TAMAQUA - Morgen Woodford had seen enough.
Minersville's senior catcher and her teammates had just endured their worst defensive inning of the season.
A botched pickoff play and a routine popup that fell between two infielders allowed Bloomsburg to score twice, tie the game and grab the momentum during the fourth inning of Monday's PIAA Class A first-round contest.
"Woody'' and the Miners weren't going out like that. So the senior leader spoke up.
"We're not losing this. We have to pull it together,'' Woodford said. "(Senior pitcher) Riley (Gerenda) and I, we pulled everybody together, and we were like, 'We're not making this our last game. We have to pull everything together. Everybody has to do their jobs. We have to communicate.' ''
Minersville got those two runs right back in the bottom of the fourth, then used a huge sixth inning to beat back Bloomsburg 13-3 at Tamaqua Area High School.
With the win, the District 11 champion Miners (21-3) advance to Thursday's state quarterfinals. They will take on District 3 champ Halifax (15-8), a 5-0 winner Monday over HOPE for Hyndman Charter, at a site and time to be announced.
Despite the final score,
District 4 runner-up Bloomsburg (16-8) gave Minersville all it could handle through the first five-plus innings.
In the top of the sixth, Brianna Benscoter scored on the back end of a double steal to cut the deficit to 4-3. Woodford threw out Alex Luxardo at second base, exchanging an out for a run.
In the bottom of the sixth, the Miners bunched six hits, three errors, a walk and three stolen bases to produce a nine-spot that turned a close, pressure-packed game into a rout.
"This was the weirdest 10-run rule game I've ever been involved in,'' Minersville coach Dave Homa said.
Freshman Adrienne Kroznuskie sparked rallies in the fourth and sixth with leadoff singles. Both times she stole second and scored. Kroznuskie finished 3-for-5 with two stolen bases, three runs scored and one RBI.
"Once somebody gets a hit and we're all pumped up ... Adrienne started off two innings really well,'' Woodford said. "She had two really good hits. Once she gets rolling, we're good.''
In the sixth, Woodford clubbed an RBI triple to right field. Alyse Ryan, Reighly Melochick, Kroznuskie and Emily Mealey added RBI singles in the uprising.
The key inning, though, was the fourth when RBI doubles by Lindsey Snyder and Leah Leshko put Minersville back on top 4-2. The torrid Snyder - 8-for-her-last-10 - roped a pair of doubles and knocked in three.
"I just step up to the plate with confidence, like everyone has to,'' Snyder said. "... I'm just confident in my swing right now, and I'm just ready to move into the next round of states.''
Minersville produced 15 hits and five walks to keep matching Bloomsburg's pressure. The Miners also stole seven bases without being caught.
Woodford went 2-for-4 with two RBIs and threw out two runners trying to steal.
Melochick went 2-for-5 with two runs and one RBI; Leshko finished 2-for-3 with one run and one RBI; and Ryan added two hits, a run and an RBI out of the No. 9 spot.
"We're hitting a ton. We're hitting great,'' Homa said. "That's Coach (Marty) Brophy. The turnaround in one year under Marty has been simply amazing. These kids are really stroking the ball well.''
Woodford, Melochick and Leshko hope for a repeat of 2011, when as freshman starters they helped Minersville win its eighth state championship.
Now a new crop of freshmen - Kroznuskie, Mealey, Maura Bentz and others - have helped Minersville into the final eight.
"We've been here,'' Woodford said. "We were going over where our games were at (in 2011), what games we had to play to get to Penn State. It would be awesome if we could go all the way like our freshman year.''
The Miners' task now is to clean up their defense - a team strength that really let it down in the fourth inning.
Homa also wants Minersville to be more selective in RBI situations. He wants his batters to keep the pressure on the pitcher and zone up better pitches to drive. The Miners left the bases loaded in the first and second innings and stranded two more runners in the third.
"We had a horrible practice, the worst maybe in my 13 seasons as coach, and we took it right out on the field,'' Homa said. "The kids know it. We talked about it. I know you're going to have a little emotional letdown after winning the district title, but you've got to get back up. And we ... did ... not until the last inning of this game.''