Andalusia's Blanche Alverson and the 12-and-under Alabama Twisters basketball team recently won the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) State Championship at the state tournament held in Birmingham.

Alverson's teammates include Birmingham-area residents Shelby Brandon, LaQuita Burrough,

Lyndsay Harris, JaKayla Hill, Maura McGlaughlin, Kris Mullins, Caty Murphy, Bonita Willliams and Olivia Kidwell of Decatur. The team is coached by Francis Murphy and Tim Mullins.

Alverson joined the Twisters organization in April and played in her first tournament with the Twisters April 11-13 in Cullman. The tournament was sponsored by the Bama's Best organization at St. Brenard School campus.

The Twisters topped the Pelham Pride 47-16 and then belted the the Hartselle Tigers 50-25. The Twisters then proved to be better than Bama's Best

with a 48- 37 win.

The Twisters finished second in the tournament following a 60-26 loss to the Memphis Wave in the title game. Alverson was the leading scorer in the championship game, scoring 11 points.

On April 27, the Twisters played in the central sub-state tournament held at Hoover High School.

A 51-30 victory over the Roadrunners qualified the Twisters for the AAU State Tournament. Alverson was the leading scorer for the Twisters with 11 points.

The Twisters traveled to Nashville, Tenn. to play in the Stampede Tournament in early May. The Twisters were undefeated entering the championship game with victories over the Red Blazers, Tennessee Gold and Smyrna Lady Flames. The Twisters had to overcome a 22-point deficit to record a victory against the Tennessee Gold during pool play. Lyndsay Harris contributed 17 points in the comeback.

The Twisters won the tournament by defeating the Tennessee Gold again in the championship game by a final score of 33-28.

Alverson was the leading scorer in the championship game, contributing 14 points. She made four three-point shots in the game.

Alverson, Hill and Burrough were named to the All-Tournament Team. Harris was named the MVP of the tournament.

The AAU state tournament was the next stop for the Twisters. The first game ended in a 63-32 victory against the Southern Stars. Harris contributed 14 points with Mullins adding 12. The second game resulted in a 49-42 loss to the Alabama Warriors. Williams was the leading scorer for the Twisters with 17 points. The Twisters defeated the Shooting Stars 54-29 to enter the championship game, but the Twisters had to defeat the Warriors twice to claim the title. The Twisters claimed the first victory over the Warriors via one point in overtime by a score of 47-46.

Burrough and Williams were the leading scorers. They each scored 13 points. The Twisters claimed the state title with a second victory against the Warriors in the final game by the score of 47-38. Williams was the leading scorer with 11 points. Alverson went 3-for-3 from three-point range in the second half, adding nine points. Harris had seven points in the victory.

The Alabama Twisters will now compete at the AAU National Tournament in Lafayette, La.

The tournament will be held July 11-19.