Parker’s 221-Yard Effort Guides Statesmen Past Culver-Stockton
Oskaloosa–Van Parker (Sr., Muskegon, Mich., Physical Education) took full advantage of his first start as William Penn’s quarterback as he ran all over Culver-Stockton in a 44-21 Heart of America Athletic Conference North Division victory Saturday.
Parker, who called his own number 19 times, broke free on numerous occasions en route to 221 yards (the most since 2011) as WPU (5-3, 2-0 North) won its fifth straight. The streak is the program’s longest since collecting seven in a row in 2012.
The Statesmen defense stood strong on the game’s opening possession, stopping C-SC (1-7, 0-2 North) on fourth down to give the hosts a short field.
Seven plays later, Parker actually went to the air to give the navy and gold the early lead, hooking up with Tyler Phillips (So., Altus, Okla., Physical Education) for a 17-yard passing touchdown just 5:27 into the afternoon. Parker was 3-for-5 for 29 yards.
The Wildcats moved onto the Statesmen side of the field on their ensuing drive, but Walter Eastwood (Sr., Garden City, Mo., Computer Science) shut it down with his second interception of the season.
William Penn failed to put any additional points on the scoreboard in the opening quarter, but early in the second, it doubled its advantage with a seven-yard TD run by Lyle Jennings (Jr., Toronto, Ohio, Exercise Science).
Nate Van Veldhuizen (So., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Mechanical Engineering) was heavily utilized in his team’s next scoring drive as he rushed four times. The sophomore helped WPU into the redzone and Parker, who has taken over signal-caller duties for the injured Eric Cooper (Jr., Aguanga, Calif., Human Services), took it the final 15 yards to make it 20-0 (extra point was missed).
Culver-Stockton closed the gap to 20-7 at halftime, but the home squad gained a few of those points back on a 22-yard field goal by Samson Tamijani (So., Houston, Texas, Digital Communication) early in the third period.
The following drive was the biggest of the day. The visitors marched into the redzone, eventually pushing all the way to the William Penn 1-yard line. That is when Jake Baptiste (Salt Lake City, Utah, Psychology) recorded the top individual play of the win, recovering the fumbled pigskin in front of the goal line.
Amos Johnson (Jr., Rock Island, Ill., Mechanical Engineering) served as the workhorse for the next possession that basically put the win on ice. He carried five times, including a 44-yarder, and finished it off with a three-yard TD run. Johnson ended up with 67 yards.
The final stanza was a back-and-forth battle with both teams scoring twice. Carl Sivels (Jr., Washington, Iowa, Physical Education) did so first with an eight-yard scamper, and Van Veldhuizen put the proverbial cherry on top, crashing in from a yard away in the final two minutes. The sophomore accounted for 69 yards.
C-SC entered with one of the best passing attacks in the nation, but was slowed way down in that aspect early, eventually warming up to finish with 314 yards through the air (405 total). Behind Parker’s gigantic performance, the navy and gold rushed for 496 yards and ended up with 525 overall.
Johnathan Ward (Sr., Terry, Miss., Physical Education), with 43 yards, and Jennings, with another 41 yards, also contributed to William Penn’s offensive success.
The defense bent at times, but showed their mettle when necessary. The total team effort included three players tallying a team-high eight tackles. The trio included Baptiste, Winston Green (Jr., Sacramento, Calif., Psychology and Sociology), and Mason Wisse (Jr., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Physical Education).
Statesmen defenders were able to get to the Wildcat quarterback four times with Green, Wisse, Cooper Gosch (So., Reeds Springs, Okla., Education), and Resean Coleman (So., River Rouge, Mich., Exercise Science) all recording sacks Saturday.
“This was a great win for our team,” Head Coach Todd Hafner said. “This team has overcome so much and they are such fun to coach. We will continue to grind out wins and keep up the momentum we have built. One day at a time, one week at a time, one dream!”
Next Up: William Penn travels to Atchison, Kan. to face #19 Benedictine in North play at 1 p.m.