Sarah Franco was pumped for the seventh inning. Three more outs and St. Aloysius was headed back to the fast-pitch softball playoffs for the first time in four years.

Franco struck out the first two batters, and then after a double by Holli Smith, enticed Kacey Smith to ground out to catcher Hannah Barrett to clinch St. Al’s playoff bid with a 2-0 shutout Monday at Bazinsky Park.

&#8220We’re excited because we’re now in the playoffs,” said a beaming Franco. &#8220We still need to beat Enterprise-Lincoln (today) and if we do, we win the division.”

Lady Flashes coach Gene Rogillio felt his pitcher was ready for the last inning.

&#8220She had that mindset of wanting to get this over with. She threw great,” Rogillio said.

&#8220I’m not the best with my memory but I believe it’s been four years since we’ve made the playoffs,” Rogillio said. &#8220We’ve been close. All we needed last year was to get a bunt down and we didn’t.”

Against West Lincoln (9-4, 4-3), it was the bunt that provided St. Al (12-9, 6-1) its winning margin.

After 4 1/2 innings of scoreless ball, Blair Tillman started the St. Al fifth by reaching on a Lady Bear error. Sara Howington bunted Tillman over to second. With two on, Barrett added another bunt.

West Lincoln pitcher Heather Hunt tried to go to third but her shortstop, Kacey Smith, could not make the catch and the error allowed Tillman to advance on home for a 1-0 lead.

Another fielder’s choice and an infield hit by Sarah Kerut left the bases loaded for Katie Koestler with two outs. Koestler sliced a 1-2 pitch past first base to score Barrett. The hit should’ve scored two but Catelyn Park stopped at third base and was passed up by Kerut, who rounded third. The runner interference ended the inning with St. Al up 2-0.

Franco gave up a leadoff hit in the top of the sixth, one of four hits for the Lady Bears. She then walked Hannah Knoose to put the tying run on. A groundout to first moved the runners to third and second. Franco, though, got Shelby Lofton to pop out to Kerut at short to end West Lincoln’s best threat of the game.

&#8220It was a hard game for me because the ground was still wet around the (pitching circle) but I managed,” Franco said. &#8220I didn’t have a curve ball but my fastball was good and the rise was working.”

Franco finished with eight strikeouts. She also walked four.

Kerut had two hits to lead St. Al.

Madison Central 10, VHS 1

For five innings, the Missy Gators played Class 5A powerhouse Madison Central to a 1-1 tie. Then Britney Hobson slugged a two-run homer in the sixth inning and the Lady Jaguars (22-3, 4-0) went on to cruise to the Division 3-5A championship.

Vicksburg (6-10, 2-2) grabbed a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first when Kristi Shelby singled home Courtney Prentiss from second base.

Madison tied it in the second inning with a single run. Neither team scored again until Hobson’s home run. MC scored six more in the seventh with Hobson’s two-run double being the key hit.

Ole Miss signee Lindsey Perry was dominant over the last six innings. She finished with 18 strikeouts and allowed only a third-inning walk to Kaci Flaherty. Perry is now 15-1 on the year.

Shelby took the loss, but the Missy Gators are still assured a playoff berth.