Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

Liberty High head coach Mitch Wieland spent the first half of the season learning how to best focus his game plan to the Lightning’s current players.

Wieland knew there was talent on the roster but the key for the first-year head coach was finding the best way to maximize that talent.

There was certainly some tinkering for Wieland during a 2-2 start to the season.

“We knew going in we had some dudes and I think the hardest part was figuring out how to feed all those cats,” Wieland said. “Now that I think we’ve figured out our personnel we are really able to hone in on what they do best.”

One of the pivotal players Wieland was focused on finding the best spot for was senior two-way standout Adrian Clerry.

A key contributor on the Liberty High 5A runner-up team last season Clerry flashed his impressive skillset on both sides of the ball in a 51-17 win over West High on Friday.

Clerry caught three passes for 59 yards and had 13-yard touchdown catch and run as Liberty High rolled up season-highs of 51 points and 478 total yards.

On defense Clerry had three solo tackles and interception two passes, returning one 72 yards for a touchdown.

“He’s just kind of a Swiss Army knife,” Wieland said of Clerry. “It makes me so happy that a kid like him that has put in so much time and effort gets to have an awesome game in front of so many of his peers. He’s such a great kid and I’m so proud of him.”

Clerry ended the first West High drive of the game with a leaping interception at the Liberty High four yard line.

“They were having a pretty good drive,” Clerry said. “I just went up and had to go get it.”

With under a minute to play in the first half Clerry grabbed a tipped pass and weaved through potential tacklers on a 72-yard interception return for a score that gave the Lightning a 41-7 halftime lead.

“I saw the guy coming up the seam, I was trying to cut him off a little bit and I saw it go right through his hands and I had to go get it,” Clerry said. “I just raced to the end zone.”

On the season Clerry has 21 receptions for 262 yards and three touchdowns and has nine tackles and two interceptions.

News and Notes

Little Hawks Bounce Back: Following a 26-13 home loss to Cedar Falls in week four City High got the bounce back it needed on Friday in the second of three road trips to the Des Moines area in a span of four weeks.

City High (2-3) outscored Norwalk 21-0 in the second half on its way to a 28-10 win over the Warriors.

The Little Hawks limited Norwalk to 190 total yards and held the Warriors without an offensive touchdown while snapping a two-game losing streak.

Undefeated Update: There are 36 remaining unbeaten teams across the state and two Your Prep Sports area teams are among those teams without a loss.

Regina (5-0) and Solon (5-0) are both unbeaten through five weeks.

Solon is one of only five remaining undefeated teams in Class 3A while Regina is one of six unbeaten teams in Class 1A.

Class 5A has two unbeaten teams, Class 4A has three unbeaten teams and Class 2A has five teams without a loss.

Nearly half of the unbeaten teams are in Class A (7) and 8-player (8).

Players of the Week

Offensive player of the week: Liberty High senior quarterback Emerson Berner had the best game of his career in a 51-17 win over West High. Berner completed 19-of-24 passes for 326 yards and four touchdowns and also rushed for 14 yards as Liberty High rolled up season-highs of 51 points and 478 total yards.

Defensive player of the week: City High junior defensive lineman Lawrence Jones had a big game in a 28-10 win over Norwalk in which the Little Hawk defense held the Warriors to 190 total yards and without an offensive touchdown. Jones had 5.5 tackles, including four solo stops, with three tackles for loss and two sacks.

Special teams player of the week: Clear Creek Amana senior place kicker Aiden Gross had a perfect night while accounting for 11 points in a 41-28 win over Grinnell. Gross made all five of his PAT attempts and connected on two field goals, including a 40 yarder in the win. Gross also had a pair of touchbacks on eight kick offs.

Helmet stickers

Offense: Liberty High senior Pryor Reiners had 10 receptions for 150 yards and two touchdowns in a 51-17 win over West High.

Offense: City High senior running back Savion Miller rushed for 75 yards and two touchdowns, caught three passes for 24 yards and returned a kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown.

Offense: Regina junior running back Gabe Hegelheimer rushed for 104 yards and a touchdown on five carries, caught a 61-yard touchdown pass and made all five of his PAT attempts in a 48-7 win over Durant.

Offense: West Branch senior Keaton Gates rushed for 106 yards and two touchdowns on 17 carries, had a catch for five yards and had 7.5 tackles with five solo stops in a 42-14 loss to Alburnett.

Offense: Clear Creek Amana senior running back Ian Kelley rushed for 88 yards and three touchdowns, had a 27 yard reception and added 2.5 tackles in a 41-28 win over Grinnell.

Defense: West High junior linebacker Khylin Brink had 6.5 tackles including five solo stops and 2.5 tackles for loss in a 51-17 loss to Liberty High.

Defense: Regina senior linebacker Tate Wallace had 5.5 tackles, with 4.5 tackles for loss and three sacks in a 48-7 win over Durant.

Defense: Liberty High senior linebacker Alex Strunk had a career-high 15 tackles including 10 solo stops, two tackles for loss and a sack in a 51-17 win over West High.

Defense: Clear Creek Amana senior defensive back Brady Hilsman had 4.5 tackles, including two solos and added an interception in a 41-28 win over Grinnell.

Defense: Liberty High senior Jacob Karstens had two tackles including a tackle for loss and recovered two fumbles in a 51-17 win over West High.

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