OTTUMWA — When the Ottumwa softball squad comes full circle, watch out.

In the meantime, head coach Frank Huston’s squad is going through some growing pains.

Urbandale’s upperclassmen showed the Bulldogs how it’s done on Friday night in a non-conference doubleheader at Huston Field.

The J-Hawks drilled Ottumwa in the opener 9-1 and finished off the Bulldogs with a 6-3 win in the nightcap for the sweep.

“We’ve obviously got a lot of work to do, but we’ve got potential with the team. You have to look forward, in the same sense, you have to analyze what’s happening and work on that game,” said Huston, who is four wins shy of 1,500 victories in his remarkable coaching career.

Ottumwa is now 3-6 after the two setbacks. Urbandale began its season Thursday night against the top-ranked and defending Class 4A state champ West Des Moines Valley Tigers. The Tigers pounced on Urbandale in game one 10-1 and led 9-0 in the second game before the game was suspended in the fifth.

J-Hawk juniors and seniors slotted in the middle of the lineup for head coach Andy Pals did most of the damage.

Junior second baseman Amandine Habben went 2-3 with three runs scored and two RBI in game one. Junior designated hitter Christie Kleen was 2-4 with two RBI, as was senior first baseman Sam Page.

Sophomore J-Hawk hurler Libby Sheets did the rest as she didn’t encounter that much trouble during the night, allowing her lone earned run on a sacrifice fly by freshman second baseman Megan Bix in the last inning.

OHS sophomore hurler Missy Staloch pitched four innings and was saddled with the loss. She allowed three earned runs. Ottumwa freshman Courtney Wagner finished out the game and struck out three batters and gave up four earned runs.

“When you’re young, sometimes you can hide behind your pitching, but our pitching is young,” said Huston.

J-Hawk senior third baseman Allison Newberg smacked a three-run dinger in the first inning of the nightcap off sophomore pitcher Courtney Klyn. That gave the J-Hawks a 3-0 lead until an RBI groundout by Bix in the second inning made it 3-1.

Ottumwa cut it to one run in the fifth on a wild pitch. Then senior freshman catcher Liz Cason smacked a single up the middle that went under Urbandale centerfielder Ashley Lambson’s glove. Freshman courtesy runner Wensday Worth scored all the way from first to tie it at 3-3.

That lead didn’t last long.

An infield single and a two-run double by freshman shortstop Nicole Ulsh, all with two outs in the top of the sixth, provided the final runs scored of the night and 6-3 J-Hawk lead.