Since the beginning of the season, the Webster City girls’ basketball team had endured through growing pains under first year head coach Mark Fisher. As the winter campaign progressed, Fisher had noted the self-improvement from his team.

With the playoffs is full swing, now’s the time to put everything all together.

The Lynx will enter the Class 4A-Region 1 Tournament with a short road trip west, taking on Fort Dodge in a regional quarterfinal matchup, starting at 7 p.m. tonight in the Dodger Gym. It is the first meeting between the two schools on the hardwood.

The winner of the quarterfinal matchup between Webster City and the Dodgers will advance to the Class 4A-Region 1 semifinals, where they will travel to Humboldt on Saturday.

Thanks to a 56-51 road victory over Perry last Friday, the Lynx (6-15, 3-11 NCC) moved into the postseason with some positive momentum. This was due to the collective efforts of senior Chloe Andersen, junior Ava Peterson and senior Alley Odland.

On average, Odland paced the Lynx with 6.9 points per game, followed by sophomore Olivia Gallentine’s 6.2 points per contest. Senior Livia Kasch averages 6.4 points and 4.9 rebounds per outing.

Despite winning just one of their past five games, the Dodgers (11-9, 5-3 IAC) have played close for four of those contests.

In their 78-57 setback against No. 14-ranked (Class 4A) Mason City on Feb. 7, Fort Dodge showcased plenty of leadership from its senior and junior ranks.

Senior Paytene Hiveley paced the Dodgers with 14 points, alongside junior Mackenzie McIlrath’s 14 points. Senior Lainey Maehl contributed with 13 points against the Riverhawks.

Hiveley and Maehl are the proverbial one-two punch for the Dodgers. While Hiveley leads FDSH by averaging 13 points and 9.8 rebounds per game, Maehl complements nicely with an average of 12.8 points and 9.3 rebounds.

per outing.