Aynor was heading for another heartbreak against Belton-Honea Path on a muggy Wednesday night.

Tears were going to be shed after this one. And they were – but they were tears of joy.

Alivia Hess and Hannah Lewis smacked back-to-back doubles in the bottom of the eighth inning as Aynor rallied for a heart-stopping 2-1 win in Game 1 of the 3A state championship series.

“They fought and they believe in each other,” said an emotional Aynor coach Tony Mills. “Every girl on this team believes in her teammates.”

Hess came to the plate with one out in the bottom of the eighth inning in a 1-1 game and ripped a line drive off BHP pitcher Addi Vaughn to the gap in right center.

Then it was time for Lewis.

“When Alivia got on base, she said, ‘find a hole. Get me in,’” Lewis said. “I said, ‘OK, gotcha.’ So, I had a lot of confidence.”

And she delivered with a blast to deep left center as Hess raced home to a jubilant celebration, first at home plate and then out in the field. The Blue Jackets completed a riveting, come-from-behind win that left them one win away from the program’s second state championship in three years.

Senior pitcher Maddie Johnson, in her final game on Aynor’s field, hurled a two-hitter with 11 strikeouts.

Game 2 is Friday, May 30, at Belton-Honea Path.

It looked like Aynor was going to be taking the long trip trailing in this series and with the defending state champions having all the momentum.

The Blue Jackets trailed 1-0 in the bottom of the fifth, with Johnson having been robbed of a home run an inning earlier when Bears’ center fielder Madi Boggs made an incredible catch, extending her glove above the fence to make the catch.

Yes, it looked like the stars were aligned against Aynor.

That was before Alaina Brown, the No. 8 hitter, crushed a home run well over the fence in left field to tie the game.

“I was thinking base hit, base hit,” Brown said. “It went flying. It went over. It was low and inside and that’s my go-to pitch. So, it was there.”