This was as dramatic as it gets.

Down to their last strike, the Tea Area Titans scored six two-out runs in the top of the seventh inning to rally for a 9-5 victory over unbeaten West Central to win the Class A state softball championship at South Players Complex on Saturday evening.

“All the kids were clutch. They stepped up,” said Tea Area coach Emmie Uitts. “They didn’t let the moment get too big. They stayed in it. They played their game just like we preached all year long.”

After an error led to one run, Sydney Ganschow found herself down to her last strike before delivering a game-tying hit.

“I took a deep breath and I was like, it’s time to go, now or never,” Ganschow said. “I didn’t want to end on a strikeout. I didn’t want to lose.”

Once the Titans tied the score, it took a bit of pressure off.

“Once it was tied then it was just having fun, sticking to our game, taking a little bit of a breath,” Uitts said. “We knew we had an extra inning to work with.”

There was still work to be done, though, and Addisyn Hansen provided the answer. The senior drove in a pair of runs on a single to put the Titans on top.

“I was honestly just going up there to get those two girls home,” Hansen said. “I didn’t care where it went, I just wanted to get them home.”

Once the runs has crossed the plate and Hansen was on base, there was naturally a rush of adrenaline.

“It felt so amazing,” Hansen said. “I just felt so great.”

Tea Area tacked on two more runs to cap the remarkable comeback for the final margin of difference.

West Central appeared to be in control, leading 5-0 after the first four innings. However, the Titans kept chipping away at the lead until their last-inning heroics.

“I’m thinking just get a hit. I just have to get my team going,” Ganschow said of her crucial at-bat in the seventh. “We hadn’t got our bats going at all this game. Once we get our bats going we’re fine. That’s what we had to do.”

West Central, last year’s state champ, had four doubles in the contest. Kadence Lupkes and Izzi Parsons each had RBI doubles in the second inning, while Hanna Raethz had an run-producing double in the fourth. Caitlyn Hoff also drove in a run with a single.

Ganschow noted that it was a total team effort that produced Tea Area’s victory.

“Our team has been working so hard,” Ganschow said. “We put so much time and effort into this and we had to believe in each other. We just had to push through for each other.”

The win was a fitting sendoff for Titans, who will be moving up to Class AA next season.

When told she would remember the comeback for a while, Uitts responded, “That’s for sure, especially being our last game in single A. We’re moving up to AA next year, so this is a good way to put our stamp on it.”

Dell Rapids walked off Madison for third place, scoring the winning run on a passed ball with two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning.

Madison had tied the game in the top half of the frame on a home run by Aubri Tobkin.

The two squads traded RBI doubles through the first four inning before Katie Kvigne hit a home run in the bottom of the fifth to give Dell Rapids a one-run lead.

Amanda Vacanti struck out 16 batters for Madison.

Dakota Valley clipped Tri-Valley 5-4 in the fifth-place game.

Avry Trotter had three hits to lead the Panthers, including a two-run single in the first inning to give Dakota Valley an early lead. Addie Dickson’s RBI single in the sixth inning plated what proved to be the winning run.

Syenna Bird and Keagan Kuchta each had three hits for Tri-Valley, which rallied from a 4-0 deficit, but was unable to even the score.

Beresford collected 14 hits to capture seventh place with a 12-2 triumph over Elk Point-Jefferson.

Keely Merrigan had three hits and knocked in three runs to lead the Watchdogs. She had a bases-loaded double to highlight an eight-run fourth inning. Harley Koth also had three hits in the win. Paige Jacobs had a pair of hits to pace EPJ.

Here is the Class A All-Tournament Team: Kalli Boom and Emily Froendt of Tea Area; Alya Kramer and Hanna Raethz of West Central; Claire Wynja and Lexi Ingalls of Dell Rapids; Amanda Vacanti and Mara Klingbile of Madison; Mia Riibe of Dakota Valley; Emry Jones of Tri-Valley; Harley Koth of Beresford; and Paige Jacobs of Elk Point-Jefferson.

Championship

Tea Area 000 021 6 – 9 7 1

West Central 030 200 0 – 5 10 2 Addisyn Hansen, Emily Froendt (4) and Kalli Boom; Caitlyn Hoff, Emillee Stofferahn (7) and Hanna Raethz. 2B – Tea Area, Froendt, Sydney Ganschow, Skyler Haines; West Central, Hoff, Raethz, Izzi Parsons, Kadence Lupkes.

Third Place

Madison 000 100 1 – 2 7 2

Dell Rapids 100 010 1 – 3 7 0

Amanda Vacanti and Evie Lurz; Katie Kvigne and Rylee Halverson. 2B – Madison, Mara Klingbile; Dell Rapids, Claire Wynja. HR – Madison, A. Tobkin; Dell Rapids, Kvigne.

Fifth Place

Dakota Valley 200 111 0 – 5 9 0

Tri-Valley 000 031 0 – 4 11 1

Annie Bourne, Emma Barnett (5) and Mia Riibe; Emry Jones and Syenna Bird. 2B – Dakota Valley, Bourne; Tri-Valley, Jones. 3B – Dakota Valley, Riibe.

Seventh Place

Elk Point-Jefferson 002 00 – 2 5 4

Beresford 310 8x – 12 14 2

Lauren McDermott and Hannah Nearman; Kennedy Merrigan, Rylie Laurvick and Ivy Keiser. 2B – Elk Point-Jefferson, M. Geary; Beresford, Capri Mullinix, Harley Koth, Keely Merrigan.