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The Riverside Bulldogs girls basketball team are continuing to pile up wins as they head into the home stretch of the season. The Bulldogs are 12-2 on the season and have won nine of their last ten games. Their only loss in that stretch was to the 12-1 Treynor Cardinals. Therefore, it is no surprise that head coach Mark Jeppesen has been extremely pleased with the way his team has played.
One of the main reasons Riverside has been so successful this season has been their defense. A new defense that although tricky to learn, has been paying dividends.
And with the high-pressure defense has come a quick transition offense.
It really has been a score by committee mindset for the Bulldogs. Although Riverside does not have player that averages over 10 points per game, eight average at last three while four average over six points per game. Sophomores Sydney Somers and Kayden Schnack lead the Bulldogs averaging 7.7 and 7.5 points per game respectively. Jeppesen knows that the more players that score the harder they are defend.
As the season heads to its conclusion, playing clean basketball will be a point of emphasis as Riverside charges towards the postseason.
Up next for the Bulldogs are the Cam Cougars. Jeppesen says his team cannot look ahead and must be ready to compete.
Tip-off in Anita is scheduled for 6 pm Thursday night.
(Des Moines, Iowa; Iowa Capital Dispatch) – An Iowa Senate subcommittee advanced a bill Wednesday that would make assaulting referees a Class D felony, in addition to providing civil liability protections to sports officials. Sen. Jeff Reichman, R-Montrose, said he proposed Senate File 50 in light of the assault of a referee in December at a high school basketball game in Burlington by a parent who disagreed with a call during the game. The alleged assailant had previously pleaded guilty to assaulting a referee at a 2022 basketball game at Fort Madison Middle School and was charged with a serious misdemeanor.
Reichman said “It’s the same guy, so obviously there needs to be some penalties, because he offended once, (he) was charged with that, it didn’t deter him from assaulting again.” He added the situation “Definitely shows the reason that these officials need more protections.” Others, like Jacob Holck, a football official, said the proposal would help stop increasing assaults and threats against people working as sports officials throughout the state. However, Andrew Mertens with the Iowa Association for Justice said while assaults on sports officials are “real issues” facing Iowa, raising the penalties and providing civil liability protections may not be the best approach to preventing these crimes. He also said the language exempting sports officials from liability in civil cases for injuries or damages for their “actions or inactions” when acting as an officiant could be an issue when problems arise during a sports game.
Jacob Holck, a football official, spoke in support of a measure raising penalties for assaulting sports officials during a subcommittee meeting Jan. 22, 2025. (Photo by Robin Opsahl/Iowa Capital Dispatch)
Sen. Herman Quirmbach, D-Ames, said he did not support putting sports officials in a special class when judging assaults that would be “above and beyond the protections that are already in place for everybody else in society.” He said Iowa law currently contains higher penalties and protections for people who serve in fields like law enforcement and emergency services — fields “where they are doing their duty to help save or protect the safety of other people” — but that he did not believe sports officials met that criteria. Sen. Scott Webster, R-Bettendorf, said that throughout his time playing sports he has seen referees have “gotten a harder and harder job,” and supported providing additional protections for these officials.
Reichman and Webster supported the bill moving forward to the full Senate Judiciary Committee, saying that discussions will continue on potential changes to the liability language. A companion bill also advanced Wednesday from a House subcommittee.
After a rough stretch of losing four of five a few weeks ago, the AHSTW Lady Vikes Basketball team continues to improve and has now won two of their last three games. Despite losing to a tough St. Albert team on Monday, the Lady Vikes closed out last week with a win at Underwood and followed up Monday’s loss with a win against Tri-Center on Tuesday. The wins moved their conference record to an even .500 as they now sit at 4-4 in the WIC. Although their over record is not stunning, head coach Jason McCall says the team’s positive mindset allows them to grow.
It is no secret that the Lady Vikes are a young team, playing without a senior on the roster. Although some would consider this a disadvantage, McCall sees it as an opportunity.
A pair of young guns are leading the way for AHSTW. Sophomore Bella Lamp currently leads the team in scoring, assists and steals. She averages over seven points per night while picking up nearly 3 steals and 2 assist per game. Not far behind is Freshman Clara Pace. Second on the team in scoring, Pace averages 6.4 points per game and is second on the team in rebounds grabbing 5.5 per game. Although they score in different ways, both have continued to grow and gain confidence throughout the course of the year.
Although the Lady Vikes have struggled with scoring at times, averaging 31.9 points per game as a team, McCall knows it’s about the creation of the opportunities that counts at this stage.
AHSTW still has work to do. One of their biggest bugaboos this season has been turnovers. However, McCall is confident with his group’s attitude that they will continue to get better as the season and the years progress.
The Lady Vikes will be back in action Friday when they take on the 12-1 Treynor Cardinals. Tip-off from Treynor is scheduled for 6 pm.
IOWA CITY, Iowa – University of Iowa track and field’s Ryan Johnson and Chioma Nwachukwu earned Big Ten Athlete of the Week honors, the league announced on Wednesday. Johnson was tabbed the Big Ten Men’s Field Athlete of the Week, while Nwachukwu was named the Big Ten Women’s Freshman of the Week. These are the first weekly conference honors for both Johnson and Nwachukwu.
Johnson, a sophomore from Springboro, Ohio, shined in his Hawkeye debut, launching a personal-best 24.00 meters to win the men’s weight throw at the Hawkeye Invitational on Jan. 17. He rose to the top of Iowa’s all-time list in the event. Johnson’s mark leads the nation and has improved his own U20 world record.
On the track, Nwachukwu sped to a 53.32 finish in the 400 meters, claiming the Hawkeye Invitational event title and rising to seventh on Iowa’s all-time list. Nwachukwu is the fastest freshman in the event this season and currently ranks seventh nationally in the 400 meters. The Hawkeyes turned to Nwachukwu to run the third leg of the title-winning 4×400-meter relay that crossed the line in 3:47.31.
Iowa hosts the annual Larry Wieczorek Invitational on January 24-25 at the Hawkeye Indoor Track Facility and Hawkeye Tennis and Recreation Complex.
The Iowa Hawkeye women snapped a five game losing skid in lopsided fashion. The Hawkeyes shot a scorching 71 percent and crushed Washington 85-61 in Seattle. Iowa led by as many as 36 in the fourth quarter. Lucy Olsen led the Hawks with 20 points.
The Hawkeyes were nine-of-13 from three point range as they improve to 3-6 in the Big Ten. Iowa coach Jan Jensen.
The Iowa State women outscored BYU 28-11 in the third quarter in an 83-59 win in Hilton Coliseum as the Cyclones move to 5-3 in the Big 12.
That’s ISU coach Bill Fennelly. The Cyclones trailed by six at the end of the opening quarter.
Audi Crooks led the Cyclones with 24 points while Addy Brown had 22 points and added nine assists.
Bennett Stirtz scored 24 points and dished out nine assists as Drake beat Valparaiso 81-71 in the Knapp Center. The Bulldogs were nine-of -16 from three point range in winning their fifth straight game.
That’s Bulldog coach Ben McCollum. Drake led by as many as 17 points in the second half and withstood two second half Valpo rallies.
Drake is 7-2 in the Missouri Valley and 17-2 overall. They visit Missouri State Saturday.
Tytan Anderson had 20 points and 10 rebounds as UNI beat Missouri State 79-68. Jacob Hutson added 16 points as the Panthers bounced back from a lopsided loss at Southern Illinois.
That’s UNI coach Ben Jacobson. The Panthers also got 28 points from the bench.
The Panthers are 6-3 in the Missouri Valley and 12-8 overall.
Third ranked Iowa State used a 26-10 run to close the opening half and raced away to a 108-83 win over Central Florida in Hilton Coliseum. After making only one three pointer in a loss at West Virginia the Cyclones responded by making nine-of-22 against UCF.
That’s ISU coach T.J. Otzelberger. It was a big night for Cyclone forward Joshua Jefferson who finished with a career high 30 pints. He also had seven rebounds.
Jefferson says defense ignited the offense. The Cyclones forced 19 UCF turnovers.
The Cyclones are 6-1 in the Big 12 and are 16-2 overall for just the fourth time in program history.
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