Indians Seal District Title With Win Over South Tama
Oskaloosa, Iowa – The Indians are District 7 Champions after a win over South Tama on Friday night.
It’s been since 2006 that the Indians were outright champions of their district, and Head Coach Jake Jenkins and his team were obviously happy to end that drought.
The first half of the game belonged to the Indians starters, as they went out and set the tone for the game. Getting better is something Jenkins believes in and preaches every week to his players.
The Indian’s defense held South Tama to just 8 points in the first half, while racking up 49 first-half points, 35 of those coming in the first quarter.
“I thought we executed well, and I thought we took them seriously like we said we were going to. Overall, I’m very proud of their effort as a team. When we got our sophomores in at the end, our JV offense scored twice. I was extremely proud,” said Jenkins.
“Seeing those young guys play, and play hard is extremely exciting,” added Jenkins. “That experience is just so valuable moving forward and they played some serious varsity reps already.”
The Indians have ended the season mostly injury free compared to years past. “I think overall we’re OK,” said Jenkins of the injury list.
“It was just a very exciting evening overall,” said Jenkins who added he is proud of his team, who has prepared hard week to week.
The Indians got their scoring underway in the first quarter, with 8:21 remaining on the Clock, Cole Henry connected to Dylan VanLeuven for the 29-yard touchdown pass. The PAT kick by Aaron Blom was good. Oskaloosa up 7-0.
With 6:47 remaining in the first quarter, Henry then connects with Nikolas Dykstra for the 26-yard reception. The PAT by Bloom is good, and Oskaloosa up 14-0.
The scoring machine was in high gear when the defense took their turn. RaShaung Braggs intercepted the Drake Crawford pass with 3:48 on the clock. Braggs returned the ball 60 yards for the Indians touchdown. Blom was good with the PAT and Oskaloosa up 21-0.
The special team got their chance to score when Casey Hill blocked the Keith Keahna punt and Walker Newman picked it up for a 2 yard TD. Blom booted the PAT through the uprights and Oskaloosa was up 28-0.
Then Indians Cole Henry found Tyler Miller, with just 19 seconds remaining in the first quarter, for a 19-yard touchdown. Kick by Blom was good and the Indians were up 35-0.
With 5:48 on the clock in the 2nd quarter, Henry finds Iszac Schultz in the end zone. The kick from Blom was good, and the Indians are up 42-0.
South Tama responded to Oskaloosa with 3:49 remaining in the second quarter when Payton Vest carries the ball 68 yards for the touchdown. A 2-point conversion pass from Crawford to Keahna was good, and the score was Oskaloosa 42, and South Tama 8.
With 2:54 seconds remaining in the half, Casey Hill carries the ball 17 yards for the Oskaloosa touchdown. Blom’s kick was good, and Oskaloosa was up 49-8.
The third quarter was South Tama’s. With 11:47 on the clock in the 3rd quarter, Vest passes to Keahna for the 80-yard touchdown. The PAT pass from Padilla to Vest was no good, and the score was 49-14 in favor of the Indians.
With 3:54 seconds remaining in the 3rd quarter, Vest carries the ball 57 yards for the South Tama touchdown. The PAT kick by Padilla was good, and the score was 49-21.
The Indians underclassman got their motor running when Leland Evans carried in the ball from 2 yards out with 11:22 on the clock. The kick by Blom was good, and the Indians were up 56-21.
The final score of the night came with 2:49 remaining when Leland Evans carried the ball from 1 yard out. The PAT by Blom was good making him perfect on the night. The final score of 63-21 in favor of the Indians.
The Indians had 19 first downs compared to South Tama’s 11.
Offensively, the Indians had 47 plays resulting in a total of 420 yards. South Tama had 50 plays for a total of 342 yards.
Yards broken down have Oskaloosa with 240 yards rushing, with 180 yards passing. South Tama had 234 yards rushing with 108 in the air.
Casey Hill averaged 19.3 yards per carry, with a 51-yard rush being his longest. Hill had 116 net yards with 1 touchdown.
Andrew Else had 57 yards rushing, and Leland Evans had 48 yards rushing with 2 touchdowns.
Peyton Vest lead South Tama with 175 total rushing yards on 15 attempts and scoring 2 touchdowns.
Cole Henry had 146 yards of passing and 4 touchdowns for the Indians. Andrew Else had 34 yards of passing on the night.
Vest lead South Tama in passing with 88 total yards and 1 touchdown.
Tyler Miller had 53 yards of receiving and 1 touchdown for the Indians. Cale Holmberg had 32 yards of receiving, while Casey Hill added 37 yards receiving. Dylan VanLeuven had 29 yards receiving and 1 touchdown for Oskaloosa.
Keith Keahna lead South Tama receiving with a total of 90 yards and 1 touchdown.
Defensively, Casey Hill and Aaron Blom each had 7 total tackles, while Leland Evans had 6 total tackles, and Kenny Settimi added 4 total tackles for the Indians.
Aaron Neave lead South Tama’s defensive effort with 12 total tackles, while Rogelio Flores added 5 more.
The Indians (8-1) will host Harlan (7-2) at the Community Stadium on Friday night. Kick-off is scheduled for 7 pm.
