Beavers Upset 2A No. 6 Bellevue

Wilton’s Linsey Ford, on ground with ball, snags a loose ball as Bellevue’s Giana Michels, left, and LIndsey Banowetz, right, close in.  Ford and the Beavers upset Class 2A No. 6 Bellevue at home last Tuesday, 38-36.  Photo by Ryan Stonebraker.

WILTON — The ninth straight win for the Wilton girl’s basketball team came in grand fashion last Tuesday at home. It was a battle of top-15 ranked Class 2A teams as No. 13 Wilton hosted No. 6 Bellevue. There, Wilton got a last-second basket from senior Aubrey Putman to send the Beavers to the 38-36 upset win.

With the game tied at 36, Wilton had the ball with 16.4 seconds left in the game. Wilton got the ball to Emily Lange, Wilton’s leading scorer, but Bellevue forced her to give the ball up. Lange passed to teammate Kortney Drake and with seconds ticking down, Drake was double-teamed, but before the Comets could get to her, Drake found a wide open Putman near the bucket. Putman made the lay-up as time expired and the buzzer sounded.

“That was a really big win for us,” Aubrey Putman said.

“We’d been doing so well this season so we didn’t want anything to stop, and we want to be at the top of the conference,” she said.

“They’re willing to step up and take big shots when we need them to,” Wilton head coach Jeremy Putman said.

“That’s going to help us down the stretch because teams are going to try and take away Emily and Kortney and our other three are going to have to step up and score, and I think they did that.”

Wilton improved to 15-1 overall with the win and 6-0 against RVC North Division foes. Wilton will travel to 2A No. 7 Cascade Saturday afternoon. The loss was the first of the season for Bellevue who began the season winning their first 15 games. The Beavers trailed only once in the ball game. The Beavers held their ninth opponent to under 40 points in a game this year with the win. The win was the first for Wilton in RVC play over Bellevue. The RVC started in 2013.

After trailing the whole game, Bellevue tied the game at 29 and took their first lead with just over three minutes left in the game, 31-29 on a Giana Michels steal and ensuing lay-up. Wilton responded on their next possession with a Kelsey Drake bucket to tie the game at 31. Wilton then scored the next four points from the free throw line to take a four-point, 35-31 lead with a minute left to play in the game. Bellevue came back, using a 5-1 run to tie the game at 36. A Michels three-pointer drew Bellevue within one, 35-34. Putman made 1-of-2 free throws to give Wilton a 36-34 lead before a bucket by Lindsey Banowetz tied the game at 36 setting up the final Putman heroics.

Emily Lange and Giana Michels led each of their teams in scoring in the first quarter with six points. Wilton led 12-8 after the first quarter. Wilton outscored Bellevue 11-7 in the second quarter to take an 8-point, 23-15 halftime lead. Wilton led 21-8 before the Comets closed the half of a 5-2 run. Bellevue cut the Beavers lead to four, 27-23 by the end of the third quarter.

Bellevue held Wilton’s leading scorer, and RVC South leading scorer, Emily Lange 12 points under her season average point total of 23.3. Lange still led Wilton with 11 points. Kelsey Drake had 8 points and 4 rebounds while Linsey Ford scored 6 and Kortney Drake 5. Kortney Drake led Wilton in rebounding with 10, assists with 3 and steals with 2.

Giana Michels led Bellevue with 18 points to go with 4 steals, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists. Lindsey Banowetz had 14 points and 6 rebounds. No other Comet scored more than three points. Wilton held the other three Comet starters, Kailey Miller, Alyssa Rubel, and Teresa Paulsen to a combined four points. Bellevue had no bench points in the game.

Wilton 38, Bellevue 36

Thursday, January 17

At Wilton

B 8 7 8 13 36

WIL 12 11 4 11 38


BELLEVUE (36): Kailey Miller (g) 0-1 0-0 0, Alyssa Rubel (g) 1-9 0-0 3, Lindsey Banowetz (g) 7-15 0-0 14, Teresa Paulsen (f) 0-0 1-2 1, Giana Michels (f) 6-15 5-7 18, Brianna Laughlin 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 14-40 6-9 36.

WILTON (38): Linsey Ford (g) 1-2 3-4 6, Kortney Drake (g) 1-8 3-4 5, Emily Lange (g) 4-15 1-2 11, Aubrey Putman (f) 3-8 2-4 8, Kelsey Drake (f) 4-11 0-1 8, Chloe Wells 0-0 0-0 0, Ella Caffrey 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 13-44 9-15 38.

3-Pt. FG: B 2-14 (Rubel 1-7, Michels 1-7), Wilton 3-16 (Lange 2-9, Ford 1-2, Kortney Drake 0-3, Putman 0-1, Kelsey Drake 0-1). Rebounds: Bellevue 20 (Banowetz 6, Paulsen 5, Michels 4), Wilton 29 (Kortney Drake 10, Putman 7, Ford 5, Kelsey Drake 4, Lange 3). Assists: Bellevue 11 (Rubel 3, Michels 3)), Wilton 7 (Kortney Drake 3, Ford 1, Lange 1, Putman 1, Kelsey Drake 1). Steals: Bellevue 6 (Michels 4, Banowetz 2), Wilton 5 (Kortney Drake 2, Ford 1, Caffrey 1, Kelsey Drake 1). Blocked Shots: B 9 (Paulsen 7), Wilton 3 (Ford 1, Lange 1, Putman 1). Total Fouls: Bellevue 5, Wilton 10. Fouled Out: none.

Comets Top Beavers In RVC Cross-Division Play

Wilton’s Brock Hartley (30), shoots a jumper during the Beavers RVC game with Bellevue last Tuesday.  Also pictured are Ashton Stoelk, far left, and Jared Townsend (42).  Photo by Ryan Stonebraker.

WILTON — The Bellevue Comets snapped an 11-game losing streak at Wilton last Tuesday in a 70-49 River Valley Conference cross-division game. The Comets have two RVC wins and they are both against RVC South teams. Bellevue beat West Liberty in early December.

Four Comets had double digits in the game led by Trevor Hager with 20 and Colby Sieverding off the bench with 19. Hager led in rebounds with 6.

Wilton led 14-11 after the first quarter, but a big 19-8 run by Bellevue in the second quarter gave the Comets an 8-point, 30-22 halftime lead. Bellevue outscored Wilton 17-11 in the third quarter and 34 to 27 in the second half to secure the 70-49 win over Wilton.

Bellevue shot over 50-percent from the field and 9-for-16 from the three-point line. Paxton Felderman scored 13 and Trey Daugherty scored 12 for the Comets.

Wilton was 20-for-41 from the field in the game. Ashton Stoelk led Wilton with 17 points and 6 rebounds and Jared Townsend added 15 points and 7 rebounds. Garrett Bohnsack scored 5 points and had 4 assists.

Bellevue 70, Wilton 49
Thursday, January 17
At Wilton

B 11 19 17 17 70
WIL 14 8 11 16 49

BELLEVUE (70): Trey Daugherty (g) 4-10 2-2 12, Paxton Felderman (g) 6-10 0-0 13, Riley Konrady (g) 0-1 0-0 0, Colby Sieverding (g) 7-9 0-0 19, Cole Heim 0-0 0-0 0, Trevor Hager (f) 8-13 4-6 20, Andrew Swartz 1-3 0-0 3, Jackson Wagner 1-3 1-2 3, Max Jackson 0-1 0-2 0, Liam Dunne 0-0 0-0 0, Ethan Klemme 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 27-50 7-12 70.

WILTON (49): Garrett Bohnsack (g) 2-2 0-0 5, Isaac Hunter (g) 1-3 0-0 3, Brock Hartley (f) 1-5 0-0 2, Jared Townsend (f) 6-14 2-2 15, Ashton Stoelk (f) 7-10 3-5 17, Mason Baker 0-0 0-0 0, AJ Bosten 0-0 0-0 0, Ronen Santiago 2-4 0-0 5, Chase Miller 1-3 0-0 2, Jackson Hull 0-0 0-0 0, Charles Martin 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 20-41 5-7 49.

3-Pt. FG: Bellevue 9-16 (Sieverding 5-6, Daughtery 2-5, Swartz 1-2, Felderman 1-3), Wilton 4-14 (Townsend 1-6, Santiago 1-3, Hunter 1-2, Bohnsack 1-1, Hartley 0-2). Rebounds: Bellevue 23 (Hager 6), Wilton 22 (Townsend 7, Stoelk 6, Hartley 3, Miller 2, Hunter 2, Santiago 1, Bohnsack 1). Assists: Bellevue 17 (Konrardy 5), Wilton 11 (Bohnsack 4, Townsend 3, Stoelk 1, Hartley 1, Hunter 1, Santiago 1). Steals: Bellevue 9 (Daugherty 4), Wilton 7 (Bohnsack 2, Stoelk 2, Townsend 1, Miller 1, Bosten 1). Blocked Shots: Bellevue 2 (Hager 2), Wilton 2 (Hunter 1, Hartley 1). Total Fouls: Bellevue 10, Wilton 10. Fouled Out: Bellevue none. Wilton none.

Beavers, Wildcats fall at West Liberty duals

WEST LIBERTY — The Wilton and Durant wrestling teams finished their RVC dual seasons last Thursday at West Liberty. There, Wilton won two of their three duals while Durant lost all three duals they were in.

Durant lost all three dual meets at the meet. Wilton beat Durant 48-17, West Liberty beat Durant 78-6 and Mid-Prairie beat Durant 48-12.

Against West Liberty Durant’s only win got was a pin by Ethan Gast at 113 over Sebastian Mata in 2:55. Against Mid-Prairie Durant’s wins came from two forfeit wins. Ethan Gast at 113 and Kenny Salemi at 138 were the winners of the matches.

For Wilton, Against West Liberty, the Beavers had five match wins. Gage Oien (113) and Coy Baker (195) won by fall, Kael Brisker won by major decision at 106 and Trey Sulzberger and Chantz Stevens each won matches by decision at 138 and 182 respectively. Against Mid-Prairie, Wilton won by three points. The Beavers got forfeit wins by Blake Conklin at 132 and Trey Sulzberger at 138 for 12 points in the final two matches to overcome a 36-27 deficit. Against Durant, Wilton won eight matches, six by forfeit to get the win.

West Liberty 53, Wilton 22
106: Kael Brisker (W) over Alex Beaver (WL) MD 14-5); 113: Gage Oien (W) over Sebastian Mata (WL) (Fall 1:55); 120: Sam Gingerich (WL) ver Dalton Snider (W) (TF 7-1 3:57); 126: Brian Collins (WL) over Blake Conklin (W) (Fall 1:46); 132: Talen Dengler (WL) over (W) (Fall 0:01); 138: Trey Sulzberger (W) over Isreal Gomez (WL) (Dec 8-5); 145: Will Esmoil (WL) won by fft.; 152: Coy Ruess (WL) won by fft.; 160: Austin Beaver (WL) over Zach Delever (W) (Fall 0:44); 170: AJ Lenz (WL) over Jacob Creamer (W) (Fall 4:00); 182: Chantz Stevens (W) over Thayne Lowman (WL) (Dec 7-4); 195: Coy Baker (W) over Felipe Molina (WL) (Fall 1:43); 220: Kobe Simon (WL) won by fft.; 285: Spencer Daufeldt (WL) over Braeden Vandervoort (W) (Fall 0:19).

Wilton 39, Mid-Prairie 36
145: OPEN; 152: Mason Hartley (MP) won by fft.; 160: Cael Garvey (MP) over Zach Delever (W) (Fall 1:16); 170: Cory Allen (MP) over Jacob Creamer (W) (Fall 2:50); 182: Colton Allen (MP) over Chantz Stevens (W) (Fall 3:26); 195: Coy Baker (W) over Josh Wallington (MP) (Fall 1:40); 220: Isaac Boucher (MP) won by fft.; 285: Gannon Callahan (MP) over Braeden Vandervoort (W) (Fall 1:33); 106: Kael Brisker (W) won by fft.; 113: Gage Oien (W) won by fft.; 120: Gaige Hendress (W) won by fft.; 126: Dalton Snider (W) over Dallas Miller (MP) (Dec 5-4); 132: Blake Conklin (W) won by fft.; 138: Trey Sulzberger (W) won by fft.

Wilton 48, Durant 17
152: OPEN; 160: Cameron Ruggiero (D) over Zach Delever (W) (TF 15-0 2:04); 170: Jacob Creamer (W) won by fft.; 182: Chantz Stevens (W) won by fft.; 195: Coy Baker (W) won by fft.; 220: OPEN; 285: Braeden Vandervoort (W) won by fft.; 106: Kael Brisker (W) won by fft.; 113: Ethan Gast (D) over Gage Oien (W) (Fall 1:51); 120: Dalton Snider (W) won by fft.; 126: Blake Conklin (W) won by fft.; 132: OPEN; 138: Trey Sulzberger (W) over Kenny Salemi (D) (Fall 1:31); 145: Tysen McKinley (D) won by fft.

West Liberty 78, Durant 6
106: Alex Beaver (WL) won by fft.; 113: Ethan Gast (D) over Sebastian Mata (WL) (Fall 2:55); 120: Sam Gingerich (WL) won by fft.; 126: Brian Collins (WL) won by fft.; 132: Talen Dengler (WL) won by fft.; 138: Isreal Gomez (WL) over Kenny Salemi (D) (Fall 1:31); 145: Will Esmoil (WL) over Tysen McKinley (D) (Fall 1:14); 152: Coy Ruess (WL) won by fft.; 160: Austin Beaver (WL) over Cameron Ruggiero (D) (Fall 1:24); 170: AJ Lenz (WL) won by fft.; 182: Thayne Lowman (WL) won by fft.; 195: Felipe Molina (WL) won by fft.; 220: Kobe Simon (WL) won by fft.; 285: Spencer Daufeldt (WL) won by fft.

Mid-Prairie 48, Durant 12
160: Cael Garvey (MP) over Cameron Ruggiero (D) (Fall 2:40); 170: Cory Allen (MP) won by fft.; 182: Colton Allen (MP) won by fft.; 195: Josh Wallington (MP) won by fft.; 220: Isaac Boucher (MP) won by fft.; 285: Gannon Callahan (MP) won by fft.; 106: OPEN; 113: Ethan Gast (D) won by fft.; 120: OPEN; 126: Dallas Miller (MP) won by fft.; 132: OPEN; 138: Kenny Salemi (D) won by fft.; 145: OPEN; 152: Mason Hartley (MP) over Tysen McKinley (D) (Fall 1:51).

Knights finish RVC dual season at Camanche

CAMANCHE — The North Cedar wrestling team finished their River Valley Conference portion of their schedule. The Knights traveled to Camanche where they battled Iowa City Regina, Camanche, and Tipton. The Knights lost all three duals. However, North Cedar saw the return of some wrestlers that have been out recently. Back in the line-up were Chase Gallagher (285), Ashlynn Miller (126), and Chase Miller (132). North Cedar fell to Regina 33-24, Camanche 54-30 and Tipton 54-30.

Against Camanche, North Cedar won five matches. Tyler Thurston (195), Sabian Mesinas (220), Chase Gallagher (285), Kole Murray (113), and Brody Hawtrey (138) all took wins in the dual. North Cedar trailed 30-0 after five matches,but won three straight.

Thurston pinned Gavin Sharp in 1:08 at 195 to set the score at 30-6. Thurston dominated the match, scoring a takedown and 3-point near fall for a 5-0 lead before getting the pin. Mesinas pinned Javier Marquez in 0:59 to set the score at 30-12 and after a Gallagher forfeit win, North Cedar trailed by 12, 30-18. That is as close as the Knights could get however. Kole Murry pinned Lane Sbertoli in 1:11 at 113 and Brody Hawtrey pinned Jason Huling in 1:27 at 138 for the Knights final points.

North Cedar won four matches against Iowa City Regina in a 33-24 loss. North Cedar had wins from Sabian Mesinas by forfeit at 220, Chase Gallagher at 285 by pin, Kole Murray at 113 by pin and Brody Hawtrey at 138 by forfeit.

The Knights won five matches against Tipton in a 54-30 loss. Brody Hawtrey won by pin over Brandon Hines in 1:02 to start the dual. Tipton would win five straight weights by forfeit to take a 30-6 lead. Tyler Thurston stopped the run of points at 195 winning by forfeit to set the score at 30-12. That would be as close as North Cedar would get the rest of the way. Chase Gallager pinned Jesse Lieser at 285, Kole Murray pinned Kaleb Mesick at 113 and Ashlynn Miller won by forfeit at 120 for the other North Cedar points.


At Camanche
Thursday, January 17

Iowa City Regina 33, North Cedar 24
152: Aidan Udell (ICR) won by fft.; 160: Scott Blondin (ICR) won by fft.; 170: Drew Demory (ICR) won by fft.; 182: OPEN; 195: Nick Milder (ICR) over Tyler Thurston (NC) (Dec 8-2); 220: Sabian Mesinas (NC) won by fft.; 285: Chase Gallagher (NC) over Caden Shetler (ICR) (Fall 1:30); 106: OPEN; 113: Kole Murray (NC) over Seth Lenz (ICR) (Fall 1:21); 120: OPEN; 126: Sam Aitchison (ICR) over Ashlynn Miller (NC) (Fall 0:34); 132: Sean Nugent (ICR) over Chase Miller (NC) (Fall 2:50); 138: Brody Hawtrey (NC) won by fft.; 145: OPEN.

Camanche 54, North Cedar 30
145: Nolan Thoms (CAM) won by fft.; 152: Cade Everson (CAM) won by fft.; 160: Baylor Crigger (CAM) won by fft.; 170: Eric Campie (CAM) won by fft.; 182: Logan Waltz (CAM) won by fft.; 195: Tyler Thurston (NC) over Gavin Sharp (CAM) (Fall 1:08); 220: Sabian Mesinas (NC) over Javier Marquez (CAM) (Fall 0:59); 285: Chase Gallagher (NC) won by fft.; 106: Jaxon Bussa (CAM) won by fft.; 113: Kole Murray (NC) over Lane Sbertoli (CAM) (Fall 1:11); 120: Ben Vogel (CAM) over Ashlynn Miller (NC) (Fall 0:29); 126: Eric Kinkaid (CAM) won by fft.; 132: Brennan Kramer (CAM) over Chase Miller (NC) (Fall 3:02); 138: Brody Hawtrey (NC) over Jason Huling (CAM) (Fall 1:27).

Tigers win two RVC duals at Camanche

Tipton’s Brendan Nantz, center, looks for an advantage during his match with a Monticello wrestler recently in Wilton.  Nantz and the Tigers improved to 9-4 in conference duals and won their 13th dual of the season with two wins last week at Camanche.  Photo by Ryan Stonebraker.

CAMANCHE — In their last dual action in the River Valley Conference, the Tipton wrestling team came away with two wins in three duals last Thursday at Camanche. The Tigers beat North Cedar 54-30 and Iowa City Regina 58-13 before falling 53-24 to the host Indians. The Tigers wins set their RVC dual record at 9-4 this season and 13-7 overall.

The Tigers won ten matches against Iowa City Regina in a 58-15 win. The Tigers trailed 9-6 before taking a 12-9 lead when Dylan Mente pinned Drew Demory in 0:35. Mente scored an early takedown before the quick pin. Tipton trailed 15-12 after losing at 182. The Tigers would win the next five matches for a 30-point run. Eighteen points came from forfeits while the other points came from pins by Jessie Lieser at 285 and Kaleb Mesick at 113; 120 was open for both teams. Tipton scored the last 16 points with a pin by Austin Lenz at 126, a major decision by Kaleb Nerem at 132 and a forfeit win by Brandon Hines. Tipton got forfeit wins from Chance Koch (145), Carson Charves (195), Nile Schuett (220), Brendan Nantz (106) and Brandon Hines (138) in the dual.

Against Camanche, the Tigers lost the first five matches and trailed 29-0 early. From there, the Tigers wrestled the Indians well, 29-24, but it wasn’t enough. Tipton got match wins from Kaleb Mesick by pin at 113 over Jack Wruck in 0:30 and Chance Koch at 145 with a pin over Nolan Thoms in 3:51. Tipton got forfeit wins from Nile Schuett at 220 and Jessie Lieser at 285 in the match.

Against North Cedar, Tipton won nine matches, seven by forfeit. The Tigers won two matches by pin. Getting forfeit wins were Chance Koch (145), Skyler Schmidt (152), Levi Mohr (160), Dylan Mente (170), Jerry Havill (182), Brendan Nantz (106) and Kaleb Nerem (132). Nile Schuett pinned Sabian Mesinas in 1:27 at 220 and Austin Lenz pinned Chase Miller at 126 in 4:39 to round out the Tigers scoring.

The Tigers host a quadrangular meet Tuesday when Belle Plaine, Lone Tree and Davenport West come to town for senior night. The Tigers will travel to North Cedar Saturday to compete in the 2019 River Valley Conference Tournament.




At Camanche

Thursday, January 17




Tipton 54, North Cedar 30

138: Brody Hawtrey (NC) over Brandon Hines (T) (Fall 1:02); 145: Chance Koch (T) won by fft.; 152: Skylar Schmidt (T) won by fft.; 160: Levi Mohr (T) won by fft.; 170: Dylan Mente (T) won by fft.; 182: Jerry Havill (T) won by fft.; 195: Tyler Thurston (NC) won by fft.; 220: Nile Schuett (T) over Sabian Mesinas (NC) (Fall 1:27); 285: Chase Gallagher (NC) over Jessie Lieser (T) (Fall 3:44); 106: Brendan Nantz (T) won by fft.; 113: Kole Murray (NC) over Kaleb Mesick (T) (Fall 5:15); 120: Ashlynn Miller (NC) won by ftt.; 126: Austin Lenz (T) over Chase Miller (NC) (Fall 4:39); 132: Kaleb Nerem (T) won by fft.




Camanche 53, Tipton 24

152: Cade Everson (CAM) over Skylar Schmidt (T) (Fall 1:22); 160: Baylor Crigger (CAM) over Levi Mohr (T) (Fall 0:11); 170: Eric Campie (CAM) over Lucas Barnum (T) (TF 17-2 4:22); 182: Logan Waltz (CAM) over Dylan Mente (T) (Fall 4:53); 195: Gavin Sharp (CAM) over Carson Charves (T) (Fall 4:25); 220: Nile Schuett (T) won by fft.; 285: Jessie Lieser (T) won by fft.; 106: Jaxon Bussa (CAM) over Brendan Nantz (T) (TF 15-0 6:00); 113: Kaleb Mesick (T) over Jack Wruck (CAM) (Fall 0:30); 120: Ben Vogel (CAM) won by fft.; 126: Eric Kincaid (CAM) over Austin Lenz (T) (MD 11-0); 132: Brennan Kramer (CAM) over Kaleb Nerem (T) (Dec 7-1); 138: Jason Huling (CAM) over Brandon Hines (T) (Fall 5:51); 145: Chance Koch (T) over Nolan Thoms (CAM) (Fall 3:51).




Tipton 58, Iowa City Regina 15



145: Chance Koch (T) won by fft.; 152: Aidan Udell (ICR) over Skylar Schmidt (T) (Fall 3:02); 160: Scott Blondin (ICR) over Levi Mohr (T) (Dec 4-2); 170: Dylan Mente (T) over Drew Demory (ICR) (Fall 0:35); 182: Nick Milder (ICR) over Jerry Havill (T) (Fall 1:58); 195: Carson Charves (T) won by fft.; 220: Nile Schuett (T) won by fft.; 285: Jessie Lieser (T) over Caden Shetler (ICR) (Fall 0:42); 106: Brendan Nantz (T) won by fft.; 113: Kaleb Mesick (T) over Seth Lenz (ICR) (Fall 0:33); 120: OPEN; 126: Austin Lenz (T) over Sam Aitchison (ICR) (Fall 0:44); 132: Kaleb Nerem (T) over Sean Nugent (ICR) (MD 11-0) 138: Brandon Hines (T) won by fft.

Tigers comeback comes up short in Wellman

Tipton’s Laken Hermiston, left, and Rachel Bierman (24) box out and opposing player during a Tipton free throw attempt in the second half of Tipton’s 54-47 loss at Mid-Prairie.  Photo by Nick Moffitt, Kalona News.

WELLMAN — Tipton struggled offensively in Wellman last Tuesday in their game at Mid-Prairie. Tipton shot just 34-percent from the floor in the game in a seven-point, 54-47 loss. Tipton lost to Mid-Prairie by six points, 52-46 in the second game of the season at home. The Tigers have lost three of their last four games and fell to 6-7 overall with the loss.

Tipton trailed 11-10 after the first quarter. Jamie Kofron had all five of her points in the opening quarter for the Tigers. Mid-Prairie took control of the game with a 16-7 second quarter run to take a 27-17 halftime lead. Tipton fell behind by eight more points after three quarters after a 14-6 Golden Hawk run in the third quarter. The Golden Hawks outscored Tipton 30-13 in the middle two quarters.

Tipton trailed 41-23 after three quarters. The Tigers started a fourth-quarter rally with a Kamryn Chapman bucket 15 seconds into the final quarter to put the score at 41-25. Mid-Prairie pushed their lead to 18, before Tipton rallied. Amanda Smith had a steal and coast-to-coast layup to cut the lead to 16. With 5:23 left in the game, two Emily Hermsen free throws set the score at 47-31. The points were Hermsen’s first of the game. Amanda Smith made 1-of-2 free throws to set the score at 47-32. On the ensuing MP inbounds play, Tipton stole the ball and Rachel Bierman made a three-pointer and was fouled. Bierman made the free throw for a four-point play while cutting the Golden Hawk lead to 47-36 with 4:38 left in the game. The Tigers were on a 7-0 run.

A Hermsen drive in the lane and resulting lay-up cut the Golden Hawk lead to ten points, 48-38 with 4:33 left in the game. Tipton had back-to-back offensive possessions to cut the lead to less than ten points, but could not take advantage. With 2:48 left in the game, Tipton trailed 49-38 and Emily Hermsen was free in the lane and took a shot that at the time looked like was blocked by a Mid-Prairie player out of bounds. The referees conferred and gave the ball to Mid-PRairie. The Golden Hawks ran some clock, but a steal and Rachel Bierman lay-up cut the Mid-Prairie lead to single digits, 49-40 with 2:14 left in the game. After a Mid-Prairie turnover, Tipton scored again. WIth 1:52 left to play, Emily Hermsen drilled a three-pointer to cut the Golden Hawk lead to six, 49-43. Tipton tried to extend the game but could get no closer than six points.

Rachel Bierman led Tipton in scoring with 18 points and also had 7 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals. Bierman has led Tipton in scoring for three straight ball games. Amanda Smith had a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds and Emily Hermsen chipped in nine points. Tipton was 11-for-14 from the free throw line and had 30 rebounds as a team. Kamryn Chapman had 4 rebounds, 4 points, and two blocked shots and Alex Hoffman, Hermsen, Laken Hermiston and Jamie Kofron each had two rebounds. Tipton got all 47 points from their starting five players.

Mid-Prairie was led by three players in double digits. Maddie Nonnemann with 16 while Myah Lugar and Shae Becker each had 11 points for the Golden Hawks.

Tipton’s game at Cascade last Friday was postponed due to a snowstorm late last weekend. The game will be made up on Monday, January 28. Tipton will be on the road this week with a game at West Liberty on Friday, at Cascade Monday and then at Durant next Tuesday. Tipton will end the regular season with four straight home games, starting next Thursday, January 31 against Calamus-Wheatland.

Mid-Prairie 54, Tipton 47

Tuesday, January 15

At Wellman

TIP 10 7 6 24 47

MP 11 16 14 13 54

TIPTON (47): Emily Hermsen (g) 2-9 4-4 9, Rachel Bierman (g) 6-14 4-4 18, Amanda Smith (f) 4-10 2-5 11, Kamryn Chapman (f) 2-2 0-0 4, Jamie Kofron (f) 2-7 1-1 5, Alex Hoffman 0-4 0-0 0, Hailey Stewart 0-0 0-0 0, Madison Conrad 0-0 0-0 0, Liz Bierman 0-0 0-0 0, Laken Hermiston 0-1 0-0 0. Totals: 16-47 11-14 47.

M-P (47): Ella Cadena 1-1 1-1 3, Kessa Jones 0-1 5-8 5, Caitlyn Riggan 1-3 2-5 4, Shae Becker 4-8 2-6 11, Myah Lugar 4-9 0-0 11, Maddie Nonnemann 7-11 2-2 16, Colby Rourke 2-4 0-0 4. Totals: 19-37 12-22 54.

3-Pt. FG: Tipton 4-11 (Bierman 2-4, Hermsen 1-5, Smith 1-1, Hoffman 0-1), MP 4-10 (Lugar 3-7, Becker 1-2, Riggan 0-1). Rebounds: Tipton 30 (Smith 10, Bierman 7, Chapman 4, Hoffman 2, Hermsen 2, Hermiston 2, Kofron 2, Conrad 1), MP 21 (Becker 5, Lugar 5, Jones 4, Nonnemann 4). Assists: Tipton 8 (Hoffman 3, Hermsen 3, Bierman 1, Chapman 1), Tipton 14 (Becker 8). Steals: Tipton 11 (Bierman 3, Smith 2, Hermsen 2, Hoffman 2, Chapman 1, Kofron 1), MP 9 (Jones 5). Blocked Shots: Tipton 5 (Chapman 2, Bierman 2, Smith 1), MP 4 (Lugar 2). Total Fouls: Tipton 18, MP 14. Fouled Out: Tipton Hoffman, MP none.

Tigers fall at Mid-Prairie in overtime

Tipton’s Conner Hermiston, center, grabs a rebound during the first half of the Tigers River Valley Conference battle with Mid-Prairie last Tuesday.  Tipton lost by four points in overtime to the Golden Hawks.  Tipton will be back in action Friday at West Liberty and next Tuesday at Durant.  Photo by Nick Moffitt, Kalona News.

WELLMAN — The Tipton Tiger boys basketball team could not complete the season sweep over Mid-Prairie last Tuesday in Wellman. There, the Golden Hawks pulled out a four-point, 71-67 overtime win over Tipton in RVC South play.

The game featured a matchup of two of the best big men in the River Valley Conference this season. Tipton junior Frank Bierman and Mid-Prairie senior Tom Butters. The two are 1-2 in the RVC South in rebounding and in the top-20 in scoring in the league. Bierman led Tipton in scoring with 21 points to go with 19 rebounds. Butters scored 16 points and grabbed 17 rebounds. He also had 5 blocked shots.

Mid-Prairie led 14-11 after the first quarter, but Tipton outscored Mid-Prairie 12-6 in the second quarter to take a halftime lead of 23-20. The Tigers outscored the Golden Hawks 25 to 16 in the third quarter to take a 48-36 lead after three quarters. Tipton struggled, however, in the final quarter as Mid-Prairie outscored Tipton 22-10 in the final quarter to send the game to overtime tied at 58. It was all Mid-Prairie In the overtime period as the Golden Hawks outscored the Tigers 13 to 9 to capture the four-point win.

Tipton had two others reach double figures with Jacob Tischuk and Andrew Stewart each scoring 14 points. Trent Pelzer added 8 points. Tipton struggled from the three-point line in the game, making only 3-of-17 attempts. The Tigers shot 29-for-71 from the floor in the game. Pelzer led in assists with three and Bierman led in steals with 2.

Cale Robertson led Mid-Prairie in scoring with 19 points including a 3-for-5 night from the three-point line. Point guard Brad Tornow had a great game with 18 points, 7 assists, 3 rebounds, and 2 steals.

Tipton’s game at Cascade last Friday was postponed due to a snowstorm late last weekend. The game will be made up on Monday, January 28. Tipton will be on the road this week with a game at West Liberty on Friday, at Cascade Monday and then at Durant next Tuesday. Tipton will end the regular season with four straight home games, starting next Thursday, January 31 against Calamus-Wheatland.

Mid-Prairie 71, Tipton 67

Tuesday, January 15

At Wellman


TIP 11 12 25 10 9 67

MP 14 6 16 22 13 71

TIPTON (67): Trent Pelzer (g) 4-18 0-0 8, Frank Bierman (f) 9-17 3-6 21, Andrew Stewart (g) 6-9 1-1 14, Luke Becker (g) 1-5 0-0 2, Jacob Tischuk (g) 5-11 2-4 14, Colby Kleppe 3-4 0-0 6, Payten Elijah 1-2 0-0 2, Connor Hermiston 0-1 0-0 0, Blake Wilkins 0-4 0-0 0. Totals: 29-71 6-11 67.

MID-PRAIRIE (71): Brad Tornow (g) 6-8 6-7 18, Cale Robertson (g) 5-10 6-6 19, Tom Butters (f) 6-13 4-5 16, Ethan Trimpe (g) 3-10 0-2 6, Dominic Pickard (f) 2-7 1-2 6, Chris Miller 0-2 1-2 1, Grant Boyse 0-8 1-2 1, Chaz Patterson 2-4 0-0 4. Totals: 24-62 19-26 71.


3-Pt. FG: Tipton 3-17 (Tischuk 2-4, Stewart 1-4, Pelzer 0-5, Becker 0-3, Wilkins 0-1), MP 4-11 (Robertson 3-5, Pickard 1-4, Miller 0-1, Butters 0-1). Rebounds: Tipton 37 (Bierman 19, Kleppe 4, Tischuk 4, Elijah 3, Pelzer 3, Wilkins 2, Stewart 1, Hermiston 1), MP 34 (Butters 17, Trimpe 8). Assists: Tipton 6 (Pelzer 3, Kleppe 1, Stewart 1, Tischuk 1), MP 13 (Tornow 7). Steals: Tipton 8 (Bierman 2, Pelzer 1, Elijah 1, Stewart 1, Becker 1, Tischuk 1, Wilkins 1), MP 10 (Butters 3). Blocked Shots: Tipton none. MP 5 (Butters 5). Total Fouls: Tipton 22, MP 12. Fouled Out: Stewart. MP none.

Miller places third at first girls state tournament

North Cedar’s Ashlynn Miller, top, turns Hayley Bowman from Missouri Valley on her way to a pin in 3:17 in the 120-pound quarterfinals.  Miller would fall in the semifinals, but pin her opponent in the third place match to place third at the first ever girls state wrestling tournament last Saturday.  Photo by Corey Meints, Ackley World Journal.

By Ryan Stonebraker

Sports Editor

WAVERLY — History was made last Saturday at Waverly-Shell Rock High School as the first ever Girls State Wrestling tournament was held. There, nearly 100 girls participated in the inaugural event. There, North Cedar freshman Ashlynn Miller was among the competitors. Miller was one of nine wrestlers at the 120-pound weight class. Miller finished third after winning two of the three matches she was in.

“It was a great feeling to be on the podium at the first state tournament,” said Miller. “My dream though is to be on the top of the podium. I’m going to have to work hard to get there, as there is tough competition,” she said.

Waverly-Shell Rock won the team title at the meet with 144 points. Colfax-Mingo was second with 78 team points and Charles City was third with 73 points. Each team received a trophy. The rest of the top-10 went like this - Waukon 4th, Osage 5th, Denver 6th, LeMars 7th, Cedar Rapids Jefferson 8th, Davenport Central and Pleasantville tied for 9th.

Miller has been wrestling for about nine years. She wrestled for Lisbon for three years and then North Cedar after that. She came up through the North Cedar middle school program. She has wrestled both junior varsity and varsity this season with a combined record of 9 wins against 15 losses in 24 combined matches going into last weekends state tournament.

Miller said that she wasn’t nervous at the meet and said North Cedar head coach Darrell Long told her before the meet, “Once you’ve wrestled, everything in life is easier.”

“I’m glad they finally have a Girl’s State Tournament,” said Miller.

North Cedar’s Ashlynn Miller grapples 

with Chloe Clemons from Cedar Rapids 

Jefferson in the 120-pound semifinals.  

Clemons won the 120 title.   

Photo by Corey Meints, Ackley World Journal.

“The next thing I hope is that they move it to Des Moines as the boys do,” she said.

Miller was seeded fifth at the state tournament and opened with a pin over fourth-seeded Hayley Bowman from Missouri Valley in 3:17. Miller trailed 3-2 after the first period, but really got things going in the second. There, Miller started down and took a 4-3 lead after getting a reversal 15 seconds into the period. She then scored a 3-point near fall to extend her lead to 7-3 six seconds later. She would add another 3-point near fall later and used an 8-1 run to take a 10-4 lead before getting the pin.

In the semifinals, Miller faced top-seeded Chloe Clemons from Cedar Rapids Jefferson. Clemons came into the state meet ranked No. 1 at 126 and was wrestling down a class at state. In the match, Miller fought very hard, however, fell by a major decision to Clemons. Clemons would go onto win the 120-pound weight class pinning Jacey Meier from Waverly-Shell Rock in 3:51. Meier dropped two weight classes as she was ranked No. 2 at the 132-pound weight class.

Miller wasn’t done though, she got to wrestle for third place. There, Miller would score her second pin on the day, pinning sixth-seeded Brynn Miller from Pleasantville in 2:25 to capture third place. Miller led 5-1 after the first period and 7-1 before scoring the pin. Miller scored a takedown, 3-point near fall and caution in the first minute of the match to set the tone.

North Cedar wrestling coach Darrell Long said that early Miller may have had jitters, but she settled in.

“I think she had first match jitters, but then she settled in and took control after she realized that she belonged at the meet,” said Long.

“She knew Chloe would be tough, but we went into the match with a good game plan and it almost worked. She gave her a very tough match and the score was a lot closer than the final,” he said.

Long said that the state girls meet is a long time coming and in past years at coaches and officials conventions, that they were trying to get the tournament going. He said that he was able to deliver the news to the Miller family about the tournament coming this year.

“I told her and her family together. They were super excited about the opportunity, and the opportunity to win a state title. It was special,” he said.

The Iowa wrestling coaches and officials association put the state meet on. The championship event marks the end of the second season in which Iowa High Schools have offered females the opportunity to compete in girl divisions. Girls wrestling has exploded in recent years. Nationally, 16,562 girls are wrestled in the 2017-18 season representing 2,351 high schools across the country. It was the third straight season with over 10,000 girls in participation. The 1995-96 school year was the first to top 1,000 participants and the 2006-07 school year was the first to top 5,000 participants.

In Iowa, 36 wrestlers suited up in the first year of keeping track of numbers in the 2013-14 year. It

Noth Cedar freshman Ashlynn Miller, 

right, grapples with Hayley Bowman 

from Missouri Valley in the quarterfinals 

of the 120-pound weight class at last 

week’s state tournament in Waverly.  

Miller pinned Bowman in 3:17 to 

advance.  Photo by Corey Meints, Ackley World Journal.

increased to 41 the following year followed by 67, back-to-back years of 93 and then a high of 187 this season (2018-19). There are currently 14 states with sanctioned girls wrestling. They are Hawaii, Texas, Washington, California, Alaska, and Tennessee. The following states became sanctioned in 2018 - Arizona, Georgia, Maine, Missouri, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Oregon, and Colorado. Hawaii was first in 1998.

At the college level, one D1, 9 D2, and 6 D3 schools have college women’s wrestling teams. The NAIA level has the most schools with 24, including Grand View University in Des Moines starting in 2019 or 2020. Some community colleges also offer wrestling as a sport. Currently 20 former Iowa High School Girl’s wrestle in college.

This season there were 12 varsity girl’s divisions at tournaments across the state and two junior varsity divisions at tournaments including one at Wilton back on December 15.

Of the 187 certified female wrestlers in Iowa this year, 36 are seniors, 46 juniors, 48 are sophomores and 57 are freshmen. Class breakdown is 56 in Class 3A, 63 in Class 2A and 68 in Class 1A. Denver has the most participants with 17 while Osage had 13 and Waverly-Shell Rock has 11.

Miller is the only female wrestler at the high school level at North Cedar. There is another female wrestler at the middle school level.

“I’ve been around wrestling in so many parts for 45 years. This is so cool! We (Iowa), are so far behind the times in girls wrestling. I’m glad that the coaches and officials association stepped up to make this happen,” said Long.

North Cedar, like schools across the state, are working now for their conference and then sectional meets. A few will advance each week as the postseason hits its crescendo at the 2019 State wrestling meet next month.

Miller will be back in action on January 21 at the River Valley Conference junior varsity tournament and at this Saturday’s Varsity River Valley Conference tournament. The Knights wrestle at West Branch on Saturday, February 2.

“I am preparing for JV at Monticello and Varsity Conference at North Cedar. Just hoping I do well. RVC will be fun and a learning experience,” she said.

Podcast: CCP First week of January

Welcome to the Coaches Corner Podcast.  This is the official podcast from Ryan Stonebraker, Sports Editor for the Tipton Conservative.  If you have any questions or comments e-mail me at ConservativeSports@gmail.com - RS.

Podcast Link: Podcast Link - First week of January