Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

West High (4-4) at Class 5A No. 2 Pleasant Valley (8-0)

Where: Pleasant Valley High School, 7 p.m.

Last season: Pleasant Valley 41, West High 20

Player to watch: Pleasant Valley senior quarterback Caden McDermott (5-9, 190) has passed for 619 yards and 13 touchdowns and ranks second on the team with 488 rushing yards to go with a team-high 11 rushing touchdowns.

Key stat: West High is 2-2 against Pleasant Valley over the past four seasons with the Spartans winning the past two matchups by a combined total of 78-44.

About the Trojans: At 4-4 West High currently sits at 20^th in the Class 5A RPI standings and needs a road upset in week nine to have a chance to advance to the postseason.

The Trojans have had success in past seasons in slowing the patented Pleasant Valley triple option attack holding the Spartans to 25 points per game in four meetings over the last four years.

West High is allowing 194 rushing yards per game and 5.1 yards per carry this season after allowing 333 rushing yards to Cedar Rapids Prairie last Friday.

Offensively West High is averaging 305 total yards and 29.9 points per game after putting up 407 total yards against Cedar Rapids Prairie.

Sophomore quarterback Jack Wallace has passed for 1,602 yards and 15 touchdowns with just two interceptions this season.

Senior Christian Janis has caught 31 passes for 696 yards and 10 touchdowns while senior Bryan Torres has 21 receptions for 310 yards and sophomore Mason Woods has 16 catches for 297 yards.

Junior linebacker Ashton Honore leads West High with 57.5 tackles including 26 tackles for loss and seven sacks while senior Ryne Vander Leest has 50.5 tackles with 7.5 for loss.

About the Spartans: The lone remaining unbeaten team in Class 5A, Pleasant Valley has outscored opponents 335-76 and hasn’t had a game decided by less than 30 points since a 14-7 win over No. 10 Linn-Mar in week three.

The Spartans have relied on their power running game and a stingy defense during its unbeaten start.

Pleasant Valley is holding opponents to 9.5 points and 223 total yards per game while giving up just 92.4 rushing yards per game.

Senior linebacker Rusty VanWetzinga (6-1, 220) and junior Tate Lyon (5-11, 210) are tied for the team lead with 45 tackles each with VanWetzinga making seven tackles for loss.

Sophomore Joey VanWetzinga (6-2, 250) has a team-high 10.5 tackles for loss.

McDermott leads a Pleasant Valley offense that is averaging 389 total yards and 303 rushing yards per game.

Seven different Spartans have rushed for at least 100 yards led by junior Tyge Lyon (5-9, 180) with 577 yards and five touchdowns and senior Makhi Wilson (6-1, 180) who has rushed for 461 yards and four touchdowns while averaging 14 yards per carry.

Coy Kipper (5-10, 150) has caught a team-high 12 passes for 282 yards and six touchdowns.

Davenport Central (1-7) at No. 10 City High (5-3)

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

Last season: City High 63, Davenport Central 7

Player to watch: Davenport Central junior quarterback Tatum Roselle (5-9, 160) has passed for 622 yards and three touchdowns and has rushed for a team-high 253 yards and three touchdowns.

Key stat: City High rushed for a season-high 309 yards in a win at Davenport West last week and faces a Davenport Central defense that is allowing 221 yards per game on the ground and has given up more than 224 rushing yards in six of eight games.

About the Little Hawks: City High bounced back from a loss to second-ranked Pleasant Valley in week seven with a 55-6 win at Davenport West on Friday.

City High matched its season-high point total and had its second highest yardage output with 488 total yards in the win over Davenport West last week.

The Little Hawks have put up at least 400 yards of offense in seven of eight games this season and are averaging 441 total yards per game.

Junior quarterback Quinton Tran has passed for 490 yards in the past two games while filling in for injured starter Drew Larson.

Senior Akili Mattox has emerged as a major threat in the City High passing attack catching a team-high 27 passes for 599 yards and six touchdowns.

About the Blue Devils: Davenport Central snapped a seven-game losing streak that dated back to last season with a 19-12 overtime win over Cedar Rapids Jefferson in week three but has lost five straight games since.

The Blue Devils have been shutout four times and scored just seven points during their current five-game losing skid.

Roselle leads a Davenport Central offense that is averaging 154 total yards per game.

Four different players have at least 100 receiving yards for Davenport Central led by junior Jake Jantzi (5-9, 160) who has caught 19 passes for 155 yards and a touchdown.

Ben Strang (6-3, 190) has 10 receptions for 126 yards and a touchdown and Ty Harmsen (5-9, 155) has nine catches for 108 yards.

Junior Walid Botcho (6-1, 195) leads Davenport Central with 38 tackles including 3.5 sacks and 8.5 tackles for loss while Strang has a team-high four sacks and 5.5 tackles for loss.

Clinton (2-6) at Class 4A No. 4 Liberty High (7-1)

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

Last season: Liberty High 45, Clinton 13

Player to watch: Clinton senior quarterback Addison Binnie (6-0, 172) has completed 43 percent of his passes while throwing for 780 yards and four touchdowns and leads the team with 1,045 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns.

Key stat: Liberty High has four players with at least 20 receptions and 282 receiving yards and all four have at least two touchdown catches.

About the Lightning: Liberty High scored touchdown and two-point conversion in the final minute in a 29-28 road win at Burlington last week that pushed its winning streak to five.

The Lightning are one of three one-loss teams in Class 4A and are currently fourth in the 4A RPI rankings.

Liberty High is averaging 44.2 points and 397 total yards during its current five-game winning streak.

Junior quarterback Graham Beckman has passed for 1,859 yards and 23 touchdowns with three interceptions and has rushed for 200 yards and four touchdowns.

Senior Trey Gregoire has rushed for 476 yards and seven touchdowns and has 13 receptions for 168 yards and a touchdown.

Garrett Gregoire has caught a team-high 28 passes for 606 yards and eight touchdowns and Wyatt Williams has 23 receptions for 379 yards and six touchdowns.

Liberty High is holding opponents to 15.8 points and 259 total yards per game and is allowing 136.4 rushing yards per game.

Junior Devin Anderson has made a team-high 41.5 tackles and Christian Barney has made 35.5 tackles with 6.5 for loss.

About the River Kings: After back-to-back winless seasons in 2019 and 2020 Clinton has won two games each of the past two years.

Clinton snapped a five-game losing streak with a 49-26 win over Mount Pleasant last week in its home finale.

The River Kings have been solid offensively averaging 306 total yards and 26.7 points per game and has scored 30 or more points four times this season.

Binnie leads the offense accounting for more than 1,800 total yards and 20 touchdowns.

Senior Ajai Russell (6-1, 200) has rushed for 448 yards and seven touchdowns and Tavian Bailey (6-1, 195) has added 186 rushing yards and two touchdowns.

Three different River Kings have at least 10 receptions and 100 receiving yards led by junior JhiKeith McGraw (6-3, 157) who has a team-high 13 receptions for 327 yards and a touchdown.

Collin Fullick (5-8, 158) has 11 receptions for 168 yards and two touchdowns.

Clinton is allowing 33.1 points and 307 total yards per game and is giving up 168 rushing yards per game.

Russell has made a team-high 36 tackles including 5.5 for loss while junior Ben Brown (6-1, 221) has a team-high 8.5 tackles for loss and three sacks.

Newton (6-2) at Clear Creek Amana (3-5)

Where: Clipper Field, 7:30 p.m.

Last season: Clear Creek Amana 49, Newton 48

Player to watch: Newton junior running back Cody Klein (5-10, 155) has rushed for a team-leading 1,043 yards and 11 touchdowns while averaging 7 yards per carry and has also caught 15 passes for 199 yards and two touchdowns.

Key stat: Clear Creek Amana and Newton combined for 97 points and 981 total yards last season in a 49-48 Clipper win in Newton.

About the Clippers: Clear Creek Amana is attempting to snap a three-game losing streak and keep its slim playoff hopes alive with a win in its home finale.

The Clippers have been outscored 111-26 in consecutive loss to eighth-ranked Cedar Rapids Washington, second-ranked Cedar Rapids Xavier and Pella.

Clear Creek Amana currently sits at 21^st in the Class 4A RPI rankings while Newton is 12^th and attempting to secure its own playoff spot.

Clear Creek Amana is holding opponents to 24.9 points and 289 total yards per game and is giving up 142.3 rushing yards per contest.

Senior linebacker Brock Sherman leads the Clippers with 67 tackles including a team-high 10.5 for loss while Nick Johnson and sophomore Brody Clubb each have 44 tackles.

Senior Jackson Schmidt has passed for 339 yards and five touchdowns and rushed for a team-leading 556 yards and sophomore quarterback Cale Berry has thrown for 186 yards and rushed for 134 and a touchdown.

Senior Andrew Schlemme has caught eight passes for 148 yards and two touchdowns and Reece Hoffman has nine receptions for 96 yards and two touchdowns.

About the Cardinals: Last season Newton started 4-0 but faltered down the stretch going 1-4 and missing the playoffs.

This season the Cardinals got off to a 6-0 start but have dropped back-to-back games to ranked opponents Cedar Rapids Washington and Cedar Rapids Xavier by a combined score of 63-3 and need a win in the regular season finale to assure itself of a spot in the postseason.

Newton has been improved defensively this season holding opponents to 17.3 points and 244 total yards per game.

The Cardinals are allowing 134.3 rushing yards per game and have allowed more than 185 yards on the ground just once this season.

Junior Nathan Milburn (6-1, 190) leads the Cardinals with 63.5 tackles including a team-high 13 for loss and senior Alex Thomason (5-7, 160) and junior Nate Lampe (5-10, 145) each have four interceptions.

A balanced Newton offense that averages 349.5 total yards and 27.3 points per game is led by senior quarterback Brody Bauer (6-2, 185) who has completed 66 percent of his passes while throwing for 1,082 yards and 12 touchdowns.

Bauer has also rushed for 299 yards and three touchdowns.

Five Cardinals have at least 11 receptions and 145 receiving yards led by sophomore Christian Ergenbright (5-11, 165) who has a team-high 19 receptions for 279 yards and three touchdowns.  

Class 3A No. 7 Solon (5-3) at Keokuk (2-6)

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

Last season: Solon 63, Keokuk 6

Player to watch: Keokuk junior wide receiver Diego Garcia (6-1, 165) has caught a team-high 37 passes for 559 yards and seven touchdowns and has a pair of interceptions as a defensive bac.

Key stat: In 30 career games Solon senior quarterback Blake Timmons has accounted for 71 total touchdowns (39 passing and 32 rushing).

About the Chiefs: Since a 2-2 start to the season Keokuk has dropped four straight district games with the first three losses in district play coming by a combined eight points.

Keokuk lost one-point games to Fairfield (16-15) and Washington (28-27) and fell to Grinnell 12-6.

The Chiefs have been much improved defensively this season holding opponents to 21.6 points and 332 total yards per game.

Keokuk has held four opponents to 22 points or fewer this season and has allowed more than 29 points in a game just one time.

Senior Liam O’Donnell (5-10, 160) has been among the most productive defenders in Class 3A this season with 74 tackles including five for loss.

Senior Aiden Derr (6-3, 215) has 46 tackles with a team-high 12.5 for loss and junior Kevin Joy (5-10, 170) has three sacks among six tackles for loss.

The Keokuk offense is led by sophomore quarterback Brenton Hoard (5-10, 140) who has passed for 1,039 yards and 12 touchdowns and rushed for 263 yards and five touchdowns.

Malachai Douglas (5-10, 180) has a team-high 492 rushing yards and two touchdowns and also has nine tackles for loss.

Garcia leads four Keokuk players with at least 120 receiving yards while sophomore Drew Campbell (6-2, 150) has caught 12 passes for 199 yards and three touchdowns.

About the Spartans: Solon secured the Class 3A, District title for the second consecutive season last week with a 51-7 win over Grinnell that pushed the Spartans’ winning streak to five.

The Spartans will now look to wrap up a second consecutive unbeaten district season.

Solon has outscored district opponents by a total of 176-32 this season and owns a scoring advantage of 430-83 in district games dating back to last season.

The Timmons-led Solon offense is averaging 345.5 total yards and 36.5 points per game this season putting up 239 rushing yards and 106.5 passing yards per contest.

Timmons has passed for 804 yards and six touchdowns and rushed for 509 yards and 14 touchdowns.

Junior Brett White has rushed for a team-high 779 yards and 10 touchdowns while averaging 9.2 yards per carry.

Senior Oaken Foster has been the top target for Timmons with 25 receptions for 258 yards and three touchdowns.

Class 1A Opening Round Playoffs

Regina (5-3) at Class 1A No. 7 Pella Christian (7-1)

Where: Pella Christian High School, 7 p.m.

Last season: Did not play

Player to watch: Pella Christian senior quarterback Isaac Kacmarynski (6-2, 205) has completed 63 percent of his passes while throwing for 742 yards and eight touchdowns and has rushed for 873 yards and 15 touchdowns.

Key stat: Pella Christian ranks second in Class 1A with 41 rushing touchdowns in eight games this season and ranks third in rushing yards per game with 310.

About the Eagles: Pella Christian went 8-2 and reached the 1A second round last season and has followed a similar path back to the playoff this season.

For the second consecutive season the Eagles went 7-1 during the regular season with the lone loss a one-score setback to Sigourney-Keota.

Last season Pella Christian lost 20-13 to Sigourney-Keota for its only regular season blemish before falling to Dike-New Hartford in the second round of the 1A playoffs.

This year the lone loss for the Eagles is a 15-13 at Sigourney-Keota in week five.

Pella Christian has relied on a stingy defense and strong running game during the regular season.

The Eagles are holding opponents to 9.3 points, 220 total yards and just 108 rushing yards per game.

Pella Christian has allowed more than 14 points in a game just one time, giving up 28 in the season opener to Des Moines Christian.

Kacmarynski leads the Eagles on both sides of the ball making a team-high 48.5 tackles.

Junior Trevor Veenstra (6-4, 240) has a team-high 15.5 tackles for loss and four sacks.

Offensively Kacmarynski leads an Eagle attack that is putting up 310 rushing yards per game.

Five players have rushed for at least 200 yards led by junior Benny Schirz (6-3, 195) with 887 yards and 15 touchdowns.

Veenstra is the top receiving threat with 15 receptions for 392 yards and seven touchdowns.

About the Regals: Perennial 1A power Regina is seeking an extended playoff run after falling to MFL Mar-Mac in the second-round last season.

The Regals bounced back from a 23-0 loss to top-ranked West Branch in week seven with a 26-12 road win at playoff qualifier Wilton in the regular season finale.

Regina will turn to its defense as it attempts to slow a powerful Pella Christian running game.

The Regals are holding teams to 134 rushing yards per game this season and are allowing just 14.6 points and 220 total yards per game.

Senior linebacker Ronan Poynton has a team-high 51.5 tackles to lead Regina while junior Jack Clark has 41 tackles with five for loss and three sacks.

Regina will look to get an offense that is scoring 25.5 points per game and putting up 251 total yards per game rolling in the postseason.

Junior quarterback Gentry Dumont has passed for 865 yards and 12 touchdowns and rushed for a touchdown.

Senior Levi Danie is the top rusher for Regina with 514 yards and four touchdowns and junior Jackson Naeve is the top receiving option for the Regals with 27 receptions for 477 yards and eight touchdowns.

South Hardin (3-5) at Class 1A No. 1 West Branch (8-0)

Where: The Little Rose Bowl, 7 p.m.

Last season: Did not play

Player to watch: South Hardin senior quarterback Josh Vander Wilt (6-0, 170) has completed 59 percent of his passes while throwing for 1,329 yards and 12 touchdowns and has rushed for 326 yards and six touchdowns.

Key stat: West Branch is holding opponents to 138 total yards per game and hasn’t given up more than 200 yards of total offense since allowing 204 in a week-two win at Waterloo Columbus.

About the Tigers: South Hardin has returned to the playoffs with a 3-5 record for the second consecutive season after falling in the opening round a year ago 42-6 to Dyersville Beckman.

The Tigers opened the season 1-4 after consecutive losses to ninth-ranked Dike-New Hartford (33-8) and sixth-ranked Aplington-Parkersburg (28-12) but won two of three to close out the regular season.

South Hardin is allowing 27.9 points and 300 yards of total offense per game and is giving up 168 rushing yards per contest.

Junior Logan Faris (5-9, 170) leads South Hardin with 49 tackles including 6.5 for loss and Traven Wheeler and Kayne Harrell (5-8, 155) each have three interceptions.

The Tiger offense led by Vander Wilt is averaging 350 total yards and 24.2 points per game.

Harrell has rushed for a team-high 562 yards and five touchdowns while Jaxson Drury (6-0, 210) has added 242 yards and two touchdowns.

Senior Ryan Walters (5-10, 170) has been the top target for Vander Wilt and one of the most productive pass catchers in Class 1A with 55 receptions for 716 yards and eight touchdowns.

About the Bears: West Branch completed an unbeaten regular season with a 54-7 win at Wilton last Friday and enters the postseason top-ranked and among the most impressive teams in the state through eight weeks.

The Bears have outscored opponents 401-66 this season, have three shutouts and are outgaining teams by an average of more than 200 yards per game.

West Branch has been especially impressive defensively holding teams to 138 total yards and 8.3 points per game while allowing just 3.3 yards per play.

The Bears are limiting opponents to 62 rushing yards per game and just 2.3 yards per carry.

The West Branch offense is led by senior quarterback Tye Hughes who is completing 71 percent of his passes while throwing for 1,079 yards and 11 touchdowns with just two interceptions.

Senior Andy Henson has rushed for 1,079 yards and 24 touchdowns and also has a team-high 44.5 tackles including 8.5 for loss.

Kinnick and Carver Boelk have been the top receiving options for the Bears.

Carver Boelk has 18 receptions for 377 yards and five touchdowns and Kinnick Boelk has 20 receptions for 154 yards and two touchdowns.

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