Boys’ District Basketball

In Class 3A Substate 5, #1 Pella pummeled #5 Washington last night 76-38. Austin Schulte scored 21 points for the Dutch. The Demons finished the season with a 13-11 record.

#3 Keokuk pulled off the upset against #2 Center Point-Urbana last night, 64-58. The Chiefs will travel to Pella for the Substate 5 championship on Monday, March 2nd, at 7 pm. 

In Class 1A Substate 5, #4 Burlington Notre Dame and Calamus-Wheatland will face off for the Substate 5 championship tomorrow, February 28th, at 4 pm at Iowa City High. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call with the pregame show at 3:45 pm.

Girls’ Postseason Basketball

For the Class 3A state tournament, #7 Mediapolis will square off against #2 Maquoketa for the state quarterfinals on Monday, March 2nd, at 8:30 pm. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call with the pregame show at 8:15 pm.

The other Class 3A matchups include #1 Mt. Vernon taking on #8 Cherokee Washington, #4 Wahlert Catholic will face off against #5 Williamsburg, and #3 Des Moines Christian will tangle with #6 Forest City.

All-Southeast Conference Teams

The Southeast Conference (SEC) released their All-Conference teams for boys’ and girls’ wrestling yesterday and a couple of state podium finishers were named Wrestler of the Year.

Starting with girls’ wrestling, Fort Madison’s Mara Smith was named Wrestler of the Year after posting a 37-3 record for the season and taking home the 6th place medal in a state tournament run that was cut short due to injury. 

Burlington won the conference and put four on the First Team in Grace Navarre, Sarina Cline, Amaziah Twillie, who finished in 7th place at state, and Kylee Hill, who claimed a 35-5 record in her first year on the mats.

Mt. Pleasant was headlined by Paris Phosy, as she earned First Team honors for the 115-pound weight class. The junior collected a 19-14 record for the season and took 4th at her regional qualifier. The Panthers also put Quintrie Lee and Courtney Smith on the Second Team, as Smith finished in 3rd place at her regional qualifier. 

Fairfield’s Samantha Lyons and Kendra Allison were placed on the First Team with both punching their ticket to the state tournament, including a 6th place finish for Lyons.

For boys’ wrestling, despite earning Second Team honors for the 175-pound weight class, Fairfield’s Dain Burkhart was named Wrestler of the Year after going 34-6 on the year and claiming a bronze medal at state. 

Cael McCabe was the lone Trojan to make the First Team as Fairfield tied Fort Madison for 1st in conference. 

In the 120-pound weight class, Mt. Pleasant’s Levi Evans took home First Team honors as the sophomore went 29-5 on the season and was the first Panther to earn a trip to the state tournament since 2020. After eight grueling matches, Evans recorded a 4th place finish. Lane Beckler, Ramzy Davis, and Juan Lopez each grabbed Second Team honors.

Washington’s Caden Greiner garnered First Team status with a 42-5 record along with a 4th place finish. Jace Kinzenbaw and Blaine Rees joined him on the First Team, as they both punched their ticket to the state tournament, as well.

For a full look at the All-Conference lists for boys’ and girls’ wrestling, follow the links provided. Tune in tomorrow for a breakdown of both All-SEC basketball teams.

All-SEC Girls’ Wrestling: Girls’ Wrestling

All-SEC Boys’ Wrestling: Boys’ Wrestling

Southeastern Community College

The men’s basketball team will travel to Marshalltown Community College tomorrow, February 28th, at 7 pm for their regular season finale. 

The baseball team will travel to Delgado Community College today for a doubleheader. 

The softball team will participate in the Midwest Classic today and tomorrow with a matchup against Metropolitan Community College leading off the weekend. 

College Basketball

The Iowa State women’s team will square off against Kansas State on Sunday, March 1st, on the road at 1 pm.

The #9 Iowa women’s team snuck out with an 82-78 home victory last night against Illinois. Ava Heiden cashed in for 28 points in the winning effort. Jan Jensen’s 46 career victories are the most by an Iowa women’s head coach in their first two seasons at the helm in program history. The Hawkeyes will take on Wisconsin on the road on Sunday at 2 pm.

The Iowa men’s team will travel to Penn State tomorrow, February 28th, with tip-off at 11 am.

The #4 Iowa State men’s team will face off against #16 Texas Tech tomorrow at 3 pm. KILJ 98.5 FM and AM 1130 will have the call.

This Day in Sports History

1959 – Boston Celtic Bob Cousy sets a then-NBA record with 28 assists as the Boston Celtics score 173 points against Minneapolis Lakers.

1966 – 8th Daytona 500: Polesitter Richard Petty comes from two laps down to win the event after 198 laps were completed because of rain.

1987 – The NCAA cancels SMU’s entire 1987 football schedule for violations of NCAA rules regarding athletic corruption.

Prep Boys’ Wrestling- The Southeast Conference (SEC) sent ten wrestlers to the 2026 Iowa High School Athletic Association’s (IHSAA) State Tournament with a pair getting on the podium. Here’s a look the All-Conference lists for the SEC.

Wrestler of the Year

In an interesting twist, it was not a First Team member who earned Wrestler of the Year. Instead, it was senior Dain Burkhart of Fairfield who got the nod, despite being named Second Team honors for the 175-pound weight class.

The reason for the choice resides on how Burkhart finished the season. The Trojan claimed a 34-6 record for the season and went on a tear at the state tournament, rallying for a 4-1 record and the bronze medal after defeating Caysen Curran of Mt. Vernon by a 9-8 overtime victory.

Fairfield

Not only did the Wrestler of the Year help the Trojans end the year tied for first in the conference, but so did the other five All-Conference members. Cael McCabe, a senior, was the lone First Team member for Fairfield. McCabe collected a 17-2 record for the year and qualified for the state tournament but could not participate due to injury.

Joining Burkhart on the Second Team was Noah Patel (106-pound weight class), Jasper Carpenter (132-pound weight class), Dusty Haynes (150-pound weight class), and Calvin McClain (165-pound weight class). Patel and Carpenter were the only other wrestlers to finish the year with a winning record.

Fort Madison

The Bloodhounds finished tied for 1^st place in the SEC with a 4-1 record behind five First Team members: James Fuller (126-pound weight class), Ryker Peters (150-pound weight class), Jack Benner (165-pound weight class), Ren Watson (215-pound weight class), and Baylor Ferreira (285-pound weight class). Fuller, Watson, and Ferreira each attended the state tournament.

Mt. Pleasant

Mt. Pleasant claimed a 3-2 record against the conference to finish tied for 3^rd place. The Panthers were led by sophomore Levi Evans, as he claimed a 29-5 record and First Team honors for the 120-pound weight class. Evans was the first Panther to earn a trip to the state tournament since 2020 and battled out in eight matches for a 6-2 record for 4^th place.

Mt. Pleasant added three seniors on the Second Team in Lane Beckler (23-10) for the 126-pound weight class, Ramzy Davis (22-10) in the 157-pound weight class, and Juan Lopez (16-15) for the 285-pound weight class.

Washington

Washington tied for third place in the conference with a 3-2 record, resulting in three Demons making the First Team and two finding a spot on the Second Team.

In the 138-pound weight class, Caden Greiner earned First Team status with a 42-5 record along with a 4^th place finish at the state tournament after going 4-2 in Des Moines. Jace Kinzenbaw made the First Team for the 157-pound weight class as the freshman punched his ticket to state on his way to a 15-7 record.

Lastly, Blaine Rees took home First Team honors for the 190-pound weight class. The junior rattled off a 39-8 record and claimed a 3-2 record at the state tournament.

The Second Team placed Joseph Schreiber for the 113-pound weight class and Brayden Vernillion for the 215-pound weight class for the Demons. Vernillion made the state tournament and went 15-12 for the year.

Burlington

The Grayhounds finished in fifth place for the conference with a 1-4 record. Leading the Grayhounds was one of their three state qualifiers in Adrian Perez-Hall for the 175-pound weight class. Perez-Hall had an impressive senior year, going 31-2 for the season, which included a trip to Des Moines for the state tournament.

Brody Bolander was named All-SEC Second Team for the 120-pound weight class. Bolander finished the year with a 16-11 record. Roy Brown made the Second Team for the 138-pound weight class, while Jax Rohrer claimed a spot for the 144-pound weight class. Brown made the state tournament as did Owen Difederico, but in a crowded 190-pound weight class he was left off the list.

Keokuk

The Chiefs finished the year 0-5 in the conference and put two on the All-SEC lists. On the First Team, Xavier Nelson etched his name down for the 144-pound weight class. The senior claimed a 27-19 record for the season.

Taking home a spot on the Second Team was Jarod Anderson for the 190-pound weight class. Anderson managed a 24-11 record for the season, as he finished with a 1-2 record at the state tournament.

Prep Girls’ Wrestling- The Southeast Conference (SEC) released their All-Conference teams for the 2025-2026 season with Burlington leading the charge with ten First Team nominations and the SEC team title.

Wrestler of the Year

There were several wrestlers from the SEC who qualified for the state tournament and even finished in the top 10, but it was hard to beat Mara Smith’s season for Fort Madison in the 140-pound weight class. The multiple time state qualifier went 37-3 for her senior campaign and won her regional convincingly.

Smith then worked her way to the semifinals of the Class 2A bracket before falling by a narrow 6-4 decision margin. Unfortunately, she was unable to wrestle her final two matches of the tournament due to injury and finished with a 6^th place medal.

Burlington

The Grayhounds handled business against the SEC, winning all four of their matches, resulting in four wrestlers getting put on the First Team, including a state qualifier.

In the 105-pound weight class, Grace Navarre went 23-17 in her junior campaign, while Sarina Cline finished her senior season with a 32-13 record as a senior in the 120-pound weight class.

Amaziah Twillie, a sophomore, has made it consecutive appearances to the state tournament after claiming a 31-12 record. Twillie turned a regional championship into a 4-2 run at the state tournament that ended in a 7^th place medal.

Lastly, Kylee Hill made the First Team in the 190-pound weight class in her inaugural season as a wrestler for the Grayhounds. She turned out to be a natural, snatching a 35-5 record for the year and taking 3^rd place at the regionals.

Over on the Second Team, the Grayhounds put six on the list in Sandreah Pierre-Campbell (110-pound weight class), Landry Jones (125-pound weight class), Brooklyn Sparrow (130-pound weight class), Mia Oddo (135-pound weight class), Ednine Saint Aime (145-pound weight class), and Macy Peterson (170-pound weight class).

Peterson had the dubious distinction of wrestling in the same weight class as Fairfield’s Samantha Lyons. Still, the junior put together a 31-12 record and made it back to the state tournament and a spot on the podium, as she took 7^th place.

Fort Madison

At 4-1 in the conference, the Bloodhounds finished right behind their canine counterparts but still got eight wrestlers on the All-SEC lists. Joining Mara Smith on the First Team was five of her teammates.

In the 100-pound weight class, Lucile Zimmerman finished her junior campaign with a 14-17 record.

Briena Fenton, in the 125-pound weight class, earned a 25-11 record as a junior. Fenton took 4^th at the regionals.

Aubree Bunnell, in the 130-pound weight class, is going to be someone to fear in her junior campaign after going 31-10 in her sophomore season. Bunnell finished in 4^th place at the regional qualifier.

Senior, McKayla Schinstock, in the 135-pound weight class, went 18-12 this year.

Lastly, in the 145-pound weight class, Kat DiPrima, a junior, who also punched her ticket to the state tournament. On her way to the state tournament, DiPrima collected a 34-7 record and finished with a 1-2 record at the state tournament. Overall, she won three tournaments throughout the season.

Placed on the Second Team was Macyn Lampe, a freshman in the 105-pound weight class, and a senior Mady Emmett, in the 190-pound weight class. Lampe finished with a 5-21, while Emmett claimed a 7-6 record.

Mt. Pleasant

The Panthers are a young team in terms of experience and graduating class, yet still finished 2-2 and tied for third in the SEC. The team graduates only one senior and will return all three of the All-SEC honorees, including one First Teamer.

In the 115-pound weight class, Paris Phosy, a junior and one of the more experienced wrestlers on the team, earned the lone First Team nod with a 19-14 record for the season. Additionally, she was able to grab a spot on the podium in her regional qualifier, taking 4^th place.

On the Second Team was Quintrie Lee, a sophomore in the 120-pound weight class, and Courtney Smith, a freshman in the 235-pound weight class. Both could own their respective weight classes for the next several years with the wrestlers above them both graduating after this year.

Lee claimed a 24-14 record for the year, while Smith took home an 18-12 season, wrapping it up with a 3^rd place finish at regionals, which included Ottumwa’s Delilah Subsin who nabbed the silver medal at the state tournament.

Fairfield

The Trojans had two get named to the First Team list and earn a spot at the state tournament, after going 2-2 in conference action.

Samantha Lyons, a senior in the 170-pound weight class, roared out of the gate to 15 victories before losing her first match of the season. She would not lose again over her next 12 matches, including the first tow rounds of the state tournament. She would finish out her First Team season with a 28-4 record and 6^th place at state.

In the 235-pound weight class, Kendra Allison nabbed First Team honors after going 20-6 for the season. She was shocked in the regionals but still managed to punch her ticket to the state tournament for her senior season. She would go 1-2 in Des Moines.

Finding a spot on the Second Team was June Connor, a junior, in the 100-pound weight class. She claimed a 15-15 record.

Washington

The Demons put four on the All-SEC teams and took home a 1-3 record in conference matches, including a freshman getting put on the First Team.

In a relatively quiet 110-pound weight class, Cherry Lindsey found a spot on the First Team as a freshman, despite going just 4-11 on the season. Her best finish of the season was a 5^th place run at the North Mahaska Invitational.

Finding a place on the Second Team was Nora Stoutner (115-pound weight class), Ryha Wellington (140-pound weight class), and Colbie Greiner (155-pound weight class) with all three being juniors.

Wellington at 29-13 and Stoutner at 22-15 each produced over 20 wins, while Greiner was just one match away from punching her ticket to the state tournament.

Keokuk

The Chiefs did not put anyone on the All-SEC lists, but Izzy Droege and Jaylah Gardner both took home Academic All-SEC honors, as the team went 0-5 against the conference.

Prep Girls’ Basketball- The Southeast Conference has officially put the basketball season behind for all of their teams after Keokuk fell in their regional semifinals and a year after Burlington ripped the title away from Keokuk, the Chiefs were able to snatch it back after sweeping the Grayhounds.

Player of the Year

It’s always a tough decision when you have two of the best players of their graduating class in the state of Iowa competing against one another for the honor. Keokuk’s Kendra Boatman took the award as a sophomore and Mylee Stiefel of Burlington earned it last year.

This year, the Chief was able to take it back along with the SEC title as the only senior on the Keokuk squad. Boatman led the conference in points per game with 26.3, assists per game with 4.9, and steals per game with 5.

Keokuk

The Chiefs finished the year with a 15-8 record overall and an 8-2 record for the SEC. Along with Boatman being a unanimous First Team selection for the fourth straight season, Elizabeth Mason was also a unanimous choice for the First Team.

Mason finished fourth in the SEC with 16.6 points per game, tied for fourth in assists per game with 2.7, and second in steals per game with 3.7. Her three-point percentage ranked as the third highest with a minimum of three attempts per game.

Junior, Nevaeh Logan, was placed on the Second Team as she led the SEC in rebounding and finished top three in blocks per game. Kalie Ames and Kylee Hoard were named All-SEC Honorable Mention.

Burlington

Mylee Stiefel earned another unanimous All-SEC First Team nomination after leading Burlington to a 12-9 record and a 7-3 record against the conference. Stiefel finished second in the SEC in scoring with 24.4 points per contest. She also led the led conference in blocks per game with 1.3 and finished top five in assists and steals per game.

Apart of the Grayhounds’ big three was Daphne Brown and Vanessa Woodsmall, as they each found a place on the Second Team. Brown averaged 18 points and nearly nine rebounds per game, while Woodsmall finished in the top ten for points per game.

Sela Rascon and Jimani Robinson were named Honorable Mentions.

Fort Madison

It looked like this was going to be Fort Madison’s first season winning the conference since going 9-1 for the 2020-21 season after beating Keokuk twice in the regular season; yet, getting swept by Washington proved to be their downfall as they claimed a 7-3 record against the SEC and 13-9 overall.

The senior heavy group put Dayonna Davis, unanimous, and Hadley Wolfe on the First Team list. Davis finished fifth in points per game (14.4), rebounds per game (6.9), and steals per game (2.9). Wolfe finished in the top five for assists per game and three pointers made per game.

Halle Menke earned a spot on the Second Team with 7.4 rebounds per game and swatted 1.2 shots per game, which ranked 2^nd in the SEC. Charley Huebner and Reilynn Turnbull were named Honorable Mentions.

Washington

The Demons collected their first winning record since 2019 after going 6-4 in the SEC and 12-11 overall. The team was led by the lone First Team nod in senior Adalyn Long, as she finished with 13.7 points per game to go along with 2.7 assists and two steals per game.

In her return to the hardcourt, Leighton Messinger, a senior, made her way onto the Second Team along with Regan Miller. Messinger averaged six points and six rebounds per game, while Miller scored seven points per game.

Addison Miller and Oaklee Sobaski were named All-SEC Honorable Mentions.

Fairfield and Mt. Pleasant

The Trojans got the better of Mt. Pleasant in both of their conference showdowns, in large part because of the Panthers’ 33 missed free throws between the two contests. Still the two finished with four wins apiece and with two on the Honorable Mention list.

Fairfield placed two seniors on the list in Faith Jones and Elyse Setterstrom, as they finished as the team’s two leading scorers. Jones nabbed a steal per game, while Setterstrom grabbed 7.2 rebounds per contest.

Mt. Pleasant was led by Abby Carthey, as she was the conductor of the offense. Along with notching nearly two assists per game, she finished with 7.7 points per game. Joining her was Paityn Ensminger. The junior will look to take over the leadership role next season after putting up 6.7 points per game and consistently generating second chances for the Panthers with 2.7 offensive rebounds per contest.

Prep Boys’ Basketball- The Southeast Conference (SEC) still has one team vying for a spot at the Iowa High School Athletic Association’s (IHSAA) state tournament, but the All-Conference teams have been released in the meantime.

Player of the Year

Jaxon Clark has been named SEC Player of the Year for the second consecutive year and it is hard to argue with the decision. The senior is averaging the 3^rd most points per game in the state with 28.6 and the most rebounds per game at 17.5.

With Clark in the captain’s seat, the Chiefs have gone 53-19 over the past three seasons with back-to-back trips to the Substate Championship after upsetting Center Point-Urbana Thursday night. Additionally, Keokuk is finally back on top of the conference standings since the 2014-15 season.

Keokuk

It’s been over a decade, but the Chiefs are conference champions once again and they did it in dominant fashion, handing their SEC foes double digit losses in all ten regular season conference contests.

Clark was a unanimous First Team selection. Finding a spot on the All-SEC Second Team was Jalen Clark, a sophomore, and Chayce Smith, a senior. Clark finished second on the team with 10.5 points per game to go along with five rebounds. Smith also claimed 10.1 points per game on 50.5% shooting from the field.

Kyler Beelman and Antonio Crockett were named Honorable Mentions.

Burlington

If it was not for Keokuk, then Burlington would have gone undefeated in conference play. Nevertheless, the Grayhounds finished the season with a 12-10 record with an 8-2 conference mark for 2^nd place in the SEC.

As one of the three unanimous choices for First Team, Jett Morris burst onto the scene as a sophomore with 16.7 points per game for 3^rd in the conference. The Grayhound finished 5^th in the SEC for three pointers made per game.

On the Second Team was Kobe Edmunds and Michael Kantzavelos. Edmunds’ 1.9 steals per game finished 4^th in the conference, while Kantzavelos dished out 4.2 assists per game for 2^nd in the SEC.

Cj Chandler and Keshawn Wyldon made the Honorable Mention list.

Mt. Pleasant

The Panthers saw an eight-game improvement from last season to this year with four more conference wins this past year for an overall record of 10-12 and an SEC mark of 5-5. The result was two First Team nods in Isaiah and Noah Lange.

Isaiah Lange was superman for the Panthers, tabbing the 5^th most points per game (14), 3^rd most rebounds (7.9), and the 6^th highest field goal percentage (59.2%). His play got even better when Noah Lange got back into the lineup after winter break. In his 12 games on the court, Lange put up 11 points per game to go along with nearly seven rebounds and 2.6 assists per game. Pointedly, with Noah on the court, the Panthers went 8-4.

Finding a spot on the Second Team was Ryan Helling. The sophomore played in six less games, but still averaged the 2^nd most three pointers made per game on 38.5% shooting to knock in 11 points per game.

On the Honorable Mention list was Aiden Humble and Grayson Lowery. In the two years as a starter, Humble buried 110 three pointers, which is the most in a two-year span going to the 2006-07 season. Lowery proved hard work paid off after going from first man off the bench to the starting lineup for 17 of the 22 games.

Washington

The Demons went 13-10 for the season and finished 4^th in the conference with a 4-6 record. Although, one of their biggest victories of the season was a road upset against Burlington in the first round of the substate tournament.

Nic Stone was named First Team All-SEC for his conference leading 3.3 three pointers made per game. Due to his high three-point play, Stone cashed in for 15.4 points per game for 4^th in the SEC.

Kael Williams was named to Second Team as he tied for the conference lead in steals per game with Honorable Mention Rajan Roth. Drew Conrad, also an Honorable Mention, led the SEC in assists per game with 5.1 and third in the conference with two steals per game.

Fort Madison

The Bloodhounds shocked some teams by compiling five wins on the season and knocking off Washington and Fairfield in their conference showdowns. As the third and final unanimous selection, Nolan Guzman was placed on the First Team.

One could argue that he deserved Player of the Year honors. The Bloodhound broke the school record for points in a game with 51. He was 2^nd in the conference for points per game with 20 and 3^rd in assists per game with 3.0. In the team’s wins, Guzman put up 33, 26, 21, 13, and 21 points, respectively.

Darius Foy and Jonah Tackett were named Honorable Mentions.

Fairfield

The Trojans won two games on the season, both in SEC play and both on the road. Ethan Bisgard and Eli Zillman were placed on the Honorable Mention list.