D2 District 7 (8 Man) Top Player Performances of the Week
Congratulations to this week's top players! We're covering the best performances from Friday's football action (using all statistics entered as of the time of writing). Enjoy!
A Season-Best Effort from Morgan Kinney Leads Ainsworth over Creighton
Ainsworth was led to victory by Morgan Kinney, who turned in his biggest game of the season on Friday. Kinney wasn't messing around, rushing for 151 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 8.4 yards per carry, and also throwing for 132 yards and three touchdowns on only ten passes. The matchup was his third straight with three or more rushing touchdowns dating back to last season.
The win (which was Ainsworth's fourth in a row) raised their record to 4-3. Kinney and Ainsworth will welcome Elgin/Pope John at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday.
Gamescore: 87.65
Cooper Arehart Crosses Big Stat Threshold
Neligh-Oakdale came up short on Friday despite Cooper Arehart delivering his best game to date. Arehart rushed for 161 yards and four touchdowns, and also threw for 264 yards and a touchdown. Thanks to that strong showing, he's now averaging 2.1 rushing touchdowns per game. His longest rush was for an incredible 75 yards.
Arehart and Neligh-Oakdale will face off against St. Mary's at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The game will pit Arehart up against the Cardinals' star QB Gage Hedstrom. With so much talent on the field, fans are surely in for an exciting game. The only thing left to see is who brings home the W.
Gamescore: 84.65
Grady Drueke Has Career-Day on Friday
On Friday, Elgin/Pope John got the W thanks in part to Grady Drueke playing the best football he has all season. Drueke rushed for 179 yards and two touchdowns, good enough to set a new career-high in rushing yards in the process. He didn't just play on offense: he also made 11 total tackles and defended a pass in addition to snagging an interception.
On the season, Drueke has run in 13 touchdowns while averaging 126 rushing yards per game. He's made a big improvement compared to last season: at this point last year, he had four rushing touchdowns.
Gamescore: 55.85
Gage Hedstrom's Big Game Leads St. Mary's over North Central
Gage Hedstrom continued his hot streak on Friday by dropping his fourth-straight game (dating back to last season) with at least two rushing touchdowns. He rushed for 73 yards and two touchdowns on only five carries, and also threw for 80 yards and two touchdowns. The bulk of those rushing yards came from one huge play: a run that gained an incredible 71 yards.
This season, Hedstrom has thrown 19 touchdowns while averaging 176.7 passing yards per game. That doesn't tell the whole story though: at this point last year, he was only averaging 72.33 passer rating per game. This year he is averaging 113.77 passer rating.
Gamescore: 54.48
Jacob Held Makes It Two for Ainsworth
The second Ainsworth player making an appearance here is Jacob Held, and for good reason. He picked up 61 receiving yards and a touchdown.
On the season, Held has caught 3 touchdowns while averaging 24.1 receiving yards per game. He's made a big improvement compared to last season: at this point last year, he was only averaging ten receiving yards per game.
Gamescore: 54.18
Other Notable Players
- Logan Schroedl: 71 yards receiving, 2 TDs (Gamescore: 34.93)
- Jace Rosenkrans: 68 yards rushing, 2 TDs (Gamescore: 33.45)
- Chris Fernandez: 115 yards passing; 85 yards rushing, 1 TD (Gamescore: 29.17)
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
