Ottumwa -- Sophomore Kassidi Henderson led off the bottom of the 11th inning in the deciding game of the District J Tournament against Crowder College with a no-doubt home run and, as a result, the Indian Hills Warriors are making plans for a return trip to the NJCAA National Softball Tournament.

Henderson's shot to left field off Crowder's Maddie Massanelli allowed IHCC to take the district tournment title with a 2-1 victory after dropping the opening game of the best-of-three affair,

Crowder, which brought a 52-8 season record and a Region 11 champiionship into the weekend at R.L. Hellyer Field, won game one 4-2, but got blown out by the rejuvenated Warrior bats, 14-2, in Saturday's second contest.

The game-winning homer by Henderson made a winner of IHCC pitcher Olivia Goodale who was superb in shutting down the Roughriders after they had beaten her the day before. Goodale threw a complete-game five-hitter and had six one-two-three innings, including three in a row to start the game. It was scoreless until Sierra Walton doubled off the glove of the centerfilelder to drive in Shyanne DuBois in the bottom the 6th, which left IHCC three outs from a regulation victory. But Makaila Leonhart, Crowder's number-nine batter, tied the score with a one-out home run in the top of the 7th and an extra-inning battle ensued.

The Warriors threatened in the 8th, but Henderson's two-on, two-out line drive was snared by the 3rd baseman.

The Roughriders left one runner on in the 10th and Indian Hills stranded two.

In the top of the 11th, Goodale worked out of a two-out jam after an error prolonged the inning, setting the stage for Henderson's dramatic round-tripper in the bottom of the inning.

The tourney started well for Crowder as the visitors plated three runs in the second inning of the first game, helped by a couple of IHCC errors. Solo homers by DuBois and Walton in the third got the Warriors back into the game, but IHCC didn't score again against Massanelli Their best chance came with the bases loaded in the 7th, but Massanelli induced a fly ball by Taylor Takushi to end it.

Indian Hills quickly went to work on tying up the series in game two, scoring twice on three hits in the first inning and then pouring across seven runs in the second to make it 9-1. Keagan Helson had an RBI double, Courtnee Hahn a two-run double and DuBois a 3-run homer in the frame. The Warriors added two runs in the fourth and Walton put the finishing touches on the rout with a home run in the 7th.

The big victory kept IHCC alive in the tourney and the subsequent win on Sunday gives Indian Hills its second consecutive district championship to go along with three straight region titles.

Goodale, a freshman, has shined so far in the postseason. She shut out Southeastern and defeated Iowa Western in the Region XI tournament. Two of the four runs she gave up in the lone loss to Crowder were unearned before her 11-inning gem against the Roughriders.

It is the 19th time an Indian Hills softball team will play in the national tourney, which begins May 17 in St. George, Utah.

The Warriors qualifed in the first year of the softball program back in 1989, and had an impressive streak of 15 straight trips from 1991-2005.