Author: Nathan Bloechl

Men’s College Basketball: Necks Move to 3-0 With Easy Win:

Western Illinois saw five players score in double figures as the Leathernecks defeated Iowa Wesleyan 97-71 in a nonconference matchup last night.

Will Carius, who was a prep standout in the Quad Cities, scored a game high 16 points in just 21 minutes, hitting 2-of-6 from three.

Tamell Pearson had 15 points and 11 boards while former Wapello star Trenton Massner finished with six points, six assists and five boards.

Wesleyan freshman Joey Brown scored 12 points to lead the Tigers. He also finished with six assists.

Jaylen Washington chipped in with 11.

The Tigers, now 2-6, will play this weekend at the Cobblestone Inn and Suites Classic in Forest City with matchups slated against Waldorf and Valley City State University.

College Football: Central to Scrap With Bethel:

The champions of the American Rivers Conference, the undefeated Central College football team will turn their attention to the postseason when this weekend the Dutch host Bethel University (Minn.).

The Dutch closed their season with a 65-6 thrashing of Buena Vista.

Jack Johnson, Chase Williamson and Brody Bender — all of Mount Pleasant — compete collegiately for Central.

Bethel is 8-2.

Kickoff Saturday in Pella is set for noon.

Women’s College Soccer: Gaskin Resigns After Third Season:

Iowa Wesleyan women’s soccer coach Chris Gaskin has resigned from the position, effective November 26th.

Wesleyan officials will launch a national search to begin the process of finding the next head coach immediately.

In his tenure with the Tigers, Gaskin has doubled the roster size and this year helped orchestrate a successful campaign that saw Wesleyan reach the semifinals of their conference tournament.

The Tigers finished 5-11-1 this year, marked improvement from their 1-13-1 record during Gaskin’s first season.

Gaskin’s future plans were not made available at this time.

College Track: Wesleyan Officially Added to NSAA:

Iowa Wesleyan track and field and cross country are now associate members of the North Star Athletic Association, commissioner Roger Ternes has announced.

The membership will be effective January 1st, 2022.

Iowa Wesleyan completed their first season as an association member of the North Star Athletic Association in the sport of football this fall.

The Tigers’ indoor track and field squad will compete in the NSAA Championships on Feb. 20, 2022, at Sanford Jackrabbit Athletic Complex in Brookings, S.D.  The conference outdoor track & field championships will be held at Lokken Stadium in Valley City, N.D. on May 12-13, 2022.

Iowa Wesleyan is scheduled to compete in their first North Star Athletic Association Cross Country Championships on Nov. 4, 2022, in Dickinson, N.D.

Men’s College Basketball: Wesleyan Gets Road Date with DI WIU:

The Iowa Wesleyan men’s basketball team will get their toughest test arguably in school history tonight when the Tigers travel to Macomb, Illinois to scrap with Division I Western Illinois in a nonconference bout.

The Leathernecks, who compete in the Summit League, are 2-0 on the season with wins over Culver-Stockton and Big 10 foe Nebraska.

Sandwiched in between those wins are two exhibition matchups against Illinois-Springfield and Monmouth, both of which were easy victories.

Former Pleasant Valley standout Will Carius leads the ‘Necks in scoring average 15 points per game and four boards.

Ex-Wapello Indian Trenton Massner is scoring 14.5 points per game, which is second on Western Illinois.

Operating as an NAIA independent, Wesleyan is off to a 2-5 with wins over Waldorf and Hannibal-LaGrange.

Kaleb Cresswell and Alex Dentlinger lead a balanced scoring attack that will look to find some footing tonight in albeit a tough matchup.

Following tonight, the Tigers will play in the Waldorf University Classic over the weekend.

Tonight’s tilt will begin at 6:00 p.m. and you can listen on FM 105.5 and kilj.com.

Women’s College Basketball: Tigers Downed for the First Time:

William Woods jumped out to a 20-11 lead after one frame and rode the hot start to a 72-64 win over Steve Williamson’s Wesleyan women’s basketball team last night.

Brittany West led the Tigers with 19 points and nine boards while Brielle Baker and Kyla Moore each had 15.

Maci Kuchta chipped in with 13 points, as well.

Katie Keilholz paced the Owls with 14 points and three assists off the bench while Sydney Booker had 13 points, seven boards and two blocks.

Now 4-1, Wesleyan will return to their home floor Saturday when they scrap with Hannibal-LaGrange.

Tip is set for 1:00 p.m.

Men’s College Basketball: Iowa Receiving Votes:

The Iowa men’s basketball team is receiving votes in the latest Associated Press Top 25 men’s basketball poll.

The Hawkeyes, 2-0, are back on the hardwood tonight when they host North Carolina Central.

Gonzaga remains the top-ranked program in the country, with 55 of 61 first place votes going to the Zags.

UCLA, Kansas, Michigan and Villanova round out the top-five.

Purdue and Illinois are No. 6 and No. 10 respectively — though the Illini suffered a 67-66 loss to Marquette last night.

Women’s College Basketball: Hawkeyes Rise to No. 8; Iowa State No. 14:

The Iowa women are up to No. 8 in the week two edition of the Associated Press Top 25.

The Hawkeyes rose one spot this week after their 3-0 start.

Iowa is coming off an easy 82-61 win over UNI Sunday, one in which that saw consensus All-American Caitlin Clark pour in 25 points, 11 boards and seven assists.

They’ll take on Southern University tomorrow at 6:30 p.m. at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Meanwhile in Ames, the Clones are 2-0 following their opening season wins over Omaha and South Dakota State.

South Carolina, UCONN, Maryland, Indiana and North Carolina State are the top-five this week.