Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

4A No. 7 West High (5-1) at Davenport North (5-1)

Where: Thursday at Brady Street Stadium, 7:15 p.m.

Last Season: Did Not Play

Last Week: West High defeated Linn-Mar 41-7. Davenport North won at City High 24-21 in overtime  

Player to Watch: Senior defensive lineman Brant Carter (6-3, 210) is the key for the Davenport North defense leading the Wildcats with 48.5 tackles for loss, 10 tackles for loss and five sacks.

Key Stat: All five Davenport North wins have come by 13 points or fewer with the Wildcats winning games by an average of seven points per game.

About the Trojans: The lone remaining unbeaten teams in District 4 square off with the winner sitting squarely in the district drivers’ seat.

West High stretched its winning streak to four with a 41-7 win over Linn-Mar last week setting a school record for yards allowed holding the Lions to one yard of total offense.

The Trojans have been dominant all season, holding opponents to 11.5 points and 220 yards of total offense per game.

West High hasn’t allowed more than 17 points in a game this season and has forced 10 turnovers in its previous four games.

Senior linebacker Owen McAreavy leads West High with 29 tackles including 9.5 for loss while senior defensive tackle Landon Green has 28.5 tackles with 15.5 coming behind the line of scrimmage including a 4A-best seven sacks.

About the Wildcats: Davenport North is off to the best start in program history after rallying for a 24-21 overtime win over City High last week.

The Wildcats have equaled their win total from the previous two seasons combined with their 5-1 start, the lone loss a 42-15 setback to Davenport Central in week three.

Junior quarterback Jack West (5-10, 175) directs a Davenport North offense averaging 17.5 points and 245 yards per game.

West has passed for 694 yards and five touchdowns with Priest Sheedy his main target with 32 receptions for 522 yards and all five touchdown grabs.

Sheedy is coming off a nine-catch, 206-yard, two-touchdown performance last week against City High.

Mount Pleasant (4-2) at 3A No. 3 Solon (5-1)

Where: Spartan Stadium, 7:30 p.m.

Last Season: Solon 33, Mount Pleasant 0

Last Week: Solon defeated Washington 37-14. Mount Pleasant defeated Keokuk 53-0

Player to Watch: Mount Pleasant senior quarterback Zach Beason (6-3, 225) has passed for 1,089 and seven touchdowns and leads the Panthers in rushing with 308 yards and seven touchdowns.

Key Stat: During the Panthers’ current four-game winning streak Beason is averaging 274 total yards and has scored 12 touchdowns.

About the Spartans: Solon continued its string of dominating defensive efforts holding Washington to 217 total yards and a pair of fourth-quarter scores last week.

The Spartans are allowing just 171 total yards and 8.5 points per game this season and have been especially effective against the run, holding opponents to 66 yards per game on the ground.

The Solon secondary will get its toughest test to date against Beason and the Panthers but the Spartans have held up well against the pass this season, picking off nine passes while allowing just four passing touchdowns.

Senior running back Adam Bock leads Solon with 467 rushing yards and is averaging 102 yards and has nine touchdowns on the ground over the past four games.

About the Panthers: Following back-to-back losses to ranked and unbeaten teams Pella and Clear Creek Amana to open the season Mount Pleasant has outscored opponents 159-17 in four consecutive wins.

The Panthers have three shutouts during their four-game winning streak and have held opponents to an average of 191 yards per game.

Beason is the leader for the Panther offense but the senior quarterback has a balanced and deep receiving corps to throw to.

Four different Panthers have at least 13 receptions and more than 237 yards led by senior Chase Lamm who has team-highs of 26 catches and 346 yards.

Central DeWitt (3-3) at Liberty High (2-4)

Where: North Liberty, 7:15 p.m.

Last Season: Did Not Play

Last Week: Liberty High lost to North Scott 44-15. Central DeWitt loss to Davenport Assumption 28-21.

Player to Watch: Central DeWitt senior running back Easton Necker (6-2, 190) ranks 10th in the state with 1,094 rushing yards and eight touchdowns.  

Key Stat: Necker is averaging 300 rushing yards and has scored eight touchdowns in three Saber wins and averages 65 yards and has no touchdowns in Central DeWitt’s three losses.

About the Sabers: After winning four games combined the past three seasons it has already been a season of great growth for Central DeWitt.

Central DeWitt has already secured its highest win total since 2014 with a three-game win streak to close non-district play.
The Sabers opened District 5 play with back-to-back loss to district heavyweights North Scott and Davenport Assumption.

Necker is the key to the Saber offense, accounting for better than half of Central DeWitt’s total offense with his 1,094 rushing yards.

About the Lightning: Following a 2-2 start to the season Liberty High has lost back-to-back games for the first time in program history after district losses to ranked opponents Clear Creek Amana and North Scott.

To get back on track Liberty High will attempt to rev up a rushing attack that has been grounded the past two weeks.

Liberty High rushed for more than 200 yards in each of its first four games but has averaged just 102 yards on the ground and 3 yards per carry in its back-to-back losses.

Central DeWitt enters Friday night allowing 140 yards a game on the ground and has allowed more than 191 yards rushing just once this season.

Kaleb Williams leads the Liberty High rushing attack with 465 yards while Jack Ankenbauer has added 355 yards and five touchdowns.

Davenport Assumption (3-3) at 3A No. 8 Clear Creek Amana (6-0)

Where: Clipper Field, 7:15 p.m.

Last Season: Davenport Assumption 41, Clear Creek Amana 7

Last Week: Clear Creek Amana defeated Clinton 28-0. Davenport Assumption defeated Central DeWitt 28-21.

Player to Watch: Davenport Assumption senior quarterback Brandon Schlichting (6-0, 170) has passed for 809 yards and seven touchdowns and rushed for a team-high 250 yards and seven more scores.

Key Stat: Clear Creek Amana has not allowed a rushing touchdown since the first quarter of the first game of the season.

About the Clippers: One of the biggest surprises in Class 3A this season Clear Creek Amana matched the best start in program history with a 28-0 win at Clinton last week.

The Clippers are second in week six RPI rankings and can take another big step toward securing the first playoff appearance since 2015 with a win over Davenport Assumption.

Defense has been the calling card for the Clippers during their 6-0 start. Clear Creek Amana is allowing less than five points per game and has three shutouts.

The Clippers have held four opponents under 200 total yards and have forced 12 turnovers.

Senior quarterback Andrew Rohret leads the Clippers with 643 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns and has also passed for 633 yards and eight scores.

About the Knights: Davenport Assumption has bounced back from a 1-3 start with back-to-back wins to open District 5 play.

After averaging 15.8 points per game during a 1-3 start the featured losses to top-ranked Cedar Rapids Xavier and No. 3 Solon the Knights have averaged 34 points in consecutive district wins.

The biggest turnaround for Assumption has been on defense. The Knights allowed 44.3 in three losses but have held teams to 9.3 points in three wins.

Schlichting leads the Assumption offense but has a trio of solid pass catching options led by senior Nick Gottilla (6-0, 180).

Gottilla has 24 receptions for 291 yards and two touchdowns to lead a group of four players with more than 115 receiving yards.

Pleasant Valley (2-4) at City High (2-4)

Where: Bates Field, 7:15 p.m.

Last Season: Pleasant Valley 35, City High 0

Last Week: Pleasant Valley defeated Muscatine 49-35. City High lost to Davenport North 24-21 in overtime.

Player to Watch: Pleasant Valley senior quarterback Max Slaven (5-9, 175) has rushed for a team-high 577 yards and nine touchdowns in the Spartans triple-option attack while also passing for 666 yards and five scores.

Key Stat: Slaven accounted for 409 yards of total offense (251 rushing, 158 passing) and six touchdowns in a win over Muscatine last week.

About the Spartans: Don’t be deceived by the record Pleasant Valley has endured a rugged schedule that features four-losses to ranked teams with a combined record of 20-4.

Three of the four losses have come by a touchdown or less including a 20-14 setback at seventh-ranked West High in week five.

Despite the four losses Pleasant Valley has kept its playoff hopes alive. The Spartans are 20th in the RPI rankings with three weeks to play.

Slaven is the key to the triple-option attack while Ben Royer is averaging 8.8 yards per carry while rushing for 221 yards.

About the Little Hawks: Consecutive tough to swallow losses to open district play has City High seeking to avoid a losing skid in its regular season home finale on Friday.

After allowing a season-high 297 rushing yards in a loss to Muscatine in week five the Little Hawks held Davenport North to 30 yards on the ground last week.

City High will need to be tough against the run again on Friday as they face a Pleasant Valley offense that averages 210 rushing yards per game.

Sophomore Raph Hamilton has continued to progress at quarterback and has thrown for 499 yards on the season.

Liam McComas has caught nine passes for 133 yards in three games since moving to tight end and provides a nice compliment to senior receiver Malik Kimber and his team-leading 12 receptions for 221 yards.

1A No. 6 West Branch (5-1) at Northeast (0-6)

Where: Goose Lake, 7 p.m.

Last Season: Did Not Play

Last Week: West Branch defeated North Cedar 52-14. Northeast lost to Cascade 57-20.

Player to Watch: Northeast senior receiver Dawson Stoll (6-0, 175) ranks second in the state in receptions (48), third in receiving yards (753) and has five touchdown catches.  

Key Stat: West Branch ranks 11th in Class 1A averaging 6.2 yards per carry while Northeast is allowing 9.1 yards per rushing attempt.

About the Rebels: Northeast has lost 14 consecutive games since a 26-20 win over Central DeWitt in its season opener last year.

The Rebels have allowed more than 40 points 10 times during its current 14-game losing skid and are giving up 43.7 points per game during that span.

Northeast doesn’t have offensive numbers of a winless team.

Senior quarterback Nate Lange (6-2, 170) has passed for 1,396 yards and seven touchdowns with Stoll as his top target.

Junior running back Dakota Stevenson (6-1, 185) has rushed for 524 yards and seven scores and caught 27 passes for 199 yards and another touchdown.

It has been the defense that has been troublesome for Northeast which is allowing 478 yards of offense, 354 rushing yards and 43.8 points per game this season.

About the Bears: West Branch bounced back from its first regular season loss since 2016 in impressive fashion with a 52-14 win over North Cedar last week at Butch Pedersen Field.

The Bears hit the road this week for the first time since their 28-20 loss at Bellevue in week five.

West Branch put up season-highs in total yards (475) and rushing yards (279) against North Cedar while scoring more than 50 points for the second time in three weeks.

Senior quarterback Beau Cornwell has passed for 1,262 yards and 16 touchdowns while completing 69 percent of his passes.

Six different players have more than 140 receiving yards for West Branch led by senior Brett Schiele who has a team-high 21 receptions for 346 yards and five touchdowns.

Regina (3-3) at North Linn (4-2)

Where: Troy Mills, 7 p.m.

Last Season: Did Not Play

Last Week: Regina defeated South Hardin 22-19. North Linn defeated Jesup 23-0.

Player to Watch: North Linn junior running back Brennan Becker has rushed for a team-high 542 yards and six touchdowns while averaging 5.8 yards per carry.

Key Stat: Regina ranks sixth in Class 1A averaging 212 passing yards per game while North Linn is holding opponents to 65 yards per game through the air and hasn’t allowed more than 110 yards passing in a game this season.

About the Regals: Regina kept its playoff chances alive with a 16-point second-half rally in a 22-19 win over South Hardin last week.

The Regals will attempt to remain unbeaten in district play in their first road trip of the district season.

Senior Bryce Barnett has passed for 462 yards while leading Regina to wins in his first two career starts at quarterback.

Sophomore Alec Wick has been the favorite target for Barnett catching 21 passes for 265 yards in Regina’s back-to-back wins.

About the Lynx: North Linn snapped a two-game losing skid with a 23-0 shutout of Jesup last week.

The Lynx opened the season 3-0 before consecutive losses to Class A No. 7 Edgewood-Colesburg and 2A top-ranked Dike-New Hartford.

The strength for North Linn has been a defense that has held four opponents to single digits and is allowing 15 points and 218 total yards per game.

North Linn has been especially strong against the pass, holding opponents to 65 yards per game through the air while picking off five passes and collecting 16 sacks.

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