As the no. 1 seed from the 4A-5 conference, Stuttgart’s postseason expectations should have included a relatively easy first-round opponent in the 4A-East Regional Thursday. Instead, the Ladybirds drew a team that was within one out of defeating Stuttgart on April 7, the Southside Batesville Lady Southerners. Southside finished the 2021 season as the no. 4 seed from a loaded 4A-3 conference that saw the top four finishers go a combined 75-26 this year. Southside earned the four-seed position from the league by going 7-5. In the Lady Southerners’ five conference losses, three were decided by three runs or fewer. In Stuttgart’s first meeting with Southside this season, the Ladybirds found themselves trailing 5-1 as the game headed to the seventh inning. In that seventh frame, Stuttgart scored five runs to take a 6-5 lead before Southside tied the game in the seventh to force extra innings.