In post-season play, sometimes a team can win by losing.

Corner lost both of its games against top-ranked Alabama Christian Academy in the South Central Regional Softball Tournament at Troy, but still managed to secure a berth in the AHSAA State Finals in Montgomery this week.

And by advancing as the runner-up instead of the regional champ, the Yellow Jackets might actually face a slightly easier path in its attempt to return to the final game for the second straight year.

“If we can get past Ardmore, we may be in pretty good shape,” Corner coach Aaron James said. “They’re good, and they’ve got most of their team back from last year. But with Alexandria getting knocked out, we’ve got a pretty good shot after the first round.”

Alexandria was ranked fourth in the final Alabama Sports Writers Association Class 4A poll, but they never made it out of their area tournament. They had the bad luck of sharing an area with No. 2 Lawrence County and No. 3 Cherokee County.

Both of those teams are on the lower side of the state bracket, along with ACA. Corner is in the upper half, and if it defeats Ardmore in the first game, it will face either tenth-ranked Dallas County or unranked Saks.

The Yellow Jackets got their state tourney berth the hard way, having to scramble through the loser’s bracket after a second-round loss to ACA on Friday evening.

In Saturday play, Corner first shut out Handley 3-0, behind pitcher Heather Anderson’s nine strikeouts. Freshman Randi Jones hit a run-scoring double in the sixth inning.

Next, the Jackets dispensed with Montgomery Catholic 8-4, thanks in part to a 3-for-4 game by catcher Taylor Sloan, who batted in one run and scored two herself. Preslie Cruce went 2-for-3 and scored twice, and Anderson  again struck out nine, this time over five innings. Freshman reliever Madison McCormack picked up a two-inning save.

In the game that would decide whether Corner would advance to the state tournament, scored the only run of the game on a double by Sloan in the sixth inning that brought home Preslie Cruce, as the Jackets beat Bibb County 1-0.

Anderson struggled early, but got out of a bases-loaded jam in the first inning, then left Choctaw runners stranded on second and third in the second inning.

Anderson settled into her groove after that, allowing just three hits overall while striking out 12 Bibb batters.

The Choctaws’ Alyssa Kornegay was almost as good, giving up three hits as well, but two of those were to Cruce and Sloan in succession.

“Kornegay pitched a great game. She pitched great all tournament long,” James said. “Their shortstop, Morgan Morrison, was a great hitter.”

With the ticket to Montgomery in hand, James rested Anderson in the finals and put McCormack into the pitcher’s circle against ACA, who won 7-0.