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Toreadors go with power to fly by Lynx in regional

WCHS?leads early, then watches season end on back-to-back 6-run innings; Stoakes two hits, two RBIs out of clean-up spot in lineup

Webster City right fielder Kelly Stoakes makes a lunging catch on the run on a shot down the line by Boone’s Emily Ades during the third inning last night in Boone. DFJ photo/Troy Banning

BOONE — The first time through the order was just fine. But the second time? Uh, not so much.

It took Boone a few innings to get its timing, but once that happened the Toreadors erupted offensively and rolled to a 12-2, 5-inning romp over Webster City in a Class 4A Region 3 quarterfinal-round contest last night.

The Toreadors went just 1 for 7 at the plate in their first look at WCHS starting pitcher Jenna Miller. But the second and third runs through the order against Miller and reliever Atlanta Hopp were a little dicier, as Boone (15-19) went 12 for 18 and belted four of its five extra-base hits.

“Anytime you get to the (second and third) times through the order, you start to worry about what they’re going to do,” WCHS head coach Jess Howard said. “They were able to catch up to us faster than we were able to catch up to them.”

It was Boone’s third victory of the season over WCHS (16-15) and it sent the Toreadors on to Saturday’s regional semifinal against No. 14-ranked Norwalk.

Webster City catcher Kaitlynn Seeley checks the runner at first after tagging out Boone’s Caitlynne Shadle at the plate in the first inning last night. The Toreadors knocked off Webster City, 12-2, in the Class 4A Region 3 quarterfinal. DFJ photo/Troy Banning

In those three wins, Boone scored 36 runs.

Ellen Castle, Caitlynne Shadle, Lauren Calkins, Emma Dighton and Victoria Lewis — the first five hitters in Boone’s lineup — all went 2 for 3 at the dish and they combined to collect eight RBIs.

Zoey Woodle and Kelly Stoakes both went 2 for 3 at the plate with a double for WCHS. Stoakes drove in both runs, while Miller added a single.

The Lynx led 2-0 after three innings behind the play of Woodle and Stoakes at the plate. Woodle laid down a one-out bunt single in the first inning and eventually trotted home from third on Stoakes’ double to left field.

Woodle opened the third frame by lashing a bouncer just fair down the left field line that resulted in a double. Two batters later, Stoakes turned on a Dighton pitch and sent a screaming RBI single into right field.

Webster City center fielder Zoey Woodle makes a diving catch to end the second inning against Boone last night in a Class 4A Region 3 quarterfinal contest. DFJ photo/Troy Banning

Both outfielders also made dazzling catches. Woodle robbed Jaden Huseman of a single with a diving catch to end the second inning and Stoakes made a lunging snag on a liner down the line by Emily Ades in the third.

“I thought offensively and defensively for 22⁄3 innings, we played very well,” Howard said. “Defensively we had some great catches.”

Boone put up six runs in the bottom of the third, all with two outs, to take command for good. Calkins smacked a RBI double, Lewis drove in two runs with a single that hopped over WCHS shortstop Taylor McKinney, and Huseman belted a two-RBI double into the left-center gap.

Eight straight Toreadors reached base in the third after Miller recorded the first two outs on pop-ups.

Dighton provided the dagger in the fourth with her ninth home run of the season — a three-run shot that just cleared the tall fence in right-center.

WCHS first baseman Cynthia Whitehill shows the ball after digging it out of the dirt against Boone in a Class 4A Region 3 quarterfinal last night in Boone. DFJ photo/Troy Banning

WCHS needed a run in the top of the fifth to extend the season and Haley Flaws put it in position with an infield single and her 38th stolen base of the season. She was standing on third when Dighton got Woodle to line out and McKinney to ground out to end the game.

Dighton picked up the win in the pitcher’s circle. She surrendered six hits and struck out five for the Toreadors.

Miller was on the hook for the loss after she allowed seven hits and six earned runs in three innings of work. She fanned one.

The loss marked the end of the line for Lynx seniors Haley Flaws and Cassidy Nerland, two stalwarts in the lineup. Nerland played in just eight games this season after injuring her ankle, while Flaws walks away with 94 career stolen bases.

“Our seniors did a great job for us,” Howard said.

Freshman Faith Anderson races out of the batter’s box after putting down a sacrifice bunt against Boone last night. DFJ photo/Troy Banning

The Lynx will return the bulk of their roster next season and Howard hopes the program’s first winning campaign since 2013 will light a fire under the underclassmen.

“We’ve got to take this into next year and hopefully the younger girls, it puts a taste in their mouths to push them to get a little bit better so we can compete a little further into the regional,” Howard said.

Boone 12, Webster City 2 (5)

Class 4A Region 3 Quarterfinal

Thursday at Boone

Web City 101 00 — 2 6 3

Boone 006 6x — 12 13 2

Jenna Miller, Atlanta Hopp (4) and Kaitlynn Seeley. Emma Dighton and Kinsie Zinnel, Ashley Behrendt (5). W — Dighton. L — Miller. 2B — WC: Kelly Stoakes, Zoey Woodle; BO: Dighton, Lauren Calkins, Jaden Huseman. 3B — BO: Caitlynne Shadle. HR — BO: Dighton. Multiple hits — WC: Woodle, Stoakes; BO: Shadle, Calkins, Dighton, Ellen Castle, Victoria Lewis. RBI — WC: Stoakes (2); BO: Dighton (3), Calkins (2), Lewis (2), Huseman (2), Shadle, Emily Ades.

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