By Bob Bakken
MaxPreps.com
Softball tournament revenue this year fell by $56,000 compared to last year’s figures, according to new Iowa Girls' High School Athletic Union executive director Mike Dick. Those findings were part of his first financial report to the organization's board of directors last Tuesday.
Weather was part of the reason behind the softball shortfall. A snowstorm around state basketball tournament time also cost the Union more than $80,000 additional dollars. That figure included an extra $10,000 in unexpected travel costs for teams that played in the tournament.
The union runs on a budget of about $3 million dollars and Dick told the board that the financial hits are hurting the bottom line.
Football: Valley Runs Win Streak to 20
The team everyone expects to bully its way to the state championship in Class 4-A didn't disappoint Friday night. The West Des Moines Valley Tigers claimed their 20th straight regular season victory with an easy 54-0 conquest of Marshalltown.
Zach Cutkomp starred for the top-ranked Tigers with a five-touchdown, 168-yard rushing effort in the CIML Iowa Conference encounter. Valley racked up 353 offensive yards, including 242 on the ground.
The yardage came on a rainy, sloppy field that failed to hamper Valley quarterback Taylor Nelson’s passing efforts. Nelson hit 7-of-10 attempts for 111 yards and still has not been intercepted through three weeks of the season.
Football: Jones Becomes All-Time Passing Leader
As expected, Cherokee’s Tyler Jones became the state’s all-time passing yardage leader in a game at Milford-Okoboji in the northwest corner of the Hawkeye State.
Jones officially earned 141 passing yards by completing 11-of-26 attempts, improving his career mark to 7,789 yards. The total surpasses Keokuk’s James Vandenberg, who led the Chiefs to the Class 3-A title last year and finished his time with 7,701 yards.
Jones is reportedly 45 pass completions away from entering the nation’s top 10 for career connections. He now has 667 pass completions during his high school football career.
Depsite Cherokee’s success in the air, Okoboji won the game on a four-yard touchdown run by Max Burgeson with 20 seconds left in the game for a 31-27 victory. Cherokee is 0-3 on the season.
Volleyball: Valley Upsets Top-Ranked Johnston
Expect a new No. 1 team at the top of the Class 4-A volleyball rankings toward the end of the week, as top-ranked Johnston lost its first match of the season Tuesday night. The Dragons lost in five games to No. 10 West Des Moines Valley, stopping a 22-match win streak by Johnston.
The Tigers ran their record to 12-2 with the victory, as the squad that starts five juniors and one senior has lost only to Cedar Rapids Kennedy and second-ranked Ankeny. Valley’s Alex Borlabi had 15 kills in the match for the Tigers. Abby Sonner led Johnston (8-1) with 16 kills.
Soccer: Valley’s Chapman Named National Coach of the Year
This week’s Iowa report may have a familiar West Des Moines Valley flair to it, but it’s been that good of a week for the Tigers.
The football team wins its 20th straight game, the volleyball team upset top-ranked Johnston, and now the girls soccer coach has been named the national coach of the year.
Rob Chapman received the honor as National Girls' Soccer Coach of the Year by the National High School Athletic Coaches Association. The recognition came after a nomination from competing coach, Jim Wright of Urbandale.
Chapman has been coaching at Valley since 1996, winning 11 conference crowns and five state championships. He has been the Iowa coach of the year on four occasions and the Tigers are unbeaten in state competition over their last four tournament appearances.
They held a ceremony to recognize Chapman’s accomplishments last Friday at Valley High School in the Des Moines suburb.
Cross Country: Rankings Released
The Iowa Association of Track Coaches has announced its rankings of cross country teams for the week. Top teams in boys' cross country include Iowa City High (4-A), Decorah (3-A), Spirit Lake (2-A), and South Winnishiek (1-A).
On the girls’ side, the number one ranked teams include West Des Moines Dowling (4-A), Decorah (3-A), LaPorte City Union (2-A), and Elgin-Valley (1-A).
