The “Little Warrior” reigned supreme against the “Lil Bulldog” on Friday night, as Barb Honchak defeated Felice Herrig via competitive decision after three hard-fought rounds. The featured women’s bout served as the co-main event of Hoosier Fight Club 6: “New Years Nemesis” in Valparaiso, Indiana.

Honchak, who earned her second MMA win as a professional, used effective knees from a Thai clinch that bloodied Herrig’s nose, and she rocked Herrig with a spinning backfist late in the fight. The victory gets Honchak back on track after a loss to unbeaten prospect Cat “Alpha” Zingano one year ago.

Herrig began the fight aggressively with front kicks and backed Honchak up to the cage, but she was quickly reversed. Honchak landed punches and knees to the head and body in close before backing away. Herrig landed a combination and both fighters targeted the body with strikes. Honchak clinched and backed Herrig up to the cage, but was unable to take her down. Herrig broke free and scored with hard punches, and Honchak looked to counter with a takedown before the bell.

A pair of left hooks from Herrig opened the second stanza, but Honchak scored with knees from a Thai clinch. The knees bloodied Herrig’s nose and Honchak began to take control of the clinch. She pressed Herrig up against the cage and landed short strikes while forcing Herrig to work to defend. Herrig broke free and Honchak landed jabs, then connected with a spinning backfist. Herrig was unfazed, however, and Honchak resumed her clinchwork near the cage late in the round.

Honchak once again found success with her jab in the final round, and Herrig looked to counter with single power punches. Honchak walked right through Herrig’s strikes and backed her up to the cage. Honchak secured another Thai clinch and landed knees to the body, then one to the face that caused Herrig’s nose to bleed once again. The fighters separated and Honchak stunned Herrig with a second spinning backfist shortly before the final bell.

Winner: Barb Honchak by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. She improves to 2-1-0.

Honchak, who put together an extremely impressive 8-1-0 amateur record before turning pro, has faced tough opposition throughout her MMA career. Her lone amateur loss came via razor-thin Split Decision against unbeaten rising star Jessica “Evil” Eye, and Friday’s win over Herrig puts Honchak within reach of the Top 10 at 125 pounds.