The Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union did not do the Iowa Falls-Alden softball team any favors when pairings were released two weeks ago.
With a fourth consecutive North Central Conference title already in their back pocket, the Webster City boys capped a 20-win regular season by shutting out Iowa Falls-Alden 10-0 on Friday.
A 15-strikeout performance from Webster City sophomore Delainey Bargfede put an exclamation point on the regular season for Webster City, giving the Lynx a share of the North Central Conference championship.
A six-run first inning from Humboldt's offense put Iowa Falls-Alden behind the eight-ball from the start of Wednesday's conference tilt.
Iowa Falls-Alden's chances to finishes third in the North Central Conference took a hit on the road.
Entering Tuesday's road contest at 12th-ranked Fort Dodge St. Edmond, the Iowa Falls-Alden girls were feeling good about the way they have been playing.
Monday's North Central Conference game took a sudden abrupt turn two batters into the bottom of the first inning.
Pitcher Cidni Phipps carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning, and Hailey Bridgewater's 2 RBI was enough for Iowa Falls-Alden to edge Algona by a 2-1 final on Monday.
Through 19 games this season, Iowa Falls-Alden has found North Central Conference play to be much more enjoyable than non-conference games.
Four defensive errors in the top of the first inning opened the door for Clarion-Goldfield-Dows to build a 5-0 lead during Friday's game at Cadet Field. From there, Iowa Falls-Alden's confidence dipped and they could not recover.
Iowa Falls-Alden mustered only three hits offensively during Thursday's four-run non-conference home loss to Southeast Valley
Making fundamental plays has been one of Iowa Falls-Alden's largest inconsistencies on the diamond this summer.