SULPHUR — No. 1 Iowa finally met its match Saturday in the Class 3A final at the state tournament.

After not allowing a run through the first four rounds, first baseman Alexis Smith and No. 7 Buckeye shocked the Yellow Jackets with an early lead to win 8-6.

“We have been fighters all along,” Iowa head coach Kenzie Singletary said. “We have competed all year. We had a tough schedule and we wanted to prepare them for this moment to where they had to compete. It just wasn’t quite enough.

“Buckeye did a great job offensively. They got hits at the right time. It hurts. What I am trying to tell them is that regardless of what trophy we have in our hands we still made history yet again.”

Buckeye (28-8) was in the final for the first time since 2019 and won its first title since 2012. The Panthers beat three top-10 seeds in the postseason, including No. 2 Lutcher 4-1 in the quarterfinals.

Iowa played in the final for the second consecutive season.

Iowa (27-7) senior pitcher Arlee Darbonne hadn’t allowed a run in four postseason games, but Smith changed that with a two-out, two-run home run in the first inning. The Most Outstanding Player added another two-out, two-run bomb in the third inning to put Iowa in a 4-1 hole.

“We have had shutouts all through the playoffs,” Singletary said. “Arlee hadn’t given up a run since the beginning of April, so it kind of stung a little. But they fought back, and we did as much as we could.”

Iowa battled back to tie the score at 4-4 in the bottom of the fourth inning. Calee Guillory led off with a triple and scored on Andie Huval’s single. Huval scored on an error to even the score.

Iowa scored single runs in the fifth and sixth innings but left nine runners stranded.

“They learned to compete and they learned to push back,” Singletary said. “They have always been fighters. I never had a doubt in them. We just didn’t quite get enough across.”

Momentum swung in the Panthers’ favor in the fifth inning after a close call with two outs. Olivia Henry slid into first as the ball arrived, bringing home Jayden Dauzart with the go-ahead run. Maddie Sinclair followed with an RBI double, and Allison Brossett plated a pair of runs on an infield single. Dauzart went 4-for-4 with three runs scored.

“It definitely made a difference, a few little hard ground balls that should be outs,” Singletary said. “They outran it.

“We had some calls on our side the same way. It makes a difference if it changes the momentum.”

Buckeye scored all of its runs with two outs.

Guillory went 3-for-4. Kamryn Broussard, who hit a solo home run in the first inning, Kylie Boudreaux, Bentley Richard and Huval had two hits apiece.