Pitching guru and WCHS head coach Adison Kehoe never intended to use just four arms — Tyler Olson, Chase Rattenborg, Trey Lyons and Zach Dyvig — this season, it’s just somehow worked out that way. And it’s not normal, not even close.

In Class 3A, the average number of pitchers used by a team this season is 10.52. Only 14 teams have stayed in single digits, while Carlisle has used the most at 14. The team closest to The Webster City 4 is North Central Conference rival Humboldt, which has used seven different players on the mound. Boone and Fort Madison have used eight and 10 have utilized nine.

And, yes, the average caught Kehoe by surprise.

“When you actually step back and look at it, it’s like holy hell,” he said while laughing. “It’s pretty nuts. But the four that we’ve run with all year, they’re upperclassmen. I knew they would eat the majority of the innings just because of the experience, and it also shows the competitiveness of those four. They all want the ball as frequently as they can and they want to be in the spotlight to help their team win. As a coach, that’s all you can ask for.”

—Chase Rattenborg, senior: 6-0 record, 2.56 ERA, 59 strikeouts in 41 innings pitched. DFJ photo/Troy Banning

Entering Friday’s postseason opener against Eagle Grove (11-12), WCHS (24-1) leads 3A in team batting average against (.126) and earned runs allowed (43). It’s No. 2 in ERA (1.90) and WHIP (1.02), and No. 4 in fewest walks allowed (70).

It all starts with Olson, the two-time all-state senior right-hander and the aforementioned The Dude. As good as the other three are, he’s the one that gets the ball in the biggest of games and rightfully so. In his career, Olson is 26-1 with a 0.63 ERA and 239 strikeouts in 1662⁄3 innings of work. His legend has only grown this summer, as he’s put together an 8-0 resume with a 0.63 ERA, which ranks No. 2 in the class. He also has the best WHIP (0.51).

Olson is Greg Maddux-esque. He can throw cheddar — somewhere in the mid- to upper-mid-80s is a good guess — but his greatest strength is his surgical precision with his pitches. Let’s put it this way, Lynx catcher Devon Stoakes doesn’t have to work too hard when Olson is on the bump.

“What Tyler has done in three years, you start to lose phrases to use with that kid,” Kehoe said. “He’s by far the best pitcher I’ve ever had, and that’s not a knock on any of the current kids or past kids I’ve had. He’s a kid that does nothing but pound strikes.”

Olson will get the ball against Eagle Grove on Friday at 7 p.m. when they meet at Lynx Field.

—Trey Lyons, senior: 5-1 record, 4.32 ERA, 35 strikeouts in 34 innings pitched. DFJ photo/Troy Banning

Rattenborg is The Bulldog, a right-handed senior who brings a football and wrestling mentality with him to the mound. He’s not afraid of any hitter or any opponent, which he clearly showed when he slammed the door on ninth-ranked Boone in a 7-6 WCHS win last month.

Rattenborg is 6-0 with a 2.56 ERA this season.

“Chase is a grinder and he wants that ball,” Kehoe said. “He showed in that Boone game that he wants that moment.”

Lyons, another senior right-hander who’s 5-1 with a 4.32 ERA, is The Under-Appreciated. Lest anyone forget that he got the starting assignments in three of the Lynx toughest non-conference regular season games against Ames, Boone and Fort Dodge, and he more than held his own. He’s not big, but he’s got a sneaky-good fastball and a curve that, when it’s on, can embarrass hitters.

“Lyons is our Johnny Cueto,” Kehoe said with another chuckle. “His wind-up is quirky and he probably doesn’t get the recognition he deserves. I’ve never seen another kid that can throw a fastball and curveball from the same arm slot and fool kids for five innings like he can.”

—Zach Dyvig, junior: 5-0 record, 0.85 ERA, 47 strikeouts in 33 innings pitched. DFJ photo/Troy Banning

Dyvig, the only junior of the bunch and another righty, is The Whip. With a side-arm delivery and a high-velocity fastball that is second to only Olson on the team, he’s been the hammer in most of the Lynx non-conference games.

Dyvig ranks No. 1 in 3A in batting average against (.078), ahead of even Olson at No. 2 (.093), and seventh in ERA (0.85). He takes a 5-0 mark into the postseason.

“He’s baseball 365, and he just gets it,” Kehoe said. “His ball hops on you quick, and his spin rate is a lot quicker than most. When all of the things align with him, he’s a premier pitcher for sure.”

What none of the WCHS arms rank in the 3A Top 10 in is innings pitched, even though they’ve combined for 15 complete games. To no surprise, Olson has labored the most with 522⁄3, but the others have between 33 and 41 innings under their belts. And that harkens back to Kehoe’s belief that his team has faith in whoever is on the bump. That’s what he believes too.

“This is the one sport where you can have a lot of success with one or two kids, but you can have next-level success when you have kids buy in and make each other better, and that’s what these four boys have done,” he said. “I know that, for the longest time, Tyler was the one that they held closer to the chest. But now, the waters don’t change whoever is on the mound. The demeanor doesn’t change and the attitude doesn’t change.”

WCHS head coach Adison Kehoe (above) has used only four pitchers this season, which is more than six fewer than the team average in Class 3A. DFJ photo/Troy Banning

Competitiveness, above all else, is what makes the pitching staff tick. Olson, again, is The Dude, but that doesn’t mean the others will stop trying to match him. Kehoe loves that.

“There is zero doubt in my mind that any of those other three would take the ball against Tyler and say let’s do this,” Kehoe said. “They have that confidence.”

AT A GLANCE

Who: Eagle Grove (11-12) at No. 6 Webster City (24-1).

What: Class 3A Substate 2 quarterfinal.

When: Friday, 7 p.m.

Where: Lynx Field, Webster City.

At Stake: A spot in the 3A Substate 2 semifinal against either Algona (16-14) or Clear Lake (16-14) on Monday. WCHS will host as long as it remains in the bracket.