CNA 2021 sports year in review

A look back at the year 2021 in sports in the Creston News Advertiser concludes with the following highlights from the months of July through December.

(The year in review for the months of January through June appeared in Wednesday’s News Advertiser.)

Items are listed by date of publication.

JULY

1 — Creston’s Chad Dryden and T.J. Redding won the Crestmoor Best Ball Invitational with a 36-hole score of 125.

6 — Founding coach Mark Larsen and nearly 40 former players and coaches helped observe 50 years of Mount Ayr softball at the 2021 Raiderette Classic.

7 — Reginald Kindle Jr. was named head men’s basketball coach at Southwestern Community College. He was most recently an assistant coach at Peru State College in Nebraska.

8 — Mount Ayr earned a share of the Pride of Iowa Conference baseball championship with a 7-3 win over co-champion Martensdale-St. Marys. The Raiders went 12-1 in conference play.

9 — The Creston softball team earned a spot in the regional semifinals with an 8-3 home victory over Glenwood.

13 — No. 1 Winterset beat Creston 5-2 in a regional semifinal softball game on the Huskies’ field. Creston ended with a 20-12 record. Winterset advanced at 33-7. Head coach Mike McCabe retired as a Creston Community Middle School teacher and the retirement began on July 1, so assistant coach Teri Keeler led the squad in the final two weeks. McCabe has indicated interest in applying for the coaching position again.

14 — Wayne defeated Lenox 9-1 in a regional softball final at Corydon. Lenox ended at 29-7.

14 — Lenox (21-11) beat Nodaway Valley 4-3 in a district baseball semifinal game, earning the right to meet No. 9-ranked CAM in the district finals. CAM won that game 7-6 on July 17.

19 — No. 9-ranked Boone (21-9) defeated Creston 8-1 in a Class 3A district baseball opener. The Panthers ended their season 8-21. Assistant coach Jaden Driskell guided the team after head coach Steve Birchard’s retirement began on July 1.

21 — New London (26-1) defeated Mount Ayr 4-2 in a baseball substate final in Oskaloosa. The Raiders ended the season with a 21-5 record.

26 — Creston shortstop Gracie Hagle and third baseman Neveah Randall were named to the Hawkeye Ten all-conference first team in softball.

28 — Brance Baker of Creston signed a National Letter of Intent to play basketball at Southwestern Community College after undergoing shoulder surgery that prematurely ended his senior season with the Panthers.

29 — Clarke softball finished 1-1 at the state tournament, earning a 4-2 consolation victory over Anamosa after an 11-1 opening-round loss to 3A state champion Davenport Assumption. The Lady Indians were 18-12 for the season.

AUGUST

2 — Creston’s Gracie Hagle was named to the Class 4A all-state third team by the Iowa Girls Coaches Association. Hagle batted .404 with 44 runs, 28 RBIs, five home runs and 9-9 in stolen bases while fielding at a .914 percentage. Area selections included Lenox pitcher TJ Stoaks on the 1A first team; Murray outfielder Emma Decker on the 1A second team; East Union first baseman Noelle McKnight on 1A honorable mention; Mount Ayr pitcher-infielder Addy Reynolds and Mount Ayr infielder Alexa Anderson, both on the 2A third team.

3 — A recap of Creston’s wrestling team summer included a summary of their 9-1 record at the TLAN (Train Like a Norseman) team camp hosted by Luther College in Bettendorf. The Panthers placed third, losing only to defending 2A state champion West Delaware. Also, graduated senior Jackson Kinsella and current team member Will Bolinger both qualified to compete in the national Junior and Cadet freestyle tournaments, respectively, in Fargo, North Dakota.

4 — A Diagonal basketball camp organized by Buena Vista University player Emily Newton of Diagonal honored the late Bill Taylor, a Diagonal native and supporter of youth basketball training opportunities. Colby Taylor, the son of Bill and Joni Taylor and a former collegiate player and professional player in Spain, was a guest instructor for one day at the camp.

5 — Mount Ayr sophomore Jaixen Frost was named to the Class 1A all-state baseball second team by the Iowa Print Sports Writers Association. Frost led the state with a .634 batting average.

6 — Coming off foot surgery from an injury suffered in the first game of the 2020 season, Iowa State offensive lineman Trevor Downing of Creston said he was anxious to get started in preparing for the 2021 season later that week. Downing earned preseason All-Big 12 honors.

10 — The Iowa High School Athletic Association and Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union jointly announced a 35-second shot clock will be required for varsity basketball games in the 2022-23 season. Iowa becomes the 10th state to implement a shot clock for high school basketball.

23 — Creston’s Kelsey Fields was named the South Central Iowa Female Athlete of the Year by the Creston News Advertiser and Osceola Sentinel-Tribune. Fields is currently a basketball player at Northwest Missouri State University.

30 — Creston opened the 2021 football season with an 18-6 win at Clarinda, coached by former Creston and Northwest Missouri State standout Collin Bevins. Brothers Briley and Brennan Hayes rushed for a combined 246 yards for the Panthers.

31 — Nodaway Valley/O-M beat Mount Ayr 20-16 in the annual Battle for the Rock, a game dedicated to former NV coach Bob Daut and former Mount Ayr coach Dave Still. It was Nodaway Valley’s first victory in the series since 2010.

SEPTEMBER

3 — Payton Weehler of Mount Ayr was named the South Central Iowa Male Athlete of the Year by the Creston News Advertiser and Osceola Sentinel-Tribune. Weehler is now a walk-on football player at the University of Nebraska.

13 — Nodaway Valley graduate Josh Baudler placed second in Southwestern Community College’s home cross country meet, the inaugural Crest Cross Country Festival that also included high school and middle school races. Teammate York Miles was third and the team was edged by Graceland, 25-32. Creston won the high school girls competition as Riley DeGonia placed first. I-35 won the boys competition, led by winner Ben Reyas. East Union’s Jacob Driskell was second and Creston’s Riley Wipperman was third.

22 — Creston girls placed sixth and the boys were 10th in the Creston Invitational cross country meet. Carly Green led the girls in 32nd place in 23:34.8 and Riley Wipperman was 37th in the boys race in 19:25.46.

23 — Nodaway Valley girls were third and the boys second in the Class B division of the Creston Invitational cross country meet. Nodaway Valley’s Doug Berg was fourth in the boys race. Jazz Christensen was third in the girls race and Annika Nelson was 11th.

23 — Creston cheerleaders Brroklyn Knight, Abby Walker and Megan Pellman were selected for the 2021 ICCA Honor Squad scheduled to perform at halftime of the football championship games on Nov. 19 in the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls.

27 — East Union celebrated homecoming with a 57-12 football victory over Griswold. Junior running back Emmit Long scored five touchdowns for the Eagles.

27 — Creston defeated Knoxville 49-0 as Kyle Strider passed for four touchdowns and Kayleb Howard had two TD catches.

30 — The 2007 state champion team joined the Creston Wrestling Hall of Fame. Other inductees were Vern Loudon, Terry Cooper, Dannie Stephens, the late Bob Decklever and the late Gary Wimmer.

OCTOBER

1 — Creston swept Mount Ayr on volleyball senior night to end a four-match losing skid. Seniors Hannah Dryden, Brianna Fields, Morgan Driskell and Halle Evans were honored prior to the match.

4 — ADM took a 35-0 halftime lead on the way to beating Creston 42-0 in a key district game. Seniors honored prior to the game were Joey Huston, Derek Paup, Chris Wilson, Andre Davis, Avery Fuller, Owen Richards, Briley Hayes, Lucas Veatch, Gage Skarda, Kayleb Howard, Skyler Wilson and Aidan Anderson.

5 — Creston cross country started a new tradition of running with the homecoming game ball from the opponent’s field (Saydel) 75 miles to Creston, on the Monday of homecoming week.

6 — Former Creston all-state football and basketball player Kyle McCann, also a former University of Iowa quarterback and currently an attorney in Des Moines, was inducted into the Creston Community High School Hall of Fame.

11 — Creston beat Saydel 51-12 on homecoming as Briley Hayes scored three touchdowns in the first quarter. Quarterback Kyle Strider passed for two TDs and ran for another.

12 — A contingent of more than 200 friends and family members made the trip to Kansas City to watch Lenox NFL player Spencer Brown play for the Buffalo Bills against the Chiefs. Buffalo won the Sunday night game, 38-20.

13 — Southeast Warren topped Mount Ayr 3-0 for the Pride of Iowa Conference volleyball tournament championship after the Raiderettes edged Southwest Valley 3-2 in an entertaining semifinal match.

15 — Creston’s Riley DeGonia medaled at the Hawkeye Ten cross country meet by placing 17th. The Creston girls were sixth and the boys placed 11th.

20 — Creston shortstop Gracie Hagle signed a National Letter of Intent to play softball at Grand View University and pursue a nursing degree.

21 — Riley DeGonia of Creston qualified for the State Cross Country Meet by placing 12th at the qualifying meet in Winterset. Triston Barncastle led the Panther boys by placing 34th.

21 — Southwest Valley volleyball swept Panorama 3-0 in a regional quarterfinal match. Norah Lund had six kills, 10 digs and five ace serves for the Timberwolves.

22 — Nodaway Valley’s Doug Berg qualified for the State Cross Country Meet by placing third in the qualifying meet at Panora. Near misses for state in the qualifying meet at Corning were Mount Ayr’s Karly Elwood in 11th place and East Union’s Jillian Valencia in 12th place.

25 — Lenox advanced to the second round of the eight-player playoffs with a 52-8 win over Lamoni. Isaac Grundman rushed for 208 yards as the Tigers improved to 9-0 for the first time since 2015.

25 — Mount Ayr opened the Class A playoffs with a 34-20 win over Madrid. Southwest Valley gained its first playoff win in program history, 53-22, over Ogden.

25 — Creston closed a 6-3 football season — the first winning season since 2016 — in a 49-19 victory at Atlantic. But, the Panthers ended one position shy of the playoffs in the IHSAA’s RPI index. Briley Hayes had 165 yards rushing and five touchdowns in the victory.

26 — AC/GC beat Southwest Valley 3-1 in a Class 2A regional volleyball semifinal match.

28 — Southwestern volleyball fell to Southeastern 3-0 on Sophomore Night. It was the final home appearance for Demi Paige, Laire Krenning, Emma Hanson, Florence Omodayo, Deniz Tuncer and Allison Lillis.

29 — Creston junior Doryn Paup received honorable mention on the Hawkeye Ten all-conference volleyball selections.

NOVEMBER

1 — Creston’s Riley DeGonia made up 14 positions in the final two miles to end up 92nd among 125 runners in the Class 3A state cross country meet in a time of 21:15.26.

1 — Three area teams lost in the second round of the football playoffs. Logan-Magnolia defeated Mount Ayr 34-7; Woodbury Central shut out Southwest Valley 35-0; and Newell-Fonda won 39-14 at Lenox. The Tigers ended with a 9-1 record.

4 — Southwestern women got off to a strong start in the 2021-22 season with an 88-68 home victory over William Penn JV. Alyssa Morris scored 26 points and Whynter Waterhouse-Brennan added 23.

9 — Creston senior setter Halle Evans played in the KMAland Senior All-Star Volleyball Series. Evans had 208 assists for the Panthers during the season.

11 — Creston cheerleaders coached by Trish Sevier and Maddie Travis competed in the Iowa Cheerleading Coaches Association state championships. Creston placed sixth in the Class 3A Time Out division.

11 — Southwestern men placed fourth at the Region XI Division I cross country championship at Waterloo. Freshman Jon McCall led the Spartans in 28th place and qualified for the national meet. York Mathis also had a qualifying time during the season. Josh Baudler also qualified but was unable to compete with an injury.

12 — Named second team all-state by the Iowa Print Sports Writers Association were Creston offensive lineman Avery Fuller, Lenox offensive lineman Hernan Caster and Nodaway Valley defensive back Caelen DeVault. Named to the third team were Lenox running back Isaac Grundman, Creston defensive lineman Derek Paup, Nodaway Valley defensive lineman Avery Phillippi and Murray punter Brycen Wookey.

29 — Derek Paup of Creston played in the defensive line for Team Iowa in the River Battle Bowl in Council Bluffs, won by Team Nebraska 28-7.

DECEMBER

2 — Creston graduate Jaden Driskell finished his stint as a student assistant coach for the Northwest Missouri State

offense when the Bearcats fell to No. 1-ranked Ferris State in the Super Region Three title game. The Bearcats went 11-2 in winning an MIAA championship.

6 — Class 2A No. 7-ranked Nodaway Valley girls beat Creston 85-59 at Greenfield, sinking 12 3-pointers and collecting 22 steals. Maddax DeVault scored 25 points for the Wolverines and Whitney Lamb added 21, all from 3-point range. Doryn Paup scored 35 points for Creston and Brianna Fields scored 16.

7 — Steve Birchard of Creston received the 2021 Iowa High School Boys Assistant Track Coach of the Year at the Iowa Association of Track/Cross Country Coaches annual banquet. Also honored was Gary O’Daniels of Creston as Southwest Iowa Region Track Official of the Year from the Iowa Association of Track Officials.

10 — The Southwestern Community College women scored five points in the last nine seconds to win 70-68 at Marshalltown. Hannah Smith’s 3-pointer tied the game with :09 left and Kaylynn Tucker made two free throws after a steal and Marshalltown foul. The win improved SWCC to 7-4 for the season.

13 — The SWCC men upset No. 11-ranked Kirkwood 57-50 as Duke Carey scored 30 points. Brance Baker of Creston had four 3-pointers for the Spartans.

13 — Gracie Hagle made a late 3-pointer to put Creston into the lead for the duration of the game in a 53-48 win over Atlantic. Bri Fields scored 25 points in the victory.

14 — Creston boys gained their first win of the season, 55-48, at Atlantic. Tony Davidson scored 15 points and Cael Turner finished with 14.

14 — Creston wrestlers won the team title at the Riverside Invitational with 204 points and no individual champions. Taking second for the Panthers were Justin Parsons (106) and Christian Ahrens (113).

15 — Simpson College All-American Jenna Taylor of Creston had nine points and 11 rebounds as the Storm knocked off Wartburg, 90-74, in a battle of top 15-ranked teams contending for the American Rivers Conference title this season. Taylor has amassed more than 1,300 points and 600 rebounds in her career at Simpson.

20 — Southwestern men defeated Highland (Kan.) 87-85 in the final game before break as Devon Tomlinson scored 23 points. The third straight win pushed the Spartans to 6-8.

21 — Bedford/Lenox won the Pride of Iowa Conference wrestling tournament with 209 points. Host Nodaway Valley was second with 176.5 and Southwest Valley was third at 150.5. B/L champs were Colby Nelson (120), Conner Fitzgerald (145), Jake Cox (182) and Devin Whipple (285).

21 — Creston wrestlers won the Don Miller Invitational at Fort Dodge, edging Class 3A Ankeny Centennial, 195.5 to 191. Triston Barncastle won a championship for the Panthers at 145 pounds. The next day, Creston (9-0) beat Humboldt 40-24 in a dual preceding Iowa State’s 23-13 victory over Purdue in the Humboldt High School gym. ISU coach Kevin Dresser and Purdue coach Tony Ersland are former Humboldt state champions.

23 — Trevor Downing’s comeback from a 2020 foot injury resulted in a full season in the Iowa State offensive line and he looked forward to playing in the Cheez-It Bowl on Wednesday night. Due to an injury Downing played center in a 20-13 loss to Clemson.

23 — The Creston School District Board of Directors approved the addition of middle school baseball and softball teams to be played at the McKinley Park baseball field and VFW softball field.

27 — The Creston boys basketball team split two games in the 12 Courts of Christmas at Hy-Vee Arena in Kansas City, formerly known as Kemper Arena. Tony Davidson scored 21 points with nine rebounds in a 59-47 win over Penney (Mo.) and Kyle Strider scored 13 points for Creston (3-4) in a 50-35 loss to Oak Park (Mo.).