FAIRBANK — Blayde Bellis looked at his team.

“Remember this. Know how special this is,” he told the group. “It’s not often a team wins back-to-back district championships and plays to go to state. Especially in baseball.”

Wapsie Valley’s first-year head coach and a younger club with a veteran core reached the Class 1A Substate 4 championship with an 8-0 win against West Fork on Saturday.

It will face Saint Ansgar (20-7) on Tuesday in Charles City.

“To be honest, midway through three-fourths of this season we were struggling hitting the ball,” junior Briggs Boehme said. “But we came together as a team. We hit in the morning every day, long sessions, and it’s paying off.

“Everyone buying in as a team, that’s how we got it done.”

A senior-less squad led by five juniors and three third-year varsity sophomores earned its third consecutive postseason shutout and eighth win in nine games.

Bryar Bellis, Hunter Curley, Blake Hesse and Garet Shannon all participated in their third straight district championship/substate semifinal for Wapsie Valley (20-6).

“We’ve put in a lot of work this year, more work than a lot of teams in the past,” Bryar said. “We have a young team, and this shows all the work we’ve put in is paying off now.”

The Warriors hit an extended lull in mid-June, aided by a wonky schedule beset by weather issues. Wapsie played just four games between June 14-25, losing three North Iowa Cedar League East games and seeing two games cancelled because of weather. A NICL East doubleheader was also rescheduled because of weather, and a modest three-game losing streak and one-run win against a sub-.500 team forced the club to look inward.

“Honestly, we looked ourselves in the mirror and all said, ‘We’re not as good as we thought we were,’” Boehme said. “We had to take that to the chest — Jesup beat us, then Oelwein swept us. That really motivated us to say, ‘We have to step our game up. We can’t come out every night and expect a cakewalk.’ Every night is a battle.”

The Warriors have won eight of nine since then, outscoring its opposition 28-0 in the playoffs.

“I feel like now, at playoff time, we’re more of a ‘team’ than an ‘I,’” Hesse said. “We come in and work every day … at the beginning of the year, we were all (kinda selfish). ‘This is my team. Nobody else’s.’ We had to get past that.”

Wapsie rode the arm of junior right-hander Boehme and a nearly spotless defense to blank the Warhawks (12-11). Boehme allowed just one hit in six innings; he struck out five and threw 61 pitches.

“I have to give credit to my defense,” Boehme said. “They made some great plays. Tyler (Schoer) played great at second, Bryar and the outfield made some good plays. Without them, I don’t know what I’d do. I have a good defense behind me.”

Schoer gave up a hit to West Fork’s Zander Hansen in a one-inning, three-strikeout relief appearance. Hansen went 2 for 3 while the rest of West Fork was 0 for 21. Braylon Shreckengost reached on an error and stole a base but was left on second in the second.

Brett Behr and Ashyr Wiseman were each hit by pitches, but neither made it past second base.

“It was awesome. District final, it’s going to be tough,” Bryar said of Boehme’s work. “You’re going to have stress and pressure. But he handled it well. Didn’t look like he had any pressure at all. He pitched great.”

The Warriors got to Warhawks starter Trevor Despenas in the second.

Landen Moulds singled, Andrew Wehling walked and Jacob Coffin reached on an infield single to load the bases.

Bryar Bellis walked on four pitches after an 0-1 count to score Moulds for the lead.

After a strikeout, Hesse drilled a two-run single to center for a 3-0 score.

Bryar and Hesse were left stranded, and Curley was left on third after an inning-opening triple to start the third.

Bellis walked to open the fourth, then stole second and moved to third on a wild pitch. Shannon was hit by a pitch and West Fork removed Despenas for Hansen.

Shannon stole second, then Hansen uncorked a wild pitch to plate Bellis (4-0) and put Shannon at third.

Hesse put the ball in play, and it was misplayed, allowing Shannon to score (5-0).

Boehme hit a one-out single and Curley walked to load the bases, but Wapsie struck out twice to end the threat.

Shannon’s double brought home Bellis with one out in the fifth (6-0). Hesse doubled, with Shannon being held up.

Dana reached on a fielder’s choice that moved Hesse to third but cut down Shannon at home. Then Wapsie put together a couple two-out at-bats that extended the lead.

Boehme walked, putting Dana at second and loading the bases again.

Curley drove in Hesse and Dana on a single to deep center for the final scores.

Wapsie left a runner on third in the fifth and in the sixth, but that seemed to be Blayde Bellis’ only quibble with his team’s performance.

Four batters — Bryar, Boehme, Curley and Hesse — all went 2 for 3, with Curley and Hesse driving in two apiece. Bryar walked twice and scored twice.

“Everybody was locked in, start to finish in practice (Friday),” Hesse said. “That pays off in the game. Everybody was locked in tonight. We made some good plays tonight.”