For Durant, the picture says it all

In the fifth inning of its 3-1 win Tuesday night against West Orange in the Class 6A region finals, the wheels appeared to be coming off for Durant. The Cougars, after committing back-to-back errors, saw a 2-0 lead quickly become 2-1. With no outs in the inning and a runner on second, Durant ace Sara Demuth struck out a Warriors batter for out No. 1. Moments later, she induced a grounder to the mound. Demuth snagged the ball and tossed it to first, where second baseman Brittany Harwell, who was covering the bag, caught it and alertly threw home. There, catcher Kristen Jones nailed a West Orange baserunner to complete the double play. End of inning. Thirty minutes later, the game was over and Durant was headed to the final four. "I saw (the runner) rounding third, and I figured I had to fire the ball home," Harwell said. This terrific photo, provided by Steve Jones, captured the end of the dramatic game-turning play.

-- KEITH NIEBUHR