With one swing, the fortunes of the Eureka Falcons changed.

In the top of the eighth, the Falcons trailed the Giants 1-0, when Eureka slugger Ryan Stearns blasted a two-run shot over the right-field fence to propel his team to a 3-1 victory and the District 1 American Legion title at Crescent City, Saturday.

“I was just looking for a fastball over the middle,” said Stearns. “The pitch actually ended up being a little outside and I went to opposite field with it.”

Stearns’ shot drove in teammate Andrew Ayers, who led off the inning with a towering triple to right, setting the table for his team to take the lead.

Though the Falcons ultimately walked away victorious, the Giants gave them a run for their money, scoring first in the bottom of the fourth when Nolan Colegrove hit an infield dribbler that brought in Spencer Duggan, who had reached base with a double earlier.

That run was enough for the Giants to hold the lead through the majority of the game, but not enough to put it away.

Eureka starting pitcher Justin Hatch kept the Northern Humboldt bats at bay as he gave up just three hits in seven innings for the win.

“I was trying to make sure that I was hitting my spots with my fastball,” said Hatch. “I wanted to stay focused on doing whatever I needed to do. We had a little trouble hitting, but we played well defensively.”

In the bottom of the eighth, Ayers took the mound and put the Giants’ comeback hopes to bed, striking out one and giving up two hits for the save.

D.J. Hancock threw the first eight innings for Northern Humboldt and held a shutout until giving up the home run to Stearns.

“D.J. threw a terrific game,” said Eureka head coach Dale Del Grande. “He was moving the ball around well and we were only able to scatter eight hits off him until, finally, Ryan Stearns got at that one fastball.”

The Falcons added one more run in the ninth, pulling off a double steal with Jordan Davis on first and David Del Grande on third.

Davis initiated the play by stopping half-way between first and third, baiting the pitcher to run him down.

Once the pitcher bit, David Del Grande used the diversion to cross home plate for an insurance run. Davis also advanced to second on the play.

With the win, the Falcons improved their record to 23-10 and advanced to the area tournament, which begins Wednesday in Fairfield. They play the District 4 representative at 3 p.m.

“I’m very proud of these guys,” Dale Del Grande said. “We were able to keep the mental mistakes to a minimum and play good baseball. I had very high expectations for this team when we started, and I’m very pleased with how they’ve played. We still have a way to go though.”

The Giants ended their season with the loss and finished with a record of 17-16.

“I can’t be upset with a loss this close,” said Northern Humboldt head coach Scott St. John. “D.J. pitched a heck of a game, but I kept him in for a little too long, so that home run is on me. Overall, the team played great and battled hard every time they took the field for me. I love these guys.”