Wayne softball coach Heather Fortune got a little emotional talking about the lone senior on her team this year, right fielder Devyn Davis.

Fortune talked about how Davis has struggled offensively this year, but she never let that get in the way of taking on a leadership role for the Falcons and she never wavered from her outgoing personality.

All that perseverance paid off in a big way as Davis belted a grand slam to help Wayne move into the Class 1A state tournament semifinals with an 8-2 victory over Remsen St. Mary’s on the Iowa Central Field Tuesday night.

Davis’s home run capped a five-run fifth inning as the Falcons (22-8) turned a 3-2 lead into an 8-2 advantage.

Wayne, the No. 4 seed, moves into the semifinals tonight at 7 p.m. on Krueger Seeds Field against top-seed Martensdale-St. Mary’s.

The Falcons were state qualifiers in 2019, 2020 and 2021, but Davis only saw action as a pinch runner or courtesy runner. This year, she made her presence known with just the 16th grand slam in state tournament history.

“She just kept working hard and didn’t expect anything less of herself,” Fortune said of Davis. “To see her hard work pay off like that is just very emotional to me. She’s a four-sport athlete, she’s an academic all-stater. She’s one of the best kids we have.”

Fortune also said Davis is the first ever state participant in four different sports for Wayne.

Davis came into the game with a .279 batting average and hadn’t hit a home run all season.

” I thought I got the bat on it really well.When I was rounding the bases, I thought I was going too fast,” Davis said. “I’m a sprinter in track so I told myself not to pass anyone.”

St. Mary’s (25-2) actually took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first, getting an RBI double from Mya Bunkers and scoring another run on an error. But the Falcons answered with two in the first on a two-run double by Izzie Moore and another in the fourth when Moore beat a throw home on a ground ball back to the pitcher.

“We just talked about staying calm. We didn’t want the emotions to take over,” said Davis.

Wayne drew three straight walks to start the fifth and one run came home when Ella Whitney beat a throw to the plate on a ball hit in the infield.

Davis then delivered a shot over the center field fence to make it 8-2.

“I’ve coached some great ball players, but his team just has a different feeling about them,” said Fortune, who played softball herself at Wayne. “Softball in Iowa is tough. It’s every single day. These girls give up their summers. To see it pay off like this is very emotional for me.”

Moore got the win in the circle, allowing just three hits. Two of those came in the first inning when the Hawks scored their only run.

The Falcons have been a consistent presence at state since they qualified for the first time in 2010. They are making their seventh appearance at state over that span, including the fourth in the last five years.

WAYNE 8, REMSEN ST. MARY’S 2

Remsen St. Mary’s 200 000 0 — 2

Wayne 200 150 x — 8

LOB–Remsen St. Mary’s 7, Wayne 3. ERR–Jacie Homan, Kloie Sims, Brystal Peck (2), Ella Whitney. 2B–Izzie Moore, Laney Harvey. HR–Devyn Davis. SB–Mya Bunkers, Gracyn Schroeder, Claire Schroeder, Izzie Moore, Ella Whitney.