Stewart's Blast Ignites Huntland's 5-3 Comeback Win Over Richland

LYNNVILLE, Tenn. — The crack of the bat said it all.

Stewart's fifth-inning homer erased a 2-0 deficit and sparked a Lady Hornets rally that culminated in a gutsy 5-3 playoff victory Monday night against a Richland Lady Raiders squad that had control until they didn't.

The sixth inning hammered that point home. Millie Walker - the same kid who struck out badly in her first two at-bats - ripped a go-ahead single that hugged the right field line. Catara Johnson followed by crushing a double to center that one-hopped the fence. When Lily Jackson matched it with a double of her own moments later, the three-run outburst had shell-shocked a Richland team that had led for most of the night.

Neither did pitcher Kinah Mason, though she had every reason to. After surrendering an unearned run in the first when Bailey Blair's routine grounder plated Richland's first run, Mason settled into a rhythm that belied her youth. Her final line - seven innings, four hits, three unearned runs, four strikeouts - doesn't capture how she stiffened with runners on base.

Richland threatened in the seventh, loading the bases with two outs after a throwing error gave them life. But Mason induced a weak popup to end it, stranding the tying runs and sending the small but vocal Huntland traveling contingent into celebration mode.

Katelyn Bass led Richland with two hits, including a double that one-hopped the centerfield fence in the third. But the Lady Raiders couldn't string enough offense together against Mason when it mattered most.

For Huntland, it's on to the next round, where stiffer competition awaits. But if Monday proved anything, it's that these Lady Hornets have mastered the art of hanging around - then striking when the moment's right.

With the win, the Huntland Lady Hornets advance in postseason play.