NATCHEZ — Trailing 7-4 and entering the bottom of the third inning, the Natchez High School softball team rallied for nine runs en route to topping Port Gibson High School 18-8 in four innings Wednesday.

“At first, I thought the girls weren’t ready,” Natchez head coach Bonita Hamilton said. “But we came back. We just had to get back focused, and I think they had more energy than I did.”

Natchez followed up its third-inning outburst with five more runs in the fourth. The Lady Bulldogs capped off the scoring barrage with two runners scoring on the game’s final play, as Destiny Trask hustled from second base to score on a wild pitch, giving her squad the win.

“(Assistant coach) Chelsea (Hall) tells the girls, ‘When you’re on third base, we’re going to send you,’” Hamilton said. “You better be ready to go when you’re on third base.”

The Lady Bulldogs (2-1) started off the game strong as leadoff Trask sent a charge through the team with a home run in the bottom of the first. Destiny Lyles then came round to score on Kateira Noble’s RBI hit.

Trask ended the game 4-for-4 with 3 runs scored.

Lyles and Zanya Lyles each scored two runs for the Lady Bulldogs.

“I did a lot of changing up a bit, putting in some pinch hitters,” Hamilton said. “Some weren’t batting like they should have been batting, so I let the pinch hitters come in, and that worked. My bench was ready. I pulled from bench (Wednesday), and they were ready.”

The scoring outburst was Natchez’s second-consecutive game in scoring in the teens as it blasted McComb High School 17-7 Monday night.

The Lady Bulldogs will attempt to sustain the momentum Friday when it hosts Brookhaven High School in a Region 6-5A contest and Natchez’s final home game.

“We’re probably just going to do a little batting practice (Thursday), because I don’t want to work them too much,” Hamilton said. “Brookhaven is a pretty good team, and I respect them.”