Central Basketball Teams Split ARC Doubleheader at Wartburg Saturday
Beginning their second run through American Rivers Conference play Saturday, the Central College basketball teams split a doubleheader at Wartburg College that was heard live on 92.1 KRLS. A career high 21 points from Karson Wehde propelled the Dutch men to a 77-63 victory over the Knights, while a slow start for the Central women led to a 70-58 loss to a nationally ranked Wartburg squad.
After a back and forth first half of the men’s game where the Dutch (11-7, 6-3 ARC) led 40-39 at halftime, Central outscored the Knights 37-24 in the second half. Wehde shot 8-11 from the field and 5-6 from three-point range to set his new career best point total, and added five rebounds and three assists. The sophomore also drew the defensive assignment against Marshun Williams, the second leading scorer in the conference at 21.8 points per game, and limited him to just eight points while collecting two steals. Joshua Van Gorp scored 16 points on 7-9 shooting while also adding seven rebounds, four assists, and a block. Kaleb Brand added 10 points, on 5-5 shooting, while also collecting six assists and three rebounds. As a team, Central shot 56.6% from the field, 47.8% from three, and dished out 24 assists. On defense, Central held Wartburg to 41% from the field and 26.9% from three, including limiting the Knights to just 16% from three in the second half.
In the opening game of the doubleheader, the Dutch women (11-7, 4-4 ARC) fell behind 14-6 at the end of the first quarter, but only trailed 55-52 the other three quarters against 12th-ranked Wartburg. Emily Naughton led the team with 14 points on 5-11 shooting while also dishing out four assists. The Dutch had another good outing from their bench, combining for 25 points, and was led by Kaitlyn Mumm who scored 12 points on 3-4 shooting from three-point range. Samantha Scott added eight points off the bench, while also collecting three steals. CeCe Moore added eight points, one block and two steals, and Abby Johnson contributed six points, three steals, and six rebounds. Offensively, Central shot 34% from the field and 42.1% from three as a team. Wartburg shot 41.8% from the field but only 23.8% from three, and the Dutch combined for 14 steals against the veteran-led Knights squad.
The Central basketball teams return to P.H. Kuyper Gymnasium on Wednesday, hosting Simpson in a doubleheader that can be heard live on 92.1 KRLS.
Central Men’s Wrestling Climbs in League Standings, Women Take 5th at Inaugural Conference Championships
The Central College men’s wrestling team went 2-1 at the American Rivers Conference duals at home Saturday afternoon, while the Dutch women’s squad took fifth place at the inaugural American Rivers Conference Championships in Dubuque.
The 18th-ranked Central men opened the ARC Duals with a 56-0 win over Buena Vista and followed it up with a 25-12 win over Dubuque, but fell to #2 Wartburg 35-6 to end the day. In the match against Dubuque, Central led 14-9 entering the 174-pound match against No. 14 Zane Pannell, and unranked Jason Hermann secured a 4-3 upset to increase the Dutch lead to 17-9. Sam West at 184 pounds and Austin Roos at 197 pounds put the match out of reach with back-to-back wins, including a technical fall by Roos. Carter West put Central on the board against Dubuque with a second-period fall at 133 pounds, while Pierre Baldwin followed with an 8-2 decision at 141 pounds. Carter Martinson won by technical fall 20-4 at 165 pounds as well. Against Buena Vista, Central picked up 24 points via forfeit as the Beavers had four open weights. The Dutch also registered four falls for 24 more points. Baldwin, Carson Martinson, Colby Tool and Sam West registered the pins. Dominick Marre started the dual with an 8-6 decision at 125 pounds and Carter West had a 21-4 technical fall. Baldwin and Carson Martinson bagged wins against Wartburg, with Baldwin picking up a 9-5 decision over #15 Tommy Thongseng while Martinson won 8-5 over Carter Proffitt.
For the Central women, Esther Belzer started the day with a fall at 4 minutes and 37 seconds against Shania Graybill of Buena Vista at 138 pounds. She lost a narrow 10-8 decision in her next match and finished in fourth place with a 1-3 record. Madilyn Rowson also started her day with a quick win by fall in the 145-pound bracket in 1:26 over AvaBlue McDermott of Loras. Rowson finished with a 1-3 mark and in fourth place. At 207 pounds, Selena Snell also finished in fourth place with a 1-3 record, after winning her second match with a 5-2 decision over Savannah Sistad of Simpson.
The Central men are off for nearly two weeks before travelling to Decorah for a dual with Luther College on February 6th, while the Dutch women travel to East Moline, Illinois for the Quad Cities Division III Invitational hosted by Augustana College on Saturday, February 8th and Sunday, February 9th.