Messenger photo by Britt Kudla: Hayden Porter of Fort Dodge hits a game-tying three-run homer against Waterloo West on Friday at Ed McNeil Field.

The Fort Dodge baseball team was about to pull off a comeback for the ages in a Class 4A substate quarterfinal on Friday night at McNeil Field.

Instead, Waterloo West went from under-water underdogs to on top of the world, answering the Dodgers’ tenacity with a little more postseason magic of its own.

The Wahawks somehow composed themselves after favored FDSH staggered both their chances and their confidence, and a two-out, eighth-inning home run by Jack Van Erem wound up being the difference as West somehow escaped with a 6-5 Substate 2 upset.

This emotional rollercoaster ended in bitter defeat for the Dodgers, who were shut down for six innings before staging a heart-pumping rally capped by a three-run, game-tying homer from freshman Hayden Porter. Instead of being an iconic moment in victory, though, Fort Dodge wasn’t able to knock the Wahawks completely out and a banner season ultimately ended in bitter defeat at 32-9.

West advances as the unlikely underdog and will head to Mason City (33-8) on Monday with a 15-19 overall record. The Riverhawks defeated Ames last night, 6-4.

“When Hayden hit that homer, I didn’t think there was any way we’d be walking out of here without a win,” FDSH head coach Blake Utley admitted. “This place was alive. We had all the momentum in the world. But to (the Wahawks’) credit, they didn’t flinch and found a way. It kind of felt like that all night. They made the plays, got the two-out hits, and executed when they needed to both before and after our (comeback).

“We have to grow from it. We have to own it. We have to let it sting. In a one-and-done situation, anything can happen in baseball. And we were on the heartbreaking end of it. You see our guys going through all of the emotions now and having a hard time coming to grips with it being over just like that.”

West didn’t seem intimidated at all from the start, building a 3-0 lead and taking a 5-1 advantage into the bottom of the seventh inning. Senior right-hander Eli Johnson was in total control on the mound, working six brilliant frames of four-hit ball and taking the Dodgers to the brink of elimination.

That’s when things got interesting in a hurry.

FDSH junior Davis Underberg started the surge with a single, and senior Jaxson Dencklau and junior Tanner Peterson followed with hits of their own to load the bases with no one out. Junior Cal Pederson then delivered a sacrifice fly to center field to make it 5-2, setting the stage for Porter.

The Dodgers’ leadoff batter went opposite field with a no-doubter over the fence in right, bringing a capacity crowd to its feet and the noise level to a fever pitch as Fort Dodge had suddenly tied the Wahawks at 5. That’s when West summoned sophomore Oliver Beckman — who had only pitched nine innings all season — from the bullpen to try and save the day.

Beckman did just that, fanning consecutive Dodger batters to stem the tide and force extra innings. And then Van Erem — a .241 hitter who had one extra-base hit all summer before yesterday evening — seized the opportunity to put the Wahawks back in control with just his second home run.

West had only eight homers as a squad in 34 regular-season games. The Wahawks hit three on Friday, including an early two-run blast by Thomas Gettman — his first in 2026.

Beckman also went deep with a two-out solo deep fly in the top of the seventh, which wound up being a critical fifth run for West.

In the bottom of the eighth, with the season again on the line, Beckman fanned the side to set off a wild celebration from Wahawk players and visiting fans who made the 100-mile trip west.

Junior Kolton Schiltz had an RBI double in the third to plate Pederson, who was 2-for-2. Fort Dodge, which ranked at or near the top of 4A in nearly every offensive category, struck out 12 times and collected only four total hits outside of the seventh-inning surge.

The Dodgers graduate only two players in seniors Jaxson Dencklau and Caiden Fraher.

“They were both great for us and we’ll really miss them,” Utley said. “Jax was a four-year player for us who did a lot of good and led by example. Caiden was the ultimate glue guy. They really set the tone.

“Look, this was an incredible season. I’m sure if all of us had been offered 32 wins at the start of the year, we would’ve taken it in a heartbeat. But we also realize that getting beat in this round is a bitter pill to swallow and something that, while possible given the one-game (scenario) of high school baseball at tournament time, we have to learn and get better from. All of us.”

Utley watched his players make the slow walk toward the locker room, most of them still sporting glazed looks of stunned disbelief.

“We always say the game gives you feedback, whether you like what it’s saying or not,” Utley continued. “We can be proud of what we accomplished and the fun we had in doing so, while also realizing we still have a long way to go and the work (for 2027) has to start soon.”

WATERLOO WEST 6, FORT DODGE 5 (8)

Waterloo West 012 001 11 — 6 11 0

Fort Dodge 001 000 40 — 5 8 2

WP–Oliver Beckman (1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K); LP–Mason Frevert (5 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 7 K). 2B–FD: Kolton Schiltz. HR–FD: Hayden Porter; West: Thomas Gettman, Jack Van Erem, Oliver Beckman. SB–FD: Cal Pederson.