SULPHUR — Iowa head coach Daniel Hennigan’s plan was to take a gradual approach to the nonselect Division II state championship game on Saturday at McMurry Park in Sulphur.

His players had other plans.

The sixth-ranked Yellow Jackets (20-12) scored four runs in the first three innings and rode the arm of Tyler Dartez and big defensive plays to beat No. 8 Lakeshore (23-13) 4-0.

“It is unbelievable,” Hennigan said. “Lakeshore is a quality team.

“I was super nervous, and I knew we were going to have to catch lightning. We talked about what it is going to take for us to win. We are going to have to win it in the fifth, sixth or seventh, and the players said ‘I don’t think so’. And they just went ahead 4-0. I didn’t expect that to happen. It is awesome. It is a great community. Softball made a run a couple of years ago. It is what we do, we try to compete at the highest level, and we did today.”

The Yellow Jackets won its first state championship since the program’s first in 2007.

Iowa scored two each in the first and third inning.

Dartez reached on a single with one out in the bottom of the first inning, and Hayden LeBleu drew a walk. Cole Corbello’s single to left field plated both runners.

In the third, Iowa got a trio of consecutive singles from Tyler Lavergne, Diego Denison and Reggie Ball. A bases-loaded walk made it 3-0, and Dartez drove in a run on his second hit of the day.

Dartez, the game MVP, held the Titans to three hits while pitching a complete game with two walks and no strikeouts.

“He (Dartez) has done a great job all year,” Hennigan said. “He is a really quiet guy.

“He is not super extroverted, but he is steady. There were some heartbreakers mixed in there, Opelousas Catholic went ahead in the last inning on a grand slam. So what we have talked about is it is ok for Opelousas Catholic to happen three weeks ago, so that today it was no problem.”

The big defensive plays came fourth and seventh inning. Lakeshore loaded the bases in the fourth with one out. Preston Scott hit a fly ball to left field, but Cole Corbello caught it and fired the ball home to catch Michael Wisner for a double play.

In the seventh, Eli Lirette reached on an error with no outs, but the Yellow Jackets were able to turn a 4-6-3 double play, and right fielder Rusty Lowery made the final out.

“We tried two or three times to turn a double play,” Hennigan said. “What we talked about going into the game was limit the damage, not overplay and have a short memory.

“And it didn’t work, it didn’t work, and then it did when it mattered. That is, I think, a bit of a testament to how we try to approach baseball.”

Iowa 4

Lakeshore 0

Lakeshore 000 000 0 — 0-3-1

Iowa 202 000 x — 4-8-4

PITCHING — W: Tyler Dartez. L: Owen Guth.

TOP HITTERS — Lakeshore: Gabriel Dalton 1-3 (double). Iowa: Tyler Dartez 2-3 (RBI), Cole Corbello 1-4 (2 RBI), Diego Denison 2-3 (run), Reggie Ball 2-3.

RECORDS — Lakeshore: 23-13. Iowa: 20-12.