The best season in program history came to a sudden halt Saturday night as the No. 9 Ames Little Cyclone softball team couldn’t overcome an early gust from Ankeny in a 5-1 loss in Class 5A regional action.

Ames (30-11) capped off its first-ever 30-win season and established itself as a rising force in central Iowa softball this summer. But the postseason stage proved unkind. Ankeny, just 13-26 entering the matchup, jumped out with a four-run burst in the top of the first and never let Ames gain its usual rhythm.

The Little Cyclones threatened right away. Senior leadoff hitter and Wartburg signee Kaylee Mescher drew a walk, stole second, and set the table for a quick answer. But Ankeny escaped the jam after flyouts by Jaya Theilen and Camryn Johnson, and a strikeout to end the inning with the bases loaded.

Ames pitcher Sydney Smalley quickly settled in after the shaky first. The junior silenced Ankeny’s bats over the next several frames, allowing just one run the rest of the way and striking out four.

The Little Cyclones finally cracked the scoreboard in the fourth when senior Josie Theilen crushed a solo home run to left, giving the home crowd a jolt and cutting the lead to 4-1. But despite the spark, Ames couldn’t string together enough offense to build a rally.

Ankeny added an insurance run in the fifth to make it 5-1, and though Mescher and Theilen knocked singles in the bottom half, Ames left two runners stranded. The offense — which had powered so many wins this season — never found its cyclone-force swing when it mattered most.

Smalley kept battling in the circle, striking out four and holding the Hawks scoreless over the final two innings. But a seventh-inning rally never materialized. Ames managed just one baserunner in the last two frames, and a groundout ended both the game and the dream season.