Rummells To Receive MVC Leadership & Service Award

ST. LOUIS, Mo. – Senior offensive lineman Jack Rummells has been awarded the Missouri Valley Conference Leadership & Service Award, it was announced today by Commissioner Doug Elgin. 

Rummells is one of 10 student-athletes from league members that have been awarded the distinction for the fall season. Rummells is the fourth Panthers to be named to the list, joining David Johnson (2013), Ben Boothby (2011) and Ben Schmidt (2008) on the notable list. 

To be eligible for the award, the student-athlete must be in good academic standing, must demonstrate good citizenship through good sportsmanship and significant community service, and must participate in a sport during the season of recognition. 

Rummells has been a mainstay on the UNI offensive line, starting 37 games for the Panthers. He was named to the preseason All-MVFC team and has played and started in all eight games this season at left tackle, helping the UNI rushing corps gain 1,317 yards on the ground. He is also part of the offense that currently leads all FCS teams in redzone offense. 

He started in all 12 games for UNI during the 2013 season, helping the offensive line to only allowing 16 sacks during the season, ranking them fifth in the MVFC in tackles for loss allowed. He was named to the All-MVFC First-Team for his efforts. 

Off the field, Rummells has been an active member in the community and the classroom. He was named to the MVC Scholar-Athlete honorable mention team in 2012 and 2013 and was awarded the MVC Commissioner’s Academic Excellence Award in 2012, 2013 and 2014. 

Rummells is a three-time MVFC Honor Roll honoree and has been a part of the Dean’s List and Athletics Director’s Honor Roll while at UNI. 

The West Branch, Iowa native volunteers with the Just Read! program along with being a Panther Reading Program volunteer. He also works adamantly with the Special Olympics. The senior has also volunteered with the Lions Club, UNI Dance Marathon, Rally in the Valley, Junior Panther Day and has been a mentor to troubled youth in the Cedar Valley. 

Rummells and the Panthers will return to action this Saturday as they host the No. 6 ranked Illinois State Redbirds. The game is set to kick off at 4 p.m. inside the UNI-Dome.

TC Sports October 29th Front Page

The front page of the Tipton Conservative Sports pages this week.  On newsstands now.

2015 Sectional and District Wrestling Assignments Announced

North Cedar To Host Sectional Meet, Wilton Gets Districts

Tipton's Jordan Challis is shown here wrestling last spring at the Marion district meet.  The Tigers were in class 2A last year, but will be back in class 1A for the upcoming wrestling season.  Photo by Ryan Stonebraker, Tipton Conservative.

By Ryan Stonebraker
Sports Editor, Tipton Conservative

CLARENCE — The North Cedar Knight wrestling program will host a class 1A wrestling sectional next February in what could be a real treat to the Northern Cedar County school district.  The North Cedar Sectional was announced this afternoon with its sister district from English Valleys.  The two sectionals will feed wrestlers to the Wilton district meet for spots at the 2015 state wrestling tournament.
Below are the assignments for the sectional and district meets.

2015:
Sectional Tournaments are scheduled for Saturday, February 7.
District Tournaments are scheduled for Saturday, February 14.
Admission to all tournaments is $6 for all spectators.

Sectional 15 Meet — At English Valleys (North English)
Teams: English Valleys, Highland, Lone Tree, New London, Pekin, WACO, Wapello, Wilton

Sectional 16 Meet — At North Cedar
Teams: Bellevue, Durant, Lisbon, Midland, North Cedar, Iowa City Regina, Tipton, West Branch

District 8 Meet — At Wilton
1st and 2nd place winners in each weight class from these two sectionals will advance to the district tournament at Wilton.

North Cedar Football Preview Podcast

North Cedar's Noah Sander (77) and the North Cedar Knights prepare for the class 1A playoffs this week.  The Knights host Hudson on Wednesday, October 29 in the first round.  Photo by Ryan Stonebraker, Tipton Conservative Sports Editor.

 The North Cedar Knights are in the playoffs for the third time in four seasons after finished second in class 1A district 5.  The Knights (8-1) will play Hudson (6-3) Wednesday, October 29 in Stanwood at 7 p.m.
 This podcast previews that game.


North Cedar Football Preview Podcast

Playoff Picture Becoming Clearer

Cameron Ihrig makes a play during the Tigers 10-0 loss at home last Friday to Monticello.  Also in the photo are Koby Johnston (34) and Caleb Wagner (76).  Tipton fell to 4-4 overall and 2-3 in district 4 in class 2A.  The Tigers still can make the playoffs this year, but, it starts by beating Mt. Vernon Friday and then getting some help.  Photo by Ryan Stonebraker, Sports Editor - Tipton Conservative.

TIPTON — The 2014 playoffs are just around the corner for area high school football teams.  This Friday is week 9 of the football season and the last regular season football game.  Here is a look at district football standings for the four high schools that I cover here at the Conservative:

Class 2A District 4

District Overall PF PA

Anamosa 5-0 7-1 234 106

Cascade 5-0 7-1 311 145

Mt. Vernon 3-2 4-4 185 173

Monticello 2-3 3-5 100 182

Tipton 2-3 4-4 183 206

Camanche 1-5 1-7 174 348

Northeast GL 0-5 1-7 130 266

Friday, October 17

Monticello 10, Tipton 0

Cascade 48, Mt. Vernon 35

Anamosa 31, Union 28

Camanche 42, NE Goose Lake 35 (OT)

Friday, October 24

Tipton at Mt. Vernon

Anamosa at Cascade

Durant at Camanche

NE Goose Lake at Monticello

In class 2A district four, the district championship will be decided this week as co-leaders and 5-0 district teams as Anamosa travels to #8 Cascade. The #3 and #4 spots haven't totally been decided. Mt. Vernon has the inside track having beaten Monticello and having a 3-2 district record. Three teams are still in the hunt for the final two spots in Tipton, Monticello and Mt. Vernon. Here is what can happen:

Mt. Vernon: 1. Win, and they are the #3 seed. 2. Lose, and they are at worst are tied with Tipton at 3-3 in district play. If Monticello wins, there would be a 3-way tie at 3-3 with the three teams. From there, it gets dicey. From what I see, this is just my thinking and how I interpret the tiebreakers, is that Tipton would be out and Monticello and Mt. Vernon would be in at that point. BUT, I also don't understand the point systems and things, so....

Monticello: 1. Win and they are in as the #4 seed regardless of what the Tipton-Mt. Vernon outcome is. The Panthers would likely have enough tiebreakers over Tipton to get the #4 spot.

Tipton: The Tigers can get as high as the #3 seed or be left out altogether. Best Case = Tigers win and Monticello loses and the Tigers get the #3 seed and Mt. Vernon gets the #4 seed. Worst Case = Tipton loses, Monticello wins and the Tigers are out of the playoffs. Worst Case 2 = Tipton wins and Monticello wins and the Tigers lose the tiebreakers.

Class 1A District 5

      District    Overall   PF   PA

West Branch    5-0     8-0   367 51

North Cedar   4-1     7-1   300 153

Bellevue      3-2     6-2   260 123

Alburnett     3-2     5-3   228 185

Wilton     2-3     3-5   106 275

Durant    1-5     2-6   123 208

Wapello     0-5     1-7   76 245

Friday October 17

North Cedar 41, Wapello 6

West Branch 56, Wilton 0

Bellevue 27, Durant 19

Alburnett 38, Louisa-Muscatine 6

Friday October 24

Wilton at North Cedar

Durant at Camanche

Alburnett at West Branch

Wapello at Bellevue

In class 1A, West Branch has clinched the District 5 title. The Bears are ranked #4 in class 1A. North Cedar has clinched the Runner-Up spot in district 5. The Knights are ranked #8 in class 1A.

The #3 and #4 spots are up in the air with Bellevue holding a slight edge, having beaten Alburnett 50-6 earlier this season.

Both the Comets and Pirates are 3-2 in district 5. Alburnett travels to West Branch while Bellevue hosts Wapello. The Comets have to win to secure the #3 spot. The only way Bellevue is not the #3 seed is if they lose and Alburnett somehow upsets the Bears in West Branch. I don't see that happening as West Branch has a very good football team and are anxious to end the regular season 9-0.

Playoff pairings will come out late Friday night (around midnight) or even early Saturday morning. The playoff schedule is as follows:

Wednesday, October 29 - First Round Games for All Classes - Games start at 7 p.m.

Monday, November 3 - Second round Games for All Classes - Games start at 7 p.m.

Quarterfinal Round - Friday, November 7 for All Classes - Games start at 7 p.m.

SEMIFINAL ROUND =

Class 1A and 2A = Saturday, November 15th

Class 1A - 10:06 - Game 1; 1:06 - Game 2

Class 2A - 4:06 - Game 1; 7:06 - Game 2

CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND =

Class 1A = Friday, November 21st - 11:06 AM

Class 2A - Friday November 21st - 2:06 PM

TC Sports October 22nd

TC Sports Page 11 of this week's Tipton Conservative Newspaper - On sale now.

Coaches Corner Podcast - Week 7

This Week's Podcast
This week I caught up with the four football head football coaches from the teams that I cover.

https://soundcloud.com/user317555316/week-7-podcast

Royals Punch Ticket To World Series!

For the first time since 1985, the Kansas City Royals are headed to the World Series.  I had just turned 9 that fall!  29 years ago....lol.  Here is a photo of the front page of the Kansas City Star today, marking this historical moment.

River Valley Conference Volleyball Tournament - Championship Bracket Set

Championship Thursday Bracket Set For RVC Volleyball

MONTICELLO — The second annual River Valley Conference volleyball tournament has set its bracket for Championship Thursday.  The eight teams that earned spots in the bracket after either winning or placing second at four 'pools' are seeded as follows:

1. West Branch

2. North Cedar

3. West Liberty

4. Durant

5. Cascade

6. Monticello

7. Tipton 

8. Wilton 

There will be two nets and the first round will the start time will be 5:00 p.m. at West Branch.  Matches 1 (West Branch-Wilton) and 4 (North Cedar-Tipton) will begin at 5.  Matches 2 (Durant-Cascade) and 3 (West Liberty-Monticello) will begin at 6.  The bracket for the tournament is below: 

The 2014 RVC Conference volleyball tournament is down to the Final 8.  The single elimination tournament starts at 5:00 p.m. Thursday at West Branch.

TC Sports October 15th - Page 1

TC Sports - October 15th - PAGE 1

The front page of the Tipton Conservative Sports section this week for October 15th.

Johnson Nominated for KCRG TV9 Athlete Of The Week

North Cedar senior quarterback Jayden Johnson was nominated for KCRG's Athlete Of The Week this week after his big game against Durant last week.
Johnson Nominated For KCRG Athlete Of The Week

STANWOOD — North Cedar senior quarterback Jayden Johnson has been nominated as one of three candidates for KCRG-TV 9's Athlete Of The Week.  Johnson is joined by Christian Moore (North Linn football) and Aaron Bleil (Iowa City West football).

Johnson was nominated after throwing for 228 yards, 3 TD's on 12-of-24 attempts.  He also rushed for 105 yards on nine carries and scored 2 rushing touchdowns against Durant last week.

For the season, Johnson leads class 1A schools in passing yards (1,560 yards), completions (111) and touchdowns (18).  He also has 501 rushing yards with a 6.8-yard average and 4 rushing touchdowns.

His passing yard total is 10th best in the entire state for all classes.  Johnson is 8th in the entire state in total offense (rushing and passing) and tops in class 1A with 2,061 yards of total offense.

The 6-1 Knights are ranked 9th in class 1A and are 4-1 in class 1A district 5.  The Knights play at Wapello Friday before returning home next week to end the regular season against Wilton.

Fans can vote for Johnson by following the link below.  Click on the 'vote' button and make your selection:

http://www.kcrg.com/sports/athleteoftheweek

Standings After Week 7

Standings For Class 1A District 5 and Class 2A District 4

Tipton's Mitch Chapman (72), blocks a Camanche defensive lineman Friday night during the Tigers 41-35 overtime win at Camanche.  The Tigers improved to 4-3 and 2-2 in class 2A district 4.  The Tigers have a key game Friday when they host Monticello in a game with playoff implications.  Photo by Ryan Stonebraker.

A Look At The Playoffs/Standings

TIPTON — Week 7 is in the books and there are only two weeks left in the regular season for high school football.  Here is a look at the standings in each district that I cover:

Class 2A District 4

                              District    Overall     PF    PA

Anamosa                   5-0        6-1        203    78

Cascade                    5-0        6-1        263    110

Mt. Vernon                 3-1        4-3        150    123

Tipton                         2-2        4-3        183    196

Monticello                  1-3        2-5        90    182

NE Goose Lake         0-4        1-6        95    224

Camanche                 0-5        0-7        132    313

Friday, October 10

Tipton 41, Camanche 35 (OT)

Bellevue 42, NE Goose Lake 14

Cascade 34, Monticello 0

Anamosa 23, Mt. Vernon 16

Friday, October 17

Monticello at Tipton

Mt. Vernon at Cascade

Union at Anamosa

Camanche at NE Goose Lake

**Tipton can clinch a spot in the playoffs with a win at home next Friday, October, 17 against Monticello.  Anamosa plays Cascade in week 9 for the district 4 title provided that Cascade beats Mt. Vernon this week.  Monticello still is in the hunt, if they beat Tipton and NE Goose Lake in week 9, they would get the 4th playoff spot and Tipton would be out.  

Class 1A District 5

                          District    Overall     PF        PA

West Branch        4-0        7-0            311    51

North Cedar         4-1        6-1            259    147

Alburnett              3-2        4-3            190    179

Wilton                   2-2        3-4            106    219

Bellevue               2-2        5-2            232    104

Durant                  1-4        2-5            104    181

Wapello                0-5        1-6            70    204

Friday October 10

North Cedar 47, Durant 8

Alburnett 50, Wilton 14

West Branch 42, Wapello 0

Bellevue 42, NE Goose Lake 14

Friday October 17

Bellvue at Durant

North Cedar at Wapello

West Branch at Wilton

Louisa-Muscatine at Alburnett

**West Branch clinched a playoff spot with a win over Wapello Friday night.  North Cedar is all but in and Wilton still clings to hopes.  The Beavers need to hope that Durant can beat Bellevue this week and then they have to beat either North Cedar or West Branch.