High School Basketball
The #10 Mediapolis girls’ team blanketed West Burlington over the weekend 59-18. Grace Holsteen and Josie Hutcheson each cashed in for three three-pointers for 15 points apiece.
The Burlington Notre Dame girls’ team nearly pulled off the upset against Fort Madison over the weekend, falling 45-39. The Nike boys’ team had no issue, clobbering the Bloodhounds 97-43 to remain undefeated on the season.
Danville swept Clark County over the weekend with the girls’ team winning 61-16 and the boys’ team handling business in a 76-51 final. Alaina Gourley collected 19 points in the victory.
High School Wrestling
The Fort Madison boys’ team hosted their two-day invitational over the weekend and Burlington Notre Dame captured 4th place as a team and two individual champions.
The Nikes leaned on Kohen Dietzenbach, who gutted out an 11-8 decision victory in the championship match of the 113-pound weight class to finish the tournament 6-0, and Kael Cook, who dominated his way to a 7-0 record and the gold in the 150-pound weight class. Jared Glendening and Colt Boyles each took 2nd place in their respective weight classes.
Mt. Pleasant took home 12th place as a team with 194.5 points. Keegan Birdsell led the Panther effort, collecting six victories and claiming 4th place in the 165-pound weight class. Jefferson Avalos Ramirez took home 5th place with a major decision win in his last match of the tournament. Levi Evans, Aven Beauchamp, and Juan Lopez each snatched 6th place in their respective weight classes.
New London had Kane Forseen and Riley Merschman lead the Tigers with 8th place finishes. Leo Jirak of Van Buren County snatched 3rd place with a victory by fall over James Fuller of Fort Madison and Mediapolis’s Kyler Crow marched his way to the silver medal in the 175-pound weight class, while Mason Johnson took 4th place.
The Fairfield boys’ team participated in the Bill Van Horn Invitational and claimed 85.5 points for 12th place overall. In his first action of the season, Cael McCabe pinned all of his opponents in the first round to win the 113-pound weight class. Dain Burkhart finished the weekend 4-1 to grab the bronze medal.
The Wapello and WACO boys’ teams took 6th and 7th place as a team, respectively, at the Regal Invitational over the weekend. Wapello was led by Cohen Wolford as he grabbed 2nd place and Grayson Nagle, whose major decision victory was good enough for 3rd place.
WACO’s Ian Maize and Braxton Stauffer each earned three victories to win their respective weight classes.
The Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union boys’ team made the trip to North Linn for an Invitational over the weekend and claimed 2nd place with 157.5 points. The Wildcats had a trio of champions in Justin Knipfer (106-pound weight class), Dakota Aney (113-pound weight class), and Bowen Thomson (132-pound weight class).
The Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union and Burlington girls’ teams competed in the Bubba Randles Winter Classic over the weekend and the Wildcats claimed 24th place, while the Grayhounds claimed 9th place with 92 points.
For the Wildcats, Jada Moats took 8th place in the 190-pound weight class, which included Burlington’s Kylee Hill, who won her 3rd place match by fall. Mia Oddo replicated her results in the 140-pound weight class with a first-round pin.
The WACO and Wapello girls’ teams made the trip to Chariton for the Warhorse Invitational over the weekend and the Arrows produced a champion at the meet.
Kenadee Helscher of Wapello managed to stay unbeaten on the season, winning all three of her matches by fall in the 105-pound weight class. Clara Ball snatched 5th place in the 115-pound weight class.
Lastly, WACO’s Makayla Morrison finished in 6th place in the 120-pound weight class.
All teams are on winter break.
College Football
#23 Iowa will take on #14 Vanderbilt on December 31st at 11 am for the ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa, Florida.
College Basketball
The #10 Iowa State women’s team avoided the upset with a Kenzie Hare buzzer-beating three-pointer to defeat Kansas 79-76 yesterday. Audi Crooks continued to dominate with 41 of the team’s 79 points. The Cyclones will get back to action on December 31st against Houston on the road at 1 pm.
The #11 Iowa women’s team had no answer for #1 UConn over the weekend, falling 90-64. Hannah Stuelke led the team with 17 points. The Hawkeyes will take on Penn State for the Big Ten Home Opener on Sunday, December 28th, at 3 pm.
The Iowa men’s team laughed Bucknell out of the gym 94-39 on Saturday. Alvaro Folgueiras notched 17 points in the victory. The Hawkeyes will get a week off before hosting UMass Lowell on December 29th at 4 pm.
The #4 Iowa State men’s team handled Long Beach State yesterday, 91-60. Joshua Jefferson (19 points and 10 rebounds) and Blake Buchanan (13 points and 13 rebounds) each notched double-doubles in the winning effort. The Cyclones will face off against Houston Christian on December 29th at 7 pm at home.
This Day in Sports History
1917 – In the NHL’s first official week of play, three players score hat tricks in the same game, for the same team; Corb Denneny, Reg Noble, and Harry Meeking each notch a hat trick for the Toronto Arenas in an 11-4 win over the Ottawa Senators.
1969 – Pete Maravich sets an NCAA record of hitting 30 of 31 foul shots.
1997 – Scotty Bowman’s Red Wings beat the Boston Bruins 4-2, giving him 200 wins with Detroit and making him the first NHL coach to record 200 wins with three different teams.