WAVERLY — The Webster City football team faced off against another of the state’s elites here Friday night in third-ranked (Class 4A) Waverly-Shell Rock.

After battling to a scoreless draw following 12 minutes of play, the Go-Hawks were able to score twice in the second quarter and twice more in the third for a 28-0 victory over the Lynx.

Standout running back McCrae Hagarty did the brunt of the damage, as the senior ran for 232 yards on 30 attempts, scoring all four W-SR touchdowns.

“Waverly-Shell Rock has a very talented, physical, and athletic defense, with several D-I recruits,” WCHS head coach Bob Howard said. “We were going to have to play error-free to move the ball, but two fumbles, a penalty, and a timeout due to the wrong alignment were mistakes that we couldn’t afford against that defense.”

Jaxon Cherry ran for 61 yards on 19 carries for Webster City (1-2 overall), with Ty McKinney throwing for 64 yards and running for another 19. Connor Hansen caught four passes for 57 yards and CJ Hisler had 21 yards of total offense.

On defense for the Lynx, Hansen recorded a sack and 5.5 tackles with Cherry making 8.5 tackles and Luke Estlund 5.5. Skyler Scott and Cherry each had a tackle for loss.

Scott recovered a fumble and McKinney picked off a pass.

“Waverly-Shell Rock appears to be stronger than they were last year, when they were a final four team,” Howard said. “They have great size and athleticism and Hagerty is a great football player.”

Webster City also went toe-to-toe with Humboldt — another unbeaten through three weeks — in the season opener. They posted a 54-0 victory over Boone in Week 2 and will now focus in on Mason City this Friday night back home.

“As always, we need to continue to improve in all aspects,” Howard said. “We have faced two tough opponents in Humboldt and Waverly-Shell Rock, and our line needs to keep focusing on pad level, footwork, and finishing blocks. The experience we should have gained versus these opponents has to translate to more consistency.

“Mason City is also improved from last season, with a dangerous quarterback and passing game, so constant improvement and ball control on offense is the key going forward.”

The game vs. the Mohawks (2-1) will mark the final non-district contest for Webster City, as they head to Fort Dodge to meet the Dodgers the following Friday. Last year, the Lynx rolled through Class 4A, District 1, going a perfect 5-0 to win the title.