SULPHUR — The St. Charles Catholic Lady Comets started slow but finished hot during the LHSAA Division II softball quarterfinals in Sulphur, ending Thursday’s game with an 11-1 win over E.D. White.

The state championship game is only hours away, but head coach Ty Monica said a spot in the final two isn’t guaranteed: The girls must bring their “A” game to survive a 2 p.m. Saturday semifinal battle against No. 2 seed Archbishop Hannan, a team that spelled trouble for the Lady Comets last month.

With six runners left stranded on base against E.D. White, Monica wasn’t impressed by his team’s quarterfinal performance.

The Lady Comets’ spark didn’t shine through until the bottom of the fifth, when the girls rounded through the batting lineup twice and scored eight runs.

Monica said most of the runs came in with two outs, demonstrating an ability to perform under pressure.

“At the end of the day, when we needed to step up and finish we did,” Monica said.

“Going forward, we need to start fast, not just finish fast. We’re going to give it our best shot and let it fall as it may.”

A win against Hannan would earn St. Charles Catholic a spot in a championship contest against No. 1 seed Parkview Baptist or No. 4 seed St. Thomas More.