Wahlert Catholic tops Williamsburg for Iowa state softball title
· Yahoo Sports
FORT DODGE − There's a first time for everything, even in the lengthy history of Iowa high school softball.
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On Friday, July 24, it was Wahlert Catholic making waves. For the first time in program history, the Golden Eagles are state champions. Junior Natalie Ruba turned in a historic performance, blasting two home runs to power her team to a 13-6 victory over Williamsburg.
This was just one part of a phenomenal weekend for Ruba. In total, she had 16 RBIs over the course of the state tournament, shattering the record of 11 set by Mackenzie Mohler of West Des Moines Valley in 2024. Ruba had seven RBIs in Friday's victory alone, tying the Class 3A tournament record for a single game.
The cherry on top of the success is that it all came on the junior's 17th birthday.
"I don't know where it came from," Ruba said. "But it happened and I'm glad it did."
Iowa's all-time home run leader, Julia Roth, tallied two home runs and three RBIs to cap off one of Iowa's most storied high school softball careers as well.
Ruba started fast, with her biggest play coming in the top of the first. With the bases loaded, she blasted the ball into the center field bleachers to take a 4-0 lead. Leading 4-1 entering the top of the second following an RBI single from Williamsburg's Harper Meyers, Wahlert Catholic was rounding the bases with ease once again. Addison Klein (single) and Sadie Schultz (double) each recorded an RBI to push the lead to 6-1. Then, Ruba was there again for another superstar play. With two runners on, she blasted a shot over the left field wall to extend her team's lead to 9-1 by the end of the second inning.
The team's best power then joined the party in the top of the third, as Roth lasered a no-doubter into the center field bleachers for a two-run home run and an 11-1 lead.
Williamsburg would put together a small rally to make it interesting and prevent the mercy rule, cutting the deficit to as little as five runs, 11-6, in the bottom of the fifth, but the Golden Eagles kept piling on. In the top of the sixth, Roth recorded her second home run of the night, with a solo shot to center field. Hayley Lang drove in the final run of a busy game for Wahlert Catholic with an RBI single to center, capping off the 13-6 dominant win.
The Golden Eagles' victory puts an end to the Raider reign in Class 3A. Williamsburg had won the last three state championships in the class. Williamsburg concludes the season as state runner-ups with a 41-7 record.
For Wahlert Catholic, the state championship is the reward for a stellar season. Beyond its 39-6 record and a state title, Roth concludes her career as Iowa's all-time home run leader with 77 home runs. The 2026 season firmly established the Golden Eagles' spot in the state record books.
"It's a surreal feeling for all of us," Roth said. "There's six seniors and we gave it everything we had. This is a great way to go out."
Eli McKown covers high school sports and wrestling for the Des Moines Register. Contact him at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at @EMcKown23.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Wahlert Catholic tops Williamsburg for Iowa state softball title