"I told them before the game that this is our season and we need to do this together as a team," said Homer Head Coach Bill Bell. "They just did a marvelous job and we're going to state."

The Lady Ms, the 2006 state champions and 2007 runners-up, lost a nail-biter Tuesday against Soldotna at Karen Hornaday Park, blowing a two-run lead in the top of the seventh and falling just short of a dramatic comeback when senior Chelsea Carr was tagged out at second base after blasting one deep to center field in the top of the eighth.

Fittingly, it was Carr who made the Stars pay Friday night, breaking a 5-5 tie in the top of the seventh inning with a well-timed hit that scored two runs.

"It was a rope right out to the wall. It was great hit," said Bell.

"I just went up to the plate thinking to myself, 'Hit it over the fence,'" Carr told the Peninsula Clarion. "It turned out OK."

Freshman Sydney Sligh pitched all eight innings and picked up the win for the Lady Ms.

"The girls were exuberant, especially the ones who were on the team last year when we lost a doubleheader to Soldotna to end the season. Some of them were crying," said Bell.

"We were pretty disappointed after last season," said Carr. "We thought about state the whole season. I'm happy we were able to come through in the end."

The Lady Mariners will not be traveling north alone.

On Saturday, the Homer baseball team needed a minor miracle -- two straight wins over a pair of conference foes on the same day -- to pull ahead of Kodiak (3-2 NLC, 6-8 overall) in the Northern Lights Conference and advance to state.

Behind the efficient and consistent pitching of Justin Frink, who had a no-hitter through seven innings, the Mariners clobbered the Palmer Moose (0-5 NLC, 0-6 overall) 7-3 in the first game at the upper field at Homer High.

Using a mix of curveballs and breaking balls that bewildered Palmer batters all afternoon, Frink was dealing all day, racking up six strikeouts while only throwing 81 pitches through seven innings.

"He's a real finesse, thinking pitcher," Homer Head Coach Dave Gilbert said of Frink. "He really takes pride in being able to get good movement on the ball and he wants to give the batter a different look on every pitch."

With less than two hours to prepare for Soldotna, the Mariners turned to pitcher Josh Gilbert, an American Legion League pitcher of the year last year, to keep their state tournament hopes alive.

Gilbert did not disappoint, striking out 11 batters and giving up just one hit -- a fifth inning single by Justice Elson -- in seven innings of work.

Gilbert was helped by the hot Homer bats, which maintained the consistency they found in the Palmer game. In the second inning, the Mariner sluggers took a 4-0 lead when singles by Gilbert and Asa Stage were followed by a two-RBI blast by Norm Anderson.

"Josh's pitching shut them down," said Dave Gilbert of his son. "Soldotna is a hitting team that's not afraid to go after the ball. Josh just wouldn't let them get back in the game."

The Mariners will open the state tournament against Anchorage's Dimond High (9-2 overall) today at 4:30 p.m. at Hermon Brothers Field in Palmer. The game will be broadcast on local radio station KGTL 620 AM.

"They are so pumped," said Gilbert. "They have worked real hard and it paid off at the end of the season. It was in their hands and they turned around and started believing it."

The Lady Mariners, meanwhile, will play a Friday opening round game against Eielson High (3-8 overall) at Cartee Fields in Anchorage at 9 a.m.

Bell said he knows little about an Eielson team the Mariners have not faced this year, but his team will be ready.

"I don't think we ever had any intention of not going to state this year and the way we're playing now, I think we can do it. We just have to be focused on our game," he said.

Aaron Selbig can be reached at aaronselbig.@homernews.com.