The waiting is the hardest part.

At least according to the great American songsmith Tom Petty.

The Brantley softball team advanced to the championship game late Tuesday night, due to weather delays, and waited another six hours from its original scheduled start time before celebrating another AHSAA blue map to add to its collection.

The third-ranked Bulldogs jumped out to a quick lead and then fended off a “lights-out” rally for a 6-2 victory over No. 2 Leroy in Wednesday’s Class 1A championship game at Jacksonville State’s Jana McGinnis Stadium.

“I really didn’t know how we would come out,” Brantley coach Cindy Hawthorne said. “We’ve been laying around the hotel all day and just waiting and waiting. I stressed bringing the intensity and the energy because, typically, during the season, sitting out and waiting hasn’t worked out best for us.”

Brantley (33-13) went undefeated throughout the Class 1A tournament and outscored its opponents 28-4 in four games. Meanwhile, Leroy fought its way out of the final elimination round following a 13-0 loss to the Bulldogs in the winners bracket final late Tuesday night.

“We run-ruled them the game before and we came in knowing we had to get ourselves and work together,” Navarre said. “When they first hit the ball, we had to pick up our energy in the dugout and shut it down quickly.”

The Bulldogs allowed Leroy to get on base with consecutive singles to open the game, but settled into a rhythm in sitting down the order on a sacrifice bunt, pop out and strikeout. Brantley responded in kind in the bottom half of the first inning and scored two runs on consecutive RBI singles from starting pitcher Kaylee Navarre and Kaitlynn Piggott.

“With a team like (Leroy), I really believe you have to jump on them early before they jumped on us,” Hawthorne said. “Kaylee Navarre came up with a huge strikeout there and can’t say enough about her. Huge, huge asset to our team. She’s a senior so what better way to go out.”

Brantley’s Hope Richardson added a third run in the second inning, scoring Marley Kate Kilcrease who had led off the inning with a triple, and the Bulldogs went up 5-0 in the third on Richardson’s second RBI single and a bases-loaded walk of Emma Crowley. The final run for Brantley came in the fourth inning on an RBI single by Narvarre to score Alex Grimes for the second time.

“We knew they were coming in wanting to beat us (after our run-rule game),” Richardson said. “We had to hop on them quickly like the day before.”

Leroy (35-18) threatened in the sixth, loading the bases with two outs, but a strikeout ended the Inning. The Bears finally got on the board in the top of the seventh, seeming to grab momentum when the automated lights at the stadium clicked off at precisely 10 p.m. (The game had been moved from Oxford’s Choccolocco Park due to the prolonged weather delay.) Leroy was only able to score two runs on an RBI triple from Gracie Mitchell and a two-out RBI single by Campbell Newell.

“That was strange,” Hawthorne said. “I’ve been doing this 26 years and I’ve never had the lights go out on me. We stress focus and that’s what she (Navarre) did. A great job, team-wise, but Kayley keeps us going in the circle.”

McKenzie Smith was tagged with the loss, allowing four runs off five hits in 2 1/3 innings of work, and Kaylee Guy closed out the final 3 2/3 innings by allowing two runs off three hits.

Navarre was named Class 1A tournament MVP by earning the title game victory in a complete-game effort. She allowed two earned runs off seven hits, walking five and striking out nine, and went 2-for-4 at the plate with two RBI singles.

“It really was teamwork and having the motivation to get back here,” Navarre said.

Joining Navarre on the all-tournament team were teammates Kaitlynn Piggott, who was 1-of-2 with an RBI single, and Anna Claire Free. Leroy’s Kaylee Guy and Mariah Barnes were also selected to the all-tournament team, along with Skyline pitcher Olivia Treece.

Brantley has now won six state titles in the past decade – nine seasons due to the COVID pandemic shutting down the 2020 postseason – and has created a dynasty in the state’s smallest classification.

“I really make comparisons with 2014 and 2023,” Hawthorne said. “In 2014, we were qualifier two coming out of Gulf Shores and no team had ever won a state championship as qualifier two out of Gulf Shores. We were down, but I told the team it wasn’t all bad. We were up against the No. 1 team in the state, Sumiton Christian, and we knocked them off and went on to win the state championship. Kind of the same scenario (Brantley beat No. 1 Skyline to open the 2023 tournament), but a different set of kids.”