Come Monday, they’ll do it again.

Redmond High softball players and their exploding bats will march into battle with Inglemoor High in the opening-round of the 4A Kingco playoffs at 4 p.m. at Inglemoor High.

These have been exciting times for Redmond, which engaged in an epic nine-inning contest against rival Eastlake on May 6 with the Mustangs prevailing, 7-6. Mustang freshman Kiki Milloy tied the game at 6-6 with a two-run homer in the bottom of the seventh inning and senior Kaija Gibson singled to drive in junior Keona Tibbs to win it in the last of the ninth.

Redmond players dog-piled onto each other while celebrating the grueling, satisfying victory.

Gibson, who also blasted a two-run homer against Eastlake, is just one lightning bolt in the Mustangs’ power surge.

“It’s really cool to be part of a team that you have so many girls who are able to hit the ball like that,” she said. “Top to bottom, we have power hitters. First person can hit a bomb and she can slap, as well; ninth hitter, can hit a bomb and slap, as well; all in between, hitting bombs, getting a bunt down. I think that’s really crucial to have girls that can do everything.”

Sophomore Mara Kipnis leads the way in the homer barrage with nine. She smiles while noting that she was a bit nervous at the plate as a freshman, but has since adjusted to the prep softball atmosphere. She’s confident and relaxed and always ready to do some hitting damage.

Kipnis, who hits with her batting coach at least once a week and plays with her select team on the weekends, focuses on her mechanics at the plate and goes from there. Which is often smacking the ball for a hit and padding her .525 average with 28 RBIs.

She’s always “looking for the pitch that I want to hit and not letting everything else get in the way. Sometimes I can kind of tell (it’s a homer) when it’s coming off the bat, sometimes I think it might be a fly ball.”

When Kipnis rounds the bases and her teammates are waiting for her at home plate, she said, “It’s really cool, everyone’s so supportive and loud, and it’s an amazing feeling.”

Gibson — who is batting .500 with 13 RBIs — noted that Kipnis is a humble player who is coming into her own this season. She’s making solid connections with the ball, not trying to hit home runs.

“We’re always just really confident when Mara’s up to the plate that she can hit us in,” said Gibson, who hits every day, either in her garage with a bucket of balls and a net or at Hartman Park with her brother. “I do something to make sure that my hitting’s gonna be on point. Keeping it simple is really important to me. Gotta keep my game up. I love it so much.”

Senior Rachel Robinson joined in on the homer parade with a pair of dingers against Mount Si. She struggled at the plate early in the season, but coach Alison Mitchell helped get her on track, telling her “not to think about anything, just go up there and have fun and swing the bat.”

That advice worked and now Robinson is handling the bat well and watching others do the same.

“I think it’s awesome. Any time there’s a crucial moment, ‘Oh, we need to get a hit right here,’ any time that anyone steps up to the plate, we’re confident that ‘she’s gonna get a hit, she can get on base,'” said Robinson, who has nine RBIs.

And it was that thrilling comeback victory against Eastlake last week that will stick in the Mustangs’ minds forever. Even when they were down, Robinson said they were confident that a Redmond victory was at hand. They kept notching big plays, both offensively and defensively in the “crazy” and “competitive” game, Gibson added.

“We have to keep competing and keep fighting until we win this game,” Robinson said.

Kipnis added that “there was never a doubt in our mind that we couldn’t come back and we couldn’t win it.”

It was Milloy’s clutch homer that kept Redmond alive and their beliefs strong.

“I try and get a base hit every single time. If I can help my teammates out by pitching well or hitting well, that’s what I’m gonna try and do,” said Milloy, who’s hitting .446 with three homers and 17 RBIs.

Much like Kipnis last year, freshman Milloy was a little nervous at first, but now she’s mixing it up with the veterans to the hilt.

“I’m just loving the grind. I’m loving competing with these older girls, getting better. That’s what I really enjoy about this,” Milloy said.

Other standout Mustangs at the plate are senior Megan Nakamura with a .317 average along with two homers and eight RBIs, freshman Allison Wells with a .400 average with one homer and six RBIs and freshman Lindsay Tsujikawa, who’s hitting at a .383 clip with nine RBIs.

Redmond is 9-10 overall.