Warren Central got everything it wanted from Thursday’s playoff tuneup against Terry. A close game against a good team, a chance to work on late-game situations and, most importantly, a win.

Lauren Anderson struck out 12 in a complete-game one-hitter, and Brittany Fuller scored the game’s only run on a wild pitch in the bottom of the sixth inning as WC pulled out a 1-0 victory.

“I was a little disappointed that we didn’t read the pitcher better. But I really was pleased with the way we played defense. This was a pitching duel tonight,” WC coach Lucy Young said. “Even though there wasn’t a lot of offense, I felt confident that if we ever could get a couple of our good base runners on we could make something happen.”

The Lady Vikes (19-5) won despite being no-hit by Terry’s Lindsey Farmer. She struck out eight and retired 12 of the first 13 batters she faced.

Farmer fell victim to her own wildness in the sixth, however. Tiffany Fuller drew a leadoff walk – the fourth Farmer surrendered in the game – and the Lady Vikes loaded the bases with no outs on a pair of botched fielder’s choices.

Farmer struck out Cookie Johnson and got Anderson to hit a comebacker for two quick outs. Before she got Anna Miller to line out, however, she uncorked a wild pitch that allowed Brittany Fuller to score the go-ahead run.

“She’s walked 13 all year, so she didn’t have her good stuff tonight,” Terry coach Vince Granberry said of Farmer. “But she threw well enough for us to win, obviously.”

Anderson then finished her own gem by retiring Terry (20-7) in order in the seventh. Anderson walked none, and allowed only two base runners. Whittney Sasser reached on an error in the first, and Samantha Smith got the game’s only hit on a seeing-eye single in the fifth. Neither runner advanced past second base.

“I was trying to keep them off-balance. I thought I did a pretty good job with that,” Anderson said. “I wanted this more than anything. You don’t ever want to leave on a losing note.”

The senior night win sends the Lady Vikes into the Class 5A playoffs on a high note. They’ll host Picayune on Saturday at 1 p.m. in the first round. Games 1 and 2 will be Saturday afternoon, and Game 3, if necessary, will be played at Picayune on Tuesday.

The matchup gives WC a chance for revenge. The Maroon Tide bounced WC out of the slow-pitch playoffs in the fall.

“It’s basically the same team, player-wise, that we met in the second round of the slow-pitch (playoffs). They’re strong players,” Young said. “They actually play slow-pitch on a fast-pitch field, and they just plowed that ball over the fence numerous times. We don’t have very good memories of Picayune. We’ll get them up here and see what we can do with them on our own field.”

While Warren Central has plans for payback and advancing, crosstown rival Vicksburg High will simply try to survive its first-round meeting with defending state champion Oak Grove.

Vicksburg reached the playoffs despite a 3-19 record, and getting anything more than experience out of Saturday’s games will be a tough task, coach Cori Crutchfield admitted.

“I’m going to enjoy the experience. The girls are going to get to see that caliber ball, and see that level that we need to reach to be successful,” Crutchfield said. “We have the ability, over time, to reach that level.”