Mont Football TD Trifecta as Central Overwhelms Simpson

Logan Mont (junior, Aurora, Ill., West Aurora HS) found the end zone as a receiver, rusher and passer as the Central College football team racked up a season-high 680 yards to outscore Simpson College 49-17 Saturday.

Four Dutch players—and nearly a fifth—threw TD passes and 13 had receptions. They combined to complete 30 of 46 passes for 403 yards with one interception and six touchdowns. Central (5-2 overall, 3-2 American Rivers) also picked up 277 rushing yards.

Mont had eight receptions for 60 yards, including a 15-yard TD grab from Cooper Downs (sophomore, Ames) as the Dutch scored touchdowns on six of their first seven possessions. Mont also had an 8-yard second-quarter touchdown run, then pulled a surprise by taking a pitch from Keegan Glover (freshman, Benton, Ill.) and tossing a 10-yard pass to Ryan Neu (junior, West Des Moines, Valley HS) in the end zone with 14 seconds left in the half for a 28-10 lead.

The Dutch used four quarterbacks as Brady Ketchum (sophomore, Mount Vernon) completed 9-of-14 for 131 yards and two scores. Downs was 9-of-13 for 117 yards with two TDs and Glover was 5-of-7 for 72 yards with a TD. Freshman Hunter Hoffman (Pecatonica, Ill.) nearly became the fifth to throw a TD pass but his fourth-quarter 21-yard scoring pass to Brendan Bogaard (sophomore, Phoenix, Ariz., Northwest Christian HS) was called back due to a penalty. Hoffman completed 6 of 11 passes for 73 yards. The Dutch yielded no sacks on the day.

Glover gained 66 yards on seven carries, running back Jason Hopp (5th-year, Earlham) had 60 yards on eight carries and running back Isaiah Walk (senior, Buffalo Center, North Iowa HS) had 52 yards on eight attempts.

Simpson (0-7 overall, 0-5 conference) was able to sustain some drives and had 365 yards total offense. Simpson completed 20 of 39 passes for 214 yards and two touchdowns while rushing 50 times for 184 yards. Central held a 34-25 edge in first downs. Linebacker Nathan Rahn (senior, Chadwick, Ill., Milledgeville HS) had 13 tackles including nine solos.

Linebacker Tate Hagen (junior, Britt, West Hancock HS) had nine stops with a tackle for loss, a forced fumble and a pass breakup. Freshman cornerback Ben DeMeulenaere (Belle Plaine), in his first collegiate start, also had nine stops.  Defensive end David Bakol (senior, Houston, Texas, Alief Elsik HS) had 1.5 sacks.

Two of Central’s final three games of the season are on the road, including next Saturday’s 1 p.m. contest at Cedar Rapids with Coe College. The Kohawks are 5-2 overall and 4-1 in conference play after a 27-17 victory at Loras College Saturday.

Dutch Draw with Norse Women on Soccer Pitch

After giving Luther College an early 1-0 lead with an own goal, the Central College women’s soccer team rallied for a 1-1 draw Saturday afternoon.

The Norse (6-7-4, 2-3-2 American Rivers Conference) held a 1-0 lead after a Central (8-5-3, 2-3-2 conference) player accidentally hit the ball in during a Norse corner kick. Forward Grace Coates (sophomore, Marion) leveled the match 10 minutes later after streaking down the left flank and taking an assist from midfielder Paige Cahill (junior, Castle Rock, Colo., Castle View HS). It was the ninth goal of the season for Coates and the ninth assist for Cahill. It was the only shot on goal for the Dutch but it was enough for a point in the conference standings.

It was also Senior Day for the Dutch as they recognized their four seniors: Rachel Daniels (midfielder, Geneseo, Ill.), Sheila Horstmann (goalkeeper, West Des Moines, Valley HS), Alyssa Knuth (defender, Benton Harbor, Mich., St. Joseph HS) and Bridget Lynch (midfielder, Northglenn, Colo., Jefferson Academy).

Central closes out their regular season Tuesday at home against Nebraska Wesleyan University at 2:30 p.m. With a win, the Dutch would qualify for the league’s postseason tournament. Another draw may also be enough to qualify.

Two Second-Half Goals Spoil Central Men’s Soccer Senior Day

A 1-1 draw at halftime was broken by a pair of Luther College goals in the second half to send the Central College men’s soccer team to a 3-1 loss Saturday afternoon. 

The Dutch (3-10-2, 2-4-1 American Rivers Conference) went down on a goal in the seventh minute by Luther (9-3-5, 3-0-4 conference). Coleman Manuel (senior, midfielder, Erie, Colo.) found an equalizer in the 34th minute that brought the life back to the Dutch sideline. Manuel’s second goal of the year was aided by a Gabe Wilson (junior, midfielder, Altoona, Southeast Polk HS) assist.

The Norse scored 42 seconds into the second half and then widened the margin a little over three minutes later. Central was bolstered by the return of several players who had missed time to injury. Midfielders Jake Dzarnowski (fifth year, Wheaton, Ill., North HS) and Kale Schulte (freshman, Vinton, Vinton-Shellsburg HS) returned after missing five and three matches, respectively. Lucas Bartachek (sophomore, midfielder, Waukee) played 13 minutes at Buena Vista Wednesday but had missed the previous seven games. Kosuke Takahashi (freshman, defender, Kisarazu City, Japan, Gyosei International School) also returned after a one-game absence.

Central honored the six graduating seniors before the contest during a Senior Day ceremony: Brandon Banyas (defender, Altoona, Southeast Polk HS), Nathan Casas (forward, Cottage Grove, Minn., East Ridge HS), Michael Handel (defender, Libertyville, Ill., Carmel Catholic HS), Noah Leonard (defender, Spring Hill, Kan.), Micah Poole (goalkeeper, Bettendorf) and Matthew West (forward, Pleasant Hill, Southeast Polk HS).

Central wraps up its regular season schedule by hosting Nebraska Wesleyan University at noon on Tuesday.

Loras Stops Central Volleyball Team

Playing its second American Rivers Conference match in as many days, the Central College volleyball team was swept at Loras College Saturday afternoon.

The Dutch (7-14, 1-6 conference) were taken down 25-20, 25-23, 25-20 by the Duhawks (8-17, 2-6 conference). As a team, Central had just 35 kills, led by Natalie Gaszynski (senior, outside hitter, Huntley, Ill.) and Gracie Daniels (sophomore, outside hitter, Broken Arrow, Okla.) with eight kills each. Ashli Harn (freshman, defensive specialist, Waverly, Waverly-Shell Rock HS) had two of Central’s three service aces. The Dutch had four blocks as a team, two of which were shared by Elyse Johnson (junior, middle hitter, Kirksville, Mo.). Avery Rexroat (freshman, setter, Macomb, Ill.) had a double-double with 13 assists and 10 digs. Ivett Flores (freshman, libero, Windsor, Colo.) led the team with 17 digs and Amanda Smith (senior, setter, Tipton) led the team with 20 assists.

The Dutch host Simpson College Wednesday in its conference finale at 6 p.m. on Wednesday.