When Emmaus faced Whitehall last Tuesday, the Hornets knew it would be a big test.

Emmaus came in as the lone undefeated team in the Lehigh Valley Conference and the Zephyrs were coming off a win over previously unbeaten Parkland. Emmaus came to bat in the bottom of the fifth, trailing 3-0, but tied the game only to give up the go-ahead run in the top of the sixth.

The next inning, Whitehall broke the game wide open with eight runs and knocked off yet another undefeated team with a 12-3 win over Emmaus.

The players and coaches hope that will be the low point of the season. Like a good team does, the Hornets have rebounded nicely and picked up a 13-1 win over Southern Lehigh as pitcher Trey Hinkle made his first varsity start for Emmaus. Hinkle, who threw a perfect game for the JV team earlier this season, threw three innings, giving up just one earned run in his varsity debut.

From there, Joel Bartoni and Jake Pacheco took over on the mound, holding the Spartans scoreless.

Emmaus further proved that it has gotten over its first loss of the season with a come-from-behind win over Easton on Monday. Taylor Jones delivered a two-out, two-run single in the bottom of the sixth that brought Emmaus back from a 4-0 deficit to a 5-4 win over the Red Rovers.

"Anytime you battle back like this, it shows something," said head coach John Schreiner. "Taylor does a lot for us and most of the time he's the guy setting the table, but in this instance, he was the one who drove in the big runs for us."

Jones had two strikes on him when he got his big hit and was just trying to make something happen.

"With two strikes, I just wanted to get the ball into play," he said. "We had two guys on and I didn't want to end the rally there, so I just looked to make contact."

There are nine regular season games left, with seven of them coming against LVC opponents. The coming week has Emmaus playing an almost unfair schedule.

Over the next week, the Hornets play five games over seven days and four of those games are on the road. LVC games include trips to Liberty, Freedom and Parkland, with a non-conference meeting in Ephrata on Saturday. The lone home game will be Friday when Emmaus hosts Bethlehem Catholic.

The Hornets currently hold a 4 1/2-game lead over both Central Catholic and Dieruff in the LVC West Division. Any combination of three Emmaus wins and/or three losses by the Vikings and Huskies would give the Hornets the division title.