High School Football
Mt. Pleasant and Fairfield competed in week one for the fourth consecutive season and the non-district rivalry game lived up to its billing. Both squads were struggling to maintain long drives in the game with plays and drives akin to old-school football.
Eventually, a fumble by the Mt. Pleasant offense set up the Trojans with a short field as Zandrik Allsion punched it in from six yards out to take a late first half lead 6 to 0. The unfortunate theme of the game was missed opportunities for the Panthers as the squad dropped passes and interceptions to help them get back into the game.
Nevertheless, Cooper Coleman and Jackson Newman found their lanes in the rushing game late in the fourth quarter with two key fourth down conversions helping Mt. Pleasant even the score with 2 minutes and 21 seconds left, including the four-yard touchdown run by Payton Walker.
The extra point was blocked, leaving the game to go to overtime, where Allison would strike again, this time from two-yards out. Fairfield then appeared to take an eight-point lead, but a holding penalty backed up the Trojan offense on the two-point conversion, where Voss Richardson’s pass would be knocked down.
Walker would call his name twice on Mt. Pleasant’s turn with the football and find paydirt from a yard out to again tie the game, this time at 12. Dylan White, the team’s new placekicker, drilled the extra point to give Mt. Pleasant their 13-12 win in overtime, ending a 23-game losing streak for the Panthers. Head coach John Bowlin discussed the feeling after the game,
“Just excited for these guys. They deserve it. They’ve worked hard, you know, since last summer, they just keep putting the work in. We keep growing, you know? And I told them, you know. A pretty big belief that they could pull it off here. I know we overcame a few things, both sides, you know. But I lost my cool. I screwed up a few times with those guys too, so they just kept overcoming things. Defense kept just picking us up, making huge plays, and then we had some seniors that really just stepped up and played great, you know, Cooper Coleman on both sides of the ball. He ran the ball hard, obviously Payton Walker on both sides of the ball. Zach Newton was a great leader for us tonight too. So, I mean, just excited for these guys and you know, just ready to go. Hopefully we can keep building, you know, and get another one here. I know these guys like this. They haven’t had this feeling, but hopefully we can just keep growing and growing and build off of it.”
The Trojans will stay at home to take on Fort Madison on Friday, September 6th, at 7:30 pm. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call with the pregame show at 7:15 pm.
The Panthers will have their home opener on Friday against West Burlington/Notre Dame at 7:30 pm.
West Burlington/Notre Dame decimated Wapello last night 48-6.
Danville scored first, but ultimately fell to Lynnville-Sully last night 30-22. The Bears will travel to take on Highland on Friday at 7 pm.
New London fell to Easton Valley last night 41-20. The Tigers will square off against Winfield-Mt. Union on Friday at 7 pm on the road.
Winfield-Mt. Union rushed out to an early lead and never looked back as the Wolves defeated Central City last night 40-28.
Central Lee outlasted Van Buren County last night 13-8 as the Hawks rushing attack finished with 166 yards. Chase Johnson led the way with 66 yards and a touchdown. Ward Fraise totaled 19 tackles on defense for the Hawks.
Van Buren County will face off against Pekin on Friday at 7 pm on the road.
Central Lee will travel to Cardinal on Friday at 7 pm.
Mediapolis started the year with a thundering win over Columbus last night 42-19. The Bulldogs will compete against Sigourney-Keota on Friday at 7 pm at home.
Columbus will look to get back on track against Wapello on Friday at 7 pm at home.
In other Class 3A District 5 matchups, Burlington defeated Fort Madison 35-7, Mt. Vernon handled Monticello 44-6, Washington took down Oskaloosa 21-14, Keokuk fell to Ottumwa 47-26, and Assumption lost to Solon 33-7.
WACO will travel to take on Coon Rapids-Bayard today at 3 pm.
High School Volleyball
Mt. Pleasant will travel to Grinnell for a tournament today with the first game starting at 9 am.
Holy Trinity Catholic and Burlington Notre Dame will travel to Bondurant-Farrar today for a tournament.
Van Buren County and West Burlington will hit the road today to compete in a tournament at Central Lee with the day starting at 9 am.
Fairfield will travel to Burlington on Tuesday, September 3rd, at 7:15 pm.
WACO will face off against Cardinal on Thursday, September 5th, at 5:30 pm at WACO in the first game of a quad with New London and Fairfield making the trip.
Winfield-Mt. Union will look to move to 2-0 on Tuesday against Louisa-Muscatine at 7:30 pm at home.
Mediapolis will get their season rolling on Tuesday at Wapello for a tournament.
Danville will compete in a tournament at Burlington Notre Dame on Saturday, September 7th.
High School Cross Country
Van Buren County, Danville, New London, and Fairfield will travel to Ottumwa to compete in a meet on Thursday, September 5th, at 5:30 pm.
Southeastern Community College
The volleyball team split their two matchups in the Jimmy John’s tournament yesterday, losing 3-0 to Allen County Community College and sweeping Mineral Area College.
The Blackhawks will continue their tournament today with their first game against Metropolitan Community College at 10 am.
College Football
The University of Iowa will officially kick off the season today at home against Illinois State at 11 am. Tune in to KILJ 105.5 FM to listen to the game.
Iowa State will take on North Dakota today at 2:30 pm at home. Tune in to KILJ 98.5 FM or AM 1130 to listen to the game.
This Day in Sports History
1934 – The first NFL Chicago All-Star Game: Chicago Bears 0, All-Stars 0 (79,432).
1987 – The Great Potato Incident: Minor league Williamsport Bills catcher Dave Bresnahan attempts to lure an opposing baserunner off third base using a potato carved to look like a baseball. Umpire calls the runner safe, and the catcher is fined $50 and released by the team.
1990 – Baseball outfielders Ken Griffey and Ken Griffey Jr. become the first father and son duo to play on the same team (Seattle Mariners), the pair hit back-to-back singles in the first inning and both scored.
