EASTON – Wilson softball coach Kristin Boyer knows what happened during the regular season doesn’t always carry a lot of weight once the playoffs arrive.

But she won’t completely dismiss how the Warriors ended the year.

Three straight wins, and victories in five of its final six games, provided a spark that carried over into Wilson’s 2-1 victory over Tamaqua in the District 11 Class 4A quarterfinals on Tuesday.

“Once you get into the playoffs, it doesn’t really matter what you did in the regular season,” said Boyer. “A lot of it is who is peaking at the right time; who’s hot; who’s having good at bats.

“Really, my message to them is the same that it’s been all year: You just have to take care of yourself. If we play the best softball that we can play, at the end of the day, no matter what happens, it’s OK.”

The No. 4 seed Warriors (11-11) pushed across two runs in the bottom of the fourth inning to take the lead.

Ella Foulk drew a one-out walk, Wilson’s first base runner of the game, and pitcher Mikayla Smith followed with a deep drive to left-centerfield for a double to put runners at second and third.

An infield hit from Olivia Werkheiser allowed Foulk to score, and moved Chloe Shotko to third with the game knotted at 1-1.

Kylee Burwell followed and reached on an error, which allowed Shotko to score and give Wilson a 2-1 lead.

Burwell was thrown out going to second base, and the inning ended when fifth-seeded Blue Raiders’ (9-12) pitcher Bryn Clifford recorded a strikeout.

“I told them before the game, that we just have to put the ball in play,” said Boyer. “When you put the ball in play, good things happen. We were lucky. We got some really great baserunning.

“Ella Foulk, who scored the first run, and Chloe Shotko, who came on and picked up those extra bases, and that ended up being crucial. We’ve talked about it all year long about being aggressive, we have to pick up the extra bases, because then good things happen.”

Clifford had recorded five strikeouts to that point and was keeping the Warriors off balance at the plate.

The junior was also pitching with a 1-0 lead.

Clifford smoked a one-out single up the middle in the top of the third inning. Hailey Williams (2-for-3) followed with an infield hit and Ella McLaughlin reached on an error to load the bases.

After a strikeout, Alexus Warne’s (2-for-3) infield hit scored a run to give Tamaqua a 1-0 lead.

But Smith bounced back with a strikeout for Wilson to end the inning with the bases loaded.

“They made a ton of really good plays,” said Blue Raiders’ head coach Jillian Barron. “My girls hit the ball really hard, and they made a ton of great defensive plays that if a ball gets through, the game is a different story. It’s momentum.”

Wilson had just one base runner over the final two innings, as senior Mackenzie Rooks reached on an error to open the sixth.

Clifford finished with nine strikeouts, allowing two hits over seven innings.

“She has been a pleasure to have in the circle,” said Barron. “She’s just a really good all-around kid, on the field and off the field.

“She works hard; she’s probably one of the hardest-working kids that I’ve had in a long, long time. She puts her whole heart into it. I could not be more proud of her, I really couldn’t.”

It’s a sentiment Barron holds for all of her players, who have battled adversity throughout the season with players in and out of the lineup, to earn a spot in the district tournament, something she hopes the program can build on heading into next season.

“I told them that I am proud of every single one of them,” said Barron. “All the curveballs that were thrown our way, we’re still here playing a district game. We played a tough district game. It was 2-1, it’s not like we got blown out. We played until the very end, and I can’t ask anything more of them. They did great.”

UP NEXT … Wilson will face top seed Northwestern Thursday in the semifinals. The Warriors suffered a 12-2 loss to the Tigers on April 21.

MILESTONE … The victory also marked the first postseason triumph for Arnold, whose team also qualified for the Colonial League tournament this year.

Tamaqua 001 000 0 - 1 5 2

Wilson 000 200 x - 2 2 3

Clifford and Warne; Smith and Werkheiser. W - Smith. L - Clifford.