HASTINGS - The summer before her sixth-grade year, Taylor Fernau came from the Kansas City, Mo., to Blair every day to participate in a weeklong softball camp.

It's been six years, but coach Jon Small remembers those days like they were yesterday. And years from now, Small will recall Fernau's three-run homer Friday in the Class B state championship game.

"It felt awesome," said Fernau, now a senior. "I knew it as soon as I hit it."

Fernau's two-out blast in the third inning broke a scoreless tie and lifted the second-ranked Bears to a 4-1 win against No. 1 Omaha Skutt.

Blair (26-3) lost Friday's first championship game 11-3 in six innings before bouncing right back to beat the SkyHawks for the program's first state softball title.

"What game are you talking about?" joked Small when asked about the approach that he took with his team following the first loss. "I didn't say one word about that game, and we really felt like we were still in good shape."

The advantage Blair had was that pitcher Carly Nielsen was fresher than Skutt counterpart Kylee Polsley. The SkyHawks (24-6) fell into the losers' bracket with a tough 2-1 loss to Blair in their first game Friday.

Skutt led 1-0 until a throwing error in the seventh inning brought in the tying and go-ahead runs. Skutt bounced back to defeat Seward 6-0.