Photo by Jerrad Downer/Ankeny Fanatic Fort Dodge’s Reggie Pederson tries to get by Ankeny Centennial defender Kolby Bechen on Monday night in Ankeny.

ANKENY — Many of the Fort Dodge boys basketball team’s old demons came back to haunt the Dodgers one final time in a Class 4A substate quarterfinal here on Monday.

The defense was up to the task, but the FDSH offense sputtered against a stout Ankeny Centennial squad as the Jaguars advanced with a 56-27 victory.

“As we’ve said all year, you’ve got to be able to score the ball first and foremost,” Dodger head coach Willie Williams said. “I think we got into a mindset of pressing (due to the importance of a playoff game), and our sense of urgency almost got (too heightened). We tried to get them to relax, but we didn’t execute well enough and didn’t hit shots, which has been the story a lot unfortunately.

“They made it tough for us. They’re really solid defensively, and they wore us down.”

Centennial improved to 9-13 overall by winning for the fourth time in five games. The Jaguars, who have played one of 4A’s most difficult schedules, have a scoring defense that ranks in the Top-10 for the class.

Centennial was up 12-5 at the end of the first quarter and 29-12 at half. Luke Mitchell had a double-double for the Jaguars, scoring 16 points. McClain Gorsh added 13.

Centennial defeated Fort Dodge during the regular season, 63-37.

Sophomore Reggie Pederson had eight points for the Dodgers (4-18), with senior Hayden Zuspann knocking down a pair of three-point baskets. Zuspann was one of eight seniors on this year’s FDSH roster, joining Tytrell Mosley, Taevon Feeley, Gavin Davis, Kauner Jensen, Tisyn Hook, Karter Hemrick and Carter Morris.

“I tried not to get emotional in the locker room, but I really do appreciate what these seniors have done,” Williams said. “They wanted a different story for their last year here. We all did. Everyone was disappointed that we weren’t able to be more successful.

“That didn’t change their attitude, though. They kept working hard, supporting each other and staying positive. It would’ve been easy to go the other way and give up (on the process). You learn most about yourself through adversity like this. Things didn’t go our way, but life goes on and you have to be able to keep growing from these experiences.”

Pederson, sophomore Brody Maehl and junior Teddy Johnson are the main contributors who are slated to return in 2026-27.

“The offseason (time determines) what kind of year you’re going to have, so it all starts for (the players coming back) almost right away,” Williams said. “We all have a lot of work to do. We want to take a step forward, and that has to start with consistency of effort and buy-in during the (spring and summer months).”