PEABODY — If King Philip softball coach Kate Comeau has her way, the Warriors will be destroying the Division 1 bracket on a regular basis for the next couple of weeks.

On Tuesday at the Kiley School, the 19th seed rode the back of a brilliant pitching performance by sophomore McCoy Walsh and timely hitting to shut out No. 5 seed Peabody, 5-0, and earn a spot in the round of 8 against Lincoln-Sudbury or Bridgewater-Raynham.

“They were hungry and ready,” Comeau said of her team. “The whole goal was to put the bat on the ball and they did a great job of it.”

Walsh held a potent Peabody offense to only four hits while striking out 11. But it was her work in the bottom of the first that gave her team a huge boost of confidence.

With another ace in Peabody’s Abby Bettencourt going for the Tanners, it felt like a game of whoever could score first would have a huge advantage. And when Bettencourt and Avery Grieco walked around a Lizzy Bettencourt single to load the bases, it looked like Peabody might get that edge.

But Walsh was having none of that idea as she struck out Kiley Doolin and Jess Stead to end the inning.

“That first inning was huge,” Comeau said. “It gave McCoy a huge boost of confidence and the team built off of that.”

The Warriors (15-9) broke the ice in the top of the third. Syd Burch reached on a one-out error before Ali Gill walked and Ava Kelley singled to load the bases.

Taylor Regan hit a chopper back to the mound that Bettencourt momentarily bobbled, allowing Burch to beat her throw home. Maddie Peschke then singled just inside the left field line to score two more for a 3-0 Warriors lead.

That looked like it would be more than enough for Walsh as she got into a groove after her first inning struggles, retiring the next 15 Tanners she faced.

KP added to its lead in the fourth when Allie Cecere singled and scored on a double from Burch and again in the sixth when Cecere again lead off with a hit. This time it was Kelley driving her in with two outs to make it 5-0.

Peabody had a chance to cut into the lead in the bottom of the sixth as Logan Lomasney and Lizzy Bettencourt singled with one down but Walsh got the next two batters to end the inning.

“We’ve been in a lot of tough situations this season with the teams we’ve played,” Comeau said. “We’ve been able to keep our composure and go one pitch at a time.”

Peabody’s Kaylee DiNicola tags out King Philip’s Ali Bill at home plate during a state tournament game won 5-0 by King Philip. (Staff Photo/Stuart Cahill/Boston Herald)