The countdown of Norwalk’s top 10 sports stories from the 2024-25 school year has reached the number 3 spot. The Warrior softball team added to a growing tradition this summer with 34 wins, a third straight co-conference championship and a fourth consecutive trip to the State Tournament in Fort Dodge.

Led by their seven seniors, the Warriors finished 34-8 overall and were 16-2 in the Little Hawkeye Conference, once again sharing the league title with Dallas Center-Grimes. Norwalk breezed through Class 4A regionals, outscoring Fort Madison and Oskaloosa by a combined 20-0. Head coach Beau Livingston tells KNIA Sports that he was extremely proud of his senior class for punching four straight tickets to the state tourney.

“The feeling never gets old,” he said. “You want your players to experience Fort Dodge, and to really invest in something and have it pay off is not guaranteed, but we’ve been fortunate the last four years. Those investments have paid off and we’ve had a lot of wonderful memories in Fort Dodge.”

The Warriors entered the 4A State Tournament as the number 2 seed, but were ousted from the winner’s bracket for a third straight year by North Scott, falling 7-1 in the quarterfinals. They bounced back the next day for a 10-9 consolation game win over Western Dubuque. Norwalk finished the season with a .374 team batting average, 50 home runs and 72 doubles.

Seniors Nyah Hulbert and Carly Brewer were named first team All-State by the Iowa Girls Coaches Association and seniors Bailey Birmingham and Maddie Gullion made the second team all-state list. All four girls batted between .492 and .466, combining for 46 homers and 198 runs-batted-in. Brewer was also the team’s ace pitcher, going 22-7 with a 2.28 ERA. Brewer will play college softball at the University of Iowa, Gullion has signed with Northern Iowa and Hulbert will play at Minnesota State.

Norwalk played a demanding schedule again this year, finishing 10-4 against Class 5A teams, going 3-0 against 4A champion Pella and also beating 3A runner-up Dubuque Wahlert. The Warriors’ senior group played a huge role in the team’s 127-34 record the last four years.