In Review: A-W advances to sixth consecutive state tourney

(Sentinel photo by Roy Tucker) A-W seniors (from left) Haley Banks, Jessica Horton, Kayla Smith, Shelby Johnson and Ambra Coon proudly display the state qualifying banner after A-W defeated West Lyon in the regional final on July 10 to punch its sixth straight state ticket. [Click to enlarge]

Softball is kind of a big deal at Akron-Westfield.

Under head coach Todd Colt, the Lady Westerners have been a force at the state softball tournament in Fort Dodge since 2003 when the squad finished sixth in Class 1A.

Since then, A-W has appeared in six consecutive state tournaments, finishing in the top three in four of the six years and winning two state titles.

In 2004, the Lady Westerners lost in the semifinal round to Cardinal before defeating Charter Oak-Ute to claim third place in 1A.

In 2005, A-W moved up to Class 2A where the squad defeated Solon 9-2 to win the state championship.

The Lady Westerners were state champs again in 2006 when they defeated Newell-Fonda 3-1 in the 1A title game.

In 2007, A-W was back in 2A and back in the championship game. However, Solon avenged its 2005 defeat with a 6-0 win over the Lady Westerners.

Last summer, the Lady Westerners advanced to the state tournament again where they saw several familiar faces.

On Thursday, July 10, fans packed the stands and surrounded the outfield fences in Le Mars as the Lady Westerners faced off with the Wildcats of West Lyon in the Class 2A regional final.

A-W limited West Lyon to just one run on four hits to take a 12-1 victory in five innings and advance to its sixth straight state tournament.

In Fort Dodge, the Lady Westerners first faced Emmetsburg. The E-Hawks knocked off four quality teams en route to the state tournament. In the first two rounds of the regional bracket, Emmetsburg shut out its opponents, defeating Bishop Garrigan 1-0 and Pocahontas Area 3-0. In the semifinal, the E-Hawks handed a 3-1 loss to Sioux Central and went on to defeat Humboldt 4-2 in the regional final.

Despite their conquest through the regional bracket, the E-Hawks couldn't solve the third-ranked Lady Westerners in the state opener as A-W won the contest 4-0. Senior pitcher Kayla Smith pitched a one-hitter with 14 K's as the Lady Westerners battled one game closer to the state championship.

The all-state pitcher really boosted her squad throughout the regional tournament, giving up 11 total hits, including tossing a no-hitter against Hinton in the first round of regionals.

With the opening round win, the Lady Westerners found themselves facing a familiar team in the semifinal round.

The 2008 semi would be a rematch of the previous year, where A-W defeated North Polk 1-0 in 2007.

This summer, the contest was a battle of No. 2 vs. No. 3 with the winner advancing to the title game.

But the Comets' ace pitcher Sammy Snygg proved too much for A-W this time around and the Lady Westerners' title run was halted as North Polk handed A-W a 3-1 loss.

Snygg gave up just six hits and one run as her squad advanced to the championship, where they defeated Solon 4-2.

A-W finished 2008 with a 37-5 overall record.

The Lady Westerners were led by five seniors - pitcher Kayla Smith, catcher Shelby Johnson, first baseman Haley Banks and outfielders Ambra Coon and Jessica Horton.

Smith and Horton were named to the All-Tournament team based on their performance in Fort Dodge.

Johnson was selected to play in the Iowa Girls Coaches Association All-Star games in Johnston. The catcher was the third Lady Westerner to be named to the team; Tana Colt and Rachel Harris were selected in 2007.

Smith and Coon headlined the list of Lady Westerners earning All-State honors in 2008 as both seniors were named to the first team.

Earning second team honors was Horton while Johnson was named to the third team all-state. Junior second baseman Alison Kusler received honorable mention.