'A wild ride': DC West dominates way to championship in its first-ever state appearance
HASTINGS — DC West, unfazed by uncharted territory, will see you Monday.
As in, the Falcons will play for it all in their first-ever trip to the Class C state softball tournament.
The No. 6 Falcons defeated No. 4 Fort Calhoun 12-3 in six innings at the Bill Smith Complex to advance to the Class C championship, which will be played Monday in Omaha.
"The girls make it easy," DC West head coach Ady Watts said. "They want to compete, they want to be known and they are definitely pinning their mark on the DC West program. Things are going to be a lot different because of them."
The Falcons have gone unblemished in their Hastings debut, opening the tournament with an 11-0 victory over the Pioneers. DC West has also yet to play a full seven innings with a six-inning, 11-2 victory over No. 1 Hastings St. Cecilia and added Thursday's 12-3 victory in six innings for its second win over Fort Calhoun in the tournament.
"It's been a wild ride," Watts said. "A lot of things happened within the last week and these girls — we've talked about it and these girls were ready — they wanted a taste of what it was like to be out here and they have made their mark. It's amazing to watch."
The trek to the state tournament began with history as DC West defeated Auburn 8-0 followed by a 6-5, walk-off home run from Sydney Atkins.
Atkins hit one of the Falcons' four home runs Thursday, and Maddison Zach hit two. Izzabella Zach, who hit two home runs in the win against Hastings SC, also homered Thursday.
"We came out here and did what we needed to do," Atkins said. "This is our first time in school history making it here so we really didn't know what to expect, but we definitely showed out."
But if anyone knows what to expect, it is DC West's opponent for the Class C title.
No. 2 Bishop Neumann is back in the title game after a 13-3 victory over defending champion Ashland-Greenwood.
It is the Cavaliers' sixth title appearance, taking home the trophy in 2017 and 2021, while finishing runner-up in 2015, 2018 and in last season's championship.
"It feels great," Bishop Neumann head coach David Brabec said. "It's been our goal all year. After last night's comeback (a 6-5 victory over Guardian Angels CC), they just warmed up differently today. They just had more confidence and even though we went down 2-0 early there we knew we had a shot to put runs on the board and it was fun to do what our goal was."
Ana Fisher homered twice in the fifth and sixth innings for the Cavaliers, but the return of Bridget Whitney in the state tournament has been a catalyst for Bishop Neumann.
Whitney was injured ahead of subdistricts and returned in time for the state tournament and homered in the fourth to give the Cavaliers a 6-2 lead.
"On the night she got hurt the team rallied and won a game we were losing," Brabec said. "The girls really found a way. They were really worried, but she means a lot to the entire team. Her spirit and drive is just amazing. She's the center of our team and really pushes the girls."
Bishop Neumann and DC West meet Monday at 12:30 p.m. at Omaha's Connie Claussen Field for the Class C crown.
Lincoln Stars/Lincoln Saltdogs reporter
