor state championships. The class 4A-7A meet is being held at the Gulf Shores Municipal Track, while the class 1A-3A meet is taking place in Cullman.
Decatur's Kennedy Parham won the girls Class 6A 400-meter championship with a time of 56.46, while a pair of Athens Bible School teammates also won individual gold.
Meredith Romans finished first in the girls Class 1A discus throw with a long toss of 126-10, while Kaylie Key won the girls Class 1A 1600 meters with a time of 5:18.72.
Tanner's Dalyrik Malone finished second in the girls Class 2A 400 meters with a time of 1:01.37 and Athens Bible's KayLeigh Gaines recorded a distance 16-02.75 to finish third in the girls Class 1A long jump.
In addition to her record-setting win in the 400 meters, Armstead collected a second-place finish in the Class 4A long jump with a final distance of 18-07.00. East Lawrence's Analeah King finished third in the event with a 16-02.75.
Hartselle's Chassidy Verser was second in the girls Class 6A discus with a long throw of 123-05 and East Lawrence's Isabella Wright finished second in the girls Class 4A 3200 meters with a time of 11:41.57.
Lawrence County's Katie Mae Coan (10:58.86) and Brewer's Rose Betts (11:08.25) finished second and third in the girls Class 5A 3200 meters.
State meets wrap up Saturday.
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Softball
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Class 5A, Area 16
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Ardmore 7, Brewer 5: Ardmore scored six runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to take a 7-4 lead and held on for the win.
Sulivan Smith had two hits and one RBI for the Tigers, while Makena Hall, Fallon Broadway, Briley Jo Lawhorn and Piper Abbott added one hit and one RBI each. Broadway pitched five innings for the win.
Mackenzie Irmen went 2-for-3 with a home run and three RBIs for Brewer. Taylor Pellem homered, singled and drove in a run and Karli Stanton had a pair of singles.
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East Limestone 6, Priceville 1: Abby Thompson pitched a complete game for East Limestone, allowing just one run on five hits over seven innings.
Kailey Matthews, tripled, doubled and drove in a run for the Indians, while Grace Bielat added a pair of singles and one RBI. Scarlett Brown hit a solo home run.
Brooklyn Tucker had two hits and one RBI to lead Priceville.
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Ardmore 8, East Limestone 4: Ardmore will play for the area championship Saturday after Kadence Wiliams went 2-for-3 with a double and three RBIs for the Tigers.