Staff photo / Neel Madhavan LaBrae’s Mariah Jones (17) embraces teammate Riley Rowe (3) at home plate after hitting a two-run home run against Poland on Friday in Leavittsburg.

LEAVITTSBURG — It took roughly five innings for LaBrae’s bats to come alive on Friday against Poland. But once they did, the Vikings took over.

Trailing by four runs in the bottom of the fifth inning, LaBrae rallied to beat the Bulldogs 8-5 in Leavittsburg, ending the game with seven unanswered runs.

“Their pitcher was doing a good job, and we were hitting it hard here and there, just hitting it right at them,” Vikings coach Dwayne Buck said. “So I had a feeling it was going to come. I knew they could do it, but seeing it come through and actually happen and come back all the way to take the lead there is huge. That momentum is huge for us going forward as we’re getting closer and closer to the playoffs.”

Poland (8-7, 4-2 NE-8) got things started early. In the top of the first, the Bulldogs got back-to-back doubles to score the game’s first run, as Ali Blinsky’s RBI scored Cassie Blanch.

The Bulldogs then added three runs to their lead in the top of the fourth inning with an RBI base hit from Kilaney Berendt and freshman Brooklyn Kosco’s first career home run shortly thereafter.

LaBrae (8-2, 5-1 MVAC-Grey) pulled a run back in the bottom of the frame on a single from Madison Johnon, but Poland stretched its lead back to 5-1 in the top of the fifth as a run scored when Blinsky reached on an error.

The Vikings had three hits in the fourth inning, but only got one run out of it. However, in the bottom of the fifth, LaBrae began to convert on its momentum at the plate.

Riley Rowe started the Vikings’s rally off with a leadoff solo home run to begin the inning. Then after a hit from Shebly Bragg, Mariah Jones blasted the Vikings’ second homer of the inning directly over the center-field fence.

“Those bats are there all the time, so we’re never out of a game, and that’s a great feeling,” Buck said.

After Blinsky made way for Madison Medvec in the circle for Poland, the Vikings kept things going. With two outs on the board, Leah DeArmitt scored from third, and Johnson scored from second off an RBI from Makenzie Lichty. Those five runs gave LaBrae a 6-5 lead after five innings.

“They come in at the bottom of the fifth, roll the top of the order over and get some momentum. Then we make mistakes, stupid mistakes, and I think they got four unearned runs,” Bulldogs coach Jim Serich said. “So when you don’t play clean against a good team, and you don’t take advantage of the momentum you have, that’s going to be the result.”

Riley Rowe pitched the first four innings for LaBrae, but she made way for DeArmitt in the top of the fifth.

Poland scored one run on an error when DeArmitt faced her first hitter, but from there, she was lights out, keeping the Bulldogs scoreless the rest of the way, while striking out four.

“Leah has been great all year, and Riley’s really been starting to get her momentum going. It’s a really good problem to have,” Buck said. “I truly have two No. 1 pitchers. We pretty much alternate starts. Sometimes they finish, sometimes we bring them in. We’re not afraid to bring either one in at any time.”

The Vikings added two insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth to give themselves a comfortable cushion to close things out, as Jones and DeArmitt both scored on a throwing error at first base with two outs on the board.

“A one-run lead versus a three-run lead, you play the game completely different, right? So it’s huge,” Buck said. “I preach all the time, especially when we’re at home, if we’ve got a lead in the bottom of the sixth, I don’t care if we’re up by one, three or eight. I tell them, we’ve gotta get an insurance run. Just give me one run. One run can make all the difference. … We almost didn’t get it, but we came through at the end … and that made the top of the seventh a whole lot easier.”

Next up, LaBrae is scheduled to host Hubbard this morning at 11 a.m., while Poland will also host Springfield at 11 a.m.