CLEVELAND &045; Maybe this is where some of that tradition pays off.

The Centreville Academy Lady Tigers weren’t able to claim the South State softball championship Monday, but they still finished as runners-up to get into the Class AA state tournament.

So on Wednesday they opened with two wins right off the bat to sit in the winner’s bracket final game at 2 p.m. Saturday against Copiah.

The Lady Colonels beat Centreville for South State and own the season series 4-0. This time, however, they’re hoping it’s different as they push for their fourth straight state championship.

&uot;We hit the ball better and had a good defense effort (today),&uot; Centreville head coach Mark Mann said. &uot;Just an overall good day. We got off to a good start, played solid defense. It’s playoff time, and here we go.

&uot;Hopefully this time (against Copiah) it’ll be our turn. The games could have gone either way.&uot;

The Lady Tigers were steady at the plate on Wednesday and used that to complement a solid effort pitching from senior hurler Kendall Madsen.

The Lady Tigers opened with a 4-1 win over Manchester and followed with a 7-3 win over Winston Academy.

Both times the Lady Tigers scored first and got a sizeable lead in the early innings, allowing Madsen to work with a lead.

&uot;We didn’t hit the ball well as we’ve been hitting it (against Manchester), but we moved the ball around and manufactured some runs,&uot; Mann said. &uot;We jumped on (Winston) early. Winston had a real fine pitcher, but we’ve been hitting the ball real well. Runners have been getting in scoring position.

&uot;It was a problem as South State, but today we did a lot better job of it.&uot;

The bats came alive in the second game as the Lady Tigers put up nine hits and had a 6-0 lead after three. In the second Haley Bowser singled in Ash Brashier for the first run, and Becky Minor followed with a single to score two runs for the 3-0 lead.

In the third Brashier reached on an error and later scored on an error on a ball hit by Kelly Simpson. Bowser scored on a passed ball, and Simpson came around to score for the 6-0 lead.

Madsen went the distance while tossing a two-hitter hitter and striking out five.

In the first game, the Lady Tigers got a run in the first and three in the third for a 4-0 lead. Brashier singled in Amber Addington for the first run.

In the third Madsen tripled to score Minor and Shelly Vines, but Madsen came around for an inside-the-park homer when the ball got by the outfielder and went to the fence.

Madsen tossed a one-hitter in that six-inning contest while striking out four and walking none.

Huntington at state tournament

KOSCIUSKO &045; The Lady Hounds dropped their first game of the day but rebounded with wins over East Holmes and Amite School Center to land in the losers’ bracket final Saturday against Porter’s Chapel.

The Lady Hounds opened with a 5-2 loss to the Lady Eagles but eliminated EHA with a 4-0 win and sent the Lady Rebels home with a 3-2 win.

&uot;The girls persevered,&uot; Huntington head coach Rut Horne said. &uot;They found a way to win.

&uot;I’m going to say this &045; we weren’t supposed to be here. We’re playing good ball at times, and at times we can stink it up. Heck, they don’t want to lose for some reason.&uot;

The Lady Hounds got some timely hits and against Amite before Erin Hedrick settled in on the mound in the final three innings to close it out. The Lady Rebels had a 2-0 lead heading into the bottom of the third before Huntington tacked on three runs for the lead.

From there Hedrick retired nine of the next 10 batters she faced after having trouble in the second and third. Amite had the bases loaded in both innings and scored just one run each time.

&uot;She didn’t have any pop,&uot; Horne said. &uot;It was like she was arm-tired, and she probably was. She pitched four games the day before yesterday. She was tired.&uot;

The Lady Hounds got those three in the third thanks in part to the bottom of the lineup. Sarah Loomis walked to lead off the inning, Megan Wilkinson singled and Julie Moak walked to load the bases.

Jessie Lee reached on an error in right field to score Loomis, and Hedrick followed with a single to score Wilkinson and Moak.