In a battle of any kind, the best time to strike back is immediately after your opponent seizes the momentum.

Lehighton and Northern Lehigh met on the softball field on Thursday and the Tribe seemed to be in command of the momentum after a three-run fourth inning gave them a 4-1 edge.However, the Lady Bulldogs responded with two runs in the bottom of the fourth and five more in the fifth to take back the momentum on their way to an 8-5 non-league win."It's a great feeling to get the win," said Maddie Peters, one of five freshmen that start for the 'Dawgs. "The celebration after a win is great and getting to have that feeling is amazing."Peters spearheaded the Bulldogs' comeback with a two-run home run in the fourth. Classmate Brianna Schuck also had a great day, finishing 3-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored."I came out of a slump today, so it was a good confidence booster," Schuck said. "As a freshman, it was our turn to step up and show people that we can have some leadership, too."Northern Lehigh head coach Bob Hicks was happy with his team's efforts."It's big to get wins early on in the season for these kids," said Hicks. "They can get the confidence, especially with youth in the lineup. We only have two seniors on the team, so this is the future."Lehighton took the early lead in the third when Ryanne Hoffman singled and Allison Armbruster followed with an RBI triple to put the Tribe on the board.Northern Lehigh (6-1) responded immediately in the bottom of the inning as Lauren Hoffman brought in Kaitlin Hoffman with an RBI single to knot the score.In Lehighton's fourth, Heidi Greene, Hoffman, Armbruster and Lyssa Pantella all singled as the Indians built a 4-1 lead.Peters' inside-the-park homer to left brought in Schuck and started Northern Lehigh's comeback in the fourth."We played well today and we had some momentum," Lehighton coach Greg Poremba said. "It just wasn't there, though, down the stretch. We made some really good plays defensively. But that (Peters) home run changed the momentum of the game."Northern Lehigh then took command in the fifth.Tiff Yesik walked before Kaitlin Hoffman and Shy Williams followed with singles. After a Lauren Hoffman walk, Schuck and Alicia Horn ripped RBI singles."We were definitely louder as a team today," Schuck added. "We all realized it's time to start playing to win, instead of playing not to lose, and we stepped up our game today."THE BIG 'DAWGS ... Outside of Schuck's performance, Kaitlin Hoffman was 2-for-3 with two runs scored and a stolen base, and Shyanna Williams was 2-for-3 with a run scored.STRONG IN DEFEAT ... Armbruster had a nice outing for Lehighton, going 2-for-3 with a triple and an RBI while Hoffman was 2-for-3 with two runs.FINISHING NAILS ... Coach Hicks pointed out the importance of Katie Ziegler, who took to the hill in the fifth to secure the win. "She came in today and just did a super job closing this game down and finishing it out for us," he said.Lehighton 001 300 1 - 5 8 0No. Lehigh 001 250 x - 8 10 3Engle, Kunkle (5) and Salerno; Williams, Ziegler (5) and D. Hoffman, Schuck (5). W - Schuck, L - Kunkle. HR: NL - Peters (4th, one on).