By ERIC BENEVIDES

Sports writer

LINCOLN --- Lincoln High came out swinging and delivered an impressive knockout punch to Chariho High on Thursday afternoon in their Division I single-elimination playoff opener.
Held to just one hit by Charger ace Rebecca Williams in their regular-season contest back on April 9, the Lions roughed up Williams for a dozen hits and hit for the cycle during a five-run, sixth-inning rally that helped them grab a 7-0 triumph at Saylesville Elementary School’s Sullivan Field.
The victory sends the Lions into the double-elimination quarterfinals, which get under way this afternoon, and the Lions, who are the fifth seed in the 12-team tournament, will lock horns with neighboring rival Cumberland High at 4 p.m. at Tucker Field.
The Clippers and the Lions concluded the regular season with identical 11-5 records, but the Clippers earned the tiebreaker and the fourth seed (and the first-round bye that comes with it) by surprisingly mercy-ruling the Lions by a 12-2 score 17 days ago.
“I don’t know if that game was reflective of our potential or our ability, but I’m sure our girls are going to be a little more focused tomorrow,” Lincoln coach Jon Bruckner added. “But right now, they’re enjoying today, and I’m proud of them for beating a tough team like Chariho.”
When the Lions last faced the 12th-seeded Chargers, they received a superb showing from sophomore pitcher Alyssa McCoart, who limited Chariho to two hits, but the Lions ended up dropping a 1-0 decision when two infield errors added up to a seventh-inning run.
Williams also added to the Lions’ miseries by striking out nine batters and handcuffing them to their one hit, but in Thursday’s rematch, she wasn’t as dominant, as she ended up with six strikeouts (all in the first three innings) and a lot of hard-hit shots off the Lions’ bats.
The Lions, meanwhile, sent senior Jess Borden to the mound and the Lions tri-captain responded with one of her finest outings of the season. Borden pitched a brilliant two-hitter that saw her face just 25 batters (four over the minimum), strike out six, and walk two.
“I felt pretty confident because I know I have a good team behind me,” said Borden, who spent most of the game nibbling on the outer half of the plate on the Chargers’ righthanded-hitting lineup. “Everybody was playing really well and that just gave me more confidence.”
The Lions gave Borden the only run she needed in the bottom of the second when a two-out throwing error into left field by catcher Michelle Mowbray allowed Brittany Allen to score from second base.
The Lions then doubled their lead in the third, as a leadoff infield single by Borden and an infield error set the tables for a RBI double by McCoart that one-hopped the fence in straightaway center.
That was more than enough support for Borden, who retired 15 of the first 16 batters she faced and never allowed a runner to reach third base.    
“Everyone has confidence in Jess’s pitching,” added Bruckner. “We kind of know that once we can get her a run or two, our confidence grows because we know what she can do with the ball after that.”
The Lions finally put the game away with their sixth-inning uprising, and it got off to a rousing start when Chelsea Brennan led off with a home run, as she turned on a 3-2 pitch by Williams and lofted it well beyond the center-field fence.
Allen followed with a single to left, and an out and a wild pitch later, No. 9 batter Jessica Corio drove Allen home with a long double that went into the gap in right-center and found the fence on one bounce. 
A walk to Barbara Jackson and a base hit to right by Emma Hart loaded the bases, and after a fielder’s choice grounder by Borden cut down Corio at the plate, Brianna Ferri followed with a triple to left that cleared the bases.
Offensively, Everyone in the Lions’ lineup concluded the afternoon with at least one hit (with Hart and Borden each producing two), while defensively, the Lions, who played errorless ball, received an excellent diving catch by Corio in right field on a shallow fly near the right-field line in the sixth and two nice catches by McCoart in left.
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Chariho        000    000    0--0-2-2
Lincoln        011    005    x--7-12-0
Rebecca Williams and Michelle Mowbray; Jessica Borden and Chelsea Brennan. 2B -- Chelsey Welch (C), Alyssa McCoart (L), Jessica Corio (L). 3B -- Brianna Ferri (L). HR -- Chelsea Brennan (L).