Jake Nickelson was positive it would roll foul. The Fulton Hornets senior catcher watched the bunt come off the bat of Fatima junior shortstop Brady Weber and travel down the third-base line, certain it would roll out of play.
"The whole time we knew it was coming and everyone thought it was going foul, but it just hit that piece of chalk and went fair," Nickelson said. "Stuff like that happens in baseball."
The ball stopped and stayed fair, while the momentum remained with the Comets. Fatima senior second baseman Nevan Woehr scored on the play to tie the game at 1-all.
Two pitches later, Fatima scored what proved to be the game-winner on a single by sophomore left fielder Ryan Mebruer, pushing the fourth-seeded Comets past the No. 5 Hornets 7-1 in the Class 3, District 8 quarterfinals on Saturday at the high school athletic complex.