Orange Beach Welcomes Lady Makos Home as Sixth Straight State Softball Champions
Coach Alexander praises his players' elite defense and hard work
Orange Beach, Ala. — (OBA) — The Orange Beach Makos made history this weekend by securing an incredible sixth consecutive state softball championship. The community threw a massive welcome home celebration for the team as they returned from Oxford on Wednesday. Fans eagerly cheered as players filed off the bus with their trophy.
The historic dynasty officially began in 2021, when the Makos defeated perennial powerhouse Pisgah, the team that previously held the record with five straight titles in 2001-05. Since that defining year and game-winning home run to defeat Pisgah in 2021, Orange Beach has been unstoppable. Now in 2026, they are champions again.
Superintendent Randy Wilkes praised the team during the welcome home ceremony. He explained that real success is measured by consistency over time. He compared their daily athletic habits to achieving high scores on AAP, ACT, and AP exams.
Wilkes noted that Ava Hodo has caught tens of thousands of pitches over the years. He also mentioned the girls perfectly execute the rare 5-2-3 double play - twice - with the third baseman throwing it home and the catcher throwing to first in a play that works less than one percent of the time.
Families, friends, and fans drove countless miles to support travel ball athletes and help them succeed. Coach Alexander thanked the local police for a thrilling escort off I-10. The tired girls woke up from a long nap to see flashing lights blocking traffic.
Coach Alexander received exactly 354 text messages congratulating him after the victory. He proudly called the Makos the best high school softball team in America. The powerful team averaged eleven runs per game this year, and will give up less than one per game.
The statistics from this season are truly remarkable. The team finished with a nearly perfect 46-1 record. Despite losing four outstanding seniors last year, the new lineup easily filled the voids left by those seniors, keeping the winning tradition alive.
The team was a scoring machine all season long. They scored a massive 493 runs while allowing opponents only 53. Their pitching staff also posted an elite 0.962 earned run average against very tough competition.
Defense was also a major factor in their success. Coach Alexander noted that they turned six double plays during the state tournament. He specifically credited Coach Boyd-Carson and the four other assistant coaches for their behind-the-scenes work.
This achievement is incredibly rare for high school athletes. Coach Alexander reminded the crowd that only one percent of students ever win a single state championship in any sport, and two of his players - Ava Hodo and Teagan Revette - have won six in the same sport.
“The team that sets the standard is the standard,” Alexander said. “This is known as the Mako way.”
Alexander has coached Revette for one-third of her life.
A loyal fan, Andy Andrews, researched this incredible and unprecedented milestone and found that two players winning six state titles in the same team sport is unprecedented in Alabama history. It might even be an unmatched national record.
Hodo saw this incredible run coming. Back in seventh grade, after the state-championship winning home run, she made a bold promise.
"Before I leave here, I'm going to have six," she told her coach. She fulfilled that exact promise. Alexander said the leadership of Hodo and her seven fellow seniors played a big factor in the Lady Makos’ success.
"They show up in practice, they show up and play," the coach said. The team will celebrate graduation tomorrow before taking some much-needed rest.
Alexander also praised the Orange Beach softball “village” to keep the unstoppable softball machine running. On the first day of the tournament, the team woke up at six in the morning and played until that night without taking breaks, with dedicated parents making sure the players had meals.
The historic ceremony concluded with an emotional highlight reel on the big screen, followed by pictures with the trophies and family and friends. They’ll relive it again at the upcoming season-ending banquet.
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