Iowa State safety Beau Freyler will make his final start in a Cyclone uniform in the same stadium he made his initial start. The 18th ranked Cyclones play 13th ranked Miami in Saturday’s Pop Tarts Bowl. Freyler’s first start was in a 20-13 loss to Clemson when the game was called the Cheez-It Bowl.

Freyler appeared in all 13 games as a freshman but responded in his first start in the bowl game by recording 15 tackles.

Freyler says the extra time for bowl prep helped him get ready.

Freyler on preparing for his final game in a Cyclone uniform.

1. Logan-Magnolia/Woodbine – 187.5

2. Missouri Valley – 185

3. Riverside – 158.5

4. Treynor – 150.5

5. Audubon – 88

6. ATU – 82

Audubon Champion: Macy Rasmussen (120)

Riverside Champions: Jersey Hilgenberg (100), Hailey Harvey (115), Molly Allen (125)

Logan-Magnolia/Woodbine Champions: Jordan Buffum (130), Teagan Carritt (140), Nancy Bowman (170), Mary Bowman (190)

Missouri Valley Champions: Lea Gute (135), Ryley Marcum (155), Jocelyn Buffum (235)

Treynor Champion: Emma Miller (105), Jordyn Boswell (110), Liz Young (145)

MUSTANG DUALS AT SHENANDOAH

Millard West JV – 52 vs CAM 24

Interstate 35 – 65 vs CAM 12

Shenandoah – 60 vs CAM 12

Lewis Central JV – 36 vs CAM 24

Griswold – 36 vs CAM 28

Lewis Central JV – 42 vs Griswold 21

Shenandoah – 63 vs Griswold 6

Millard West JV – 63 vs Griswold 6

Interstate 35 – 71 vs Griswold 6

Interstate 35 – 78 vs Millard West JV 0

Interstate 35 – 72 vs Lewis Central JV 6

Shenandoah – 42 vs Interstate 35 36

Shenandoah – 59 vs Lewis Central JV 16

Shenandoah – 54 vs Millard West JV 21

Millard West JV – 65 vs Lewis Central JV 12

Griswold winners: RJ Dishong (5), Ethan Baxter (2), Hudson Perkins (2), Dane Carey, Jaden Jensen, Quentyn Ruchti-Wilson, Nollan Smith, Holden Jensen RJ Dishong (5x)

CAM winners: Kason Calhoun (4), Brentyn Hoover (4), William Rouse (4), Reilly Becker (3), Landon Calhoun (2)

Pride of Iowa Conference Tournament 

1. Nodaway Valley – 223.5

2. Wayne – 181.5

3. Central Decatur – 156.5

4. Lenox – 141

5. Southeast Warren/Melcher-Dallas – 132.5

6. Mount Ayr – 106.5

7. East Union – 104.5

8. Southwest Valley – 101

9. Martensdale-St. Marys – 98

Champions

106: Justice Norman (16-2) – East Union

113: Jensen Dyer (13-0) – Martensdale-St. Marys

120: Ty Strode (17-1) – Nodaway Valley

126: Brock Shaha (11-0) –  Mount Ayr

132: Keyin Steeve (16-2) – Nodaway Valley

138: Max Pollock (12-1) – Wayne

144: Tully Wood (13-0) – Wayne

150: Austin Henderson (12-1) –  Wayne

157: Dylan Stein (15-1) – Lenox

165: Ian Forsythe (16-5) Southwest Valley

175: Terrian Islas (19-0) – East Union

190: Jordan Martin-England(11-0) – Lenox

215: Ashton Honnold (18-0) –  Nodaway Valley

285: Trent Warner (19-0)  Nodaway Valley

Hawkeye Ten Conference 

Lewis Central – 72 vs Atlantic – 46

Harlan – 66 vs Red Oak – 51

St. Albert – 73 vs Shenandoah – 34 

Glenwood – 68 vs Creston – 54

Rolling Valley Conference 

Paton-Churdan – 61 vs CAM – 59

Woodbine – 86 vs Ar-We-Va – 43

Glidden-Ralston – 70 vs Boyer Valley – 62

Exira-EHK – 53 vs West Harrison – 33

Western Iowa Conference 

AHSTW – 75 vs Missouri Valley – 50

Logan-Magnolia – 59 vs Riverside – 51

Treynor – 79 vs IKM-Manning – 49

Pride of Iowa Conference 

Wayne – 52 vs Nodaway Valley – 38

Southeast Warren – 68 vs Southwest Valley – 50

Central Decatur – 57 vs Lenox – 48 

Martensdale-St. Marys – 43 vs East Union – 22

Corner Conference 

Bedford – 78 vs Hamburg – 27

Non-Conference 

Underwood – 47 vs Conestoga – 44

Mount Ayr – 59 vs Worth County – 21

Hawkeye Ten Conference 

Lewis Central – 54 vs Atlantic – 50

Harlan – 83 vs Red Oak – 41

St. Albert – 51 vs Shenandoah – 48

Glenwood – 49 vs Creston – 40

Western Iowa Conference 

AHSTW – 52 vs Missouri Valley – 40

Riverside – 44 vs Logan-Magnolia – 38

Treynor – 62 vs IKM-Manning – 36

Western Iowa Conference 

Riverside – 44 vs Logan-Magnolia – 38

AHSTW – 52 vs Missouri Valley – 40

Treynor – 62 vs IKM-Manning – 36

Rolling Valley Conference 

CAM – 54 vs Paton-Churdan – 13

Woodbine – 65 vs Ar-We-Va – 21

Boyer Valley – 59 vs Glidden-Ralston – 26

Pride of Iowa Conference 

Nodaway Valley – 58 Wayne – 50

Southeast Warren – 41 vs Southwest Valley – 38

Lenox – 47 vs Central Decatur 39

Martensdale-St. Marys – 60 vs East Union 14

Corner Conference 

Bedford – 71 vs Hamburg – 5

Non-Conference 

Underwood – 56 vs Conestoga – 25

Mount Ayr – 58 vs Worth County – 17

The Atlantic Trojans girls basketball team dropped their Friday night contest to the Lewis Central Titans in a game that came down to the wire. Although the Trojans dominated the first half, the Titans flipped the script in the third quarter, taking the lead at the end of the half. The fourth quarter was a battle that Atlantic fought valiantly but ultimately came up just short in a 54-50 loss.

From the get-go, it was clear that the Trojans were motivated. Looking for their first win against Lewis Central in 20 years, Atlantic got off to a good start as they opened the scoring with a Peytn Hartr field goal and a Zoey Kirchhoff free throw. Although the Titans responded with a five-point run of their own, it would be the last time Lewis Central led in the first half. Hartr and the Trojans offense exploded. In addition to Hartr’s six first-half field goals, Lila Wiederstein knocked down three while Kirchhoff hit two three-pointers. The Trojans’ defense also played lights out in the first half. They not only limited the Titan’s opportunities but forced them into turnovers. To put an exclamation point on a stellar first half, Makenna Schroeder sunk a long three-point buzzer-beater to give the Trojans a 32-19 lead at the half.

Although Atlantic was able to maintain their lead for the first few minutes of the third quarter, the tide slowly started to turn. Lewis Central made adjustments on both sides of the ball as they started to chip into the Trojans’ lead. Defensively, the Titans keyed in on Hartr in the paint, limiting her to just one second-half field goal. Atlantic scored just 4 points in the third quarter. Offensively, Larsen made her presence felt on the inside. She hit six field goals and went eight-for-nine at the charity stripe to accumulate 20 second-half points. As time ticked down in the third quarter, a last-second foul and ensuing free throws gave Lewis Central their first lead since early in the opening quarter.

Now down by two, the Trojans did everything they could to give themselves a chance to win. Although the Titans extended their lead to early in the fourth, Atlantic battled back at every turn. Down by three with under two minutes to go, Kirchoff came up with a steal and sprinted down for a breakaway layup to cut the deficit to one. Despite getting a stop on the next possession, Atlantic failed to score and with the shot clock off, was forced to foul. Larsen knocked down the ensuing free throws, but Atlantic wasn’t done yet. With 17 seconds remaining, Wiederstein earned a trip to the free throw line. She knocked down both with the game on the line to again make it a one-point game. However, Atlantic’s only option was to foul and hope for a miss. Unfortunately for the Trojans, Larsen hit her remaining to lift Lewis Central to the win.

Although the loss is a tough one to swallow, the improvement from the start of the year to now is apparent. When put in similar situations earlier in the year the Trojans did not handle it nearly as well as they did Friday. Head Coach Dan Vargason was proud of the way his team battled when faced with adversity.

Although Atlantic’s four-game winning streak came to an end, Vargason likes how his team is playing heading into the holiday break.

The 5-3 Trojans will be back in action on January 3rd when they host Shenandoah.

The Atlantic Trojans boys basketball team fell to the Lewis Central Titans on Friday night. Despite a lack of offense in the first quarter and foul trouble in the second half, the Trojans continued to battle. However, Lewis Central was crisper and was able to capitalize on more opportunities to down the Trojans 72-46.

Offensive opportunities were at a premium in the opening quarter. However, Atlantic was able to start the game on a 5-0 run, courtesy of a Grant Petty three-pointer and a Reid Woodward field goal. In a physical first quarter, both teams’ defenses limited scoring opportunities, as Atlantic wouldn’t score again in the quarter. Despite this, Lewis Central’s offense was just as slow out of the gate. The Titans also scored just 5 points as the teams ended the first quarter tied.

Although the game remained physical, the second quarter was a different story. Led by Ramon Ware, Lewis Central’s offense would break through. Ware hit three second-quarter field goals and added a three-pointer. Although Gavin McLaren had three field goals of his own, Lewis Central would head to the half with a 24-14 lead.

Whereas the first half was marred with physicality, the second half was marked with lots of fouls. With three minutes remaining in the third quarter, both teams were in the double bonus. By the halfway point of the fourth quarter, Atlantic was in the double bonus again with Lewis Central not far behind. Despite the foul trouble, Atlantic played some of its best basketball in the third quarter. They moved the ball well and were able to get to the inside. Despite not shrinking the deficit, they were able to battle and held surge to keep the game from getting out of hand. Gavin McLaren led the way once again adding three more field goals, finishing the game as Atlantic’s top scorer with 15 points.

Despite the fight from the Trojans, the Titans would pull away in the fourth quarter. Ware finished the game with 15 points to lead Lewis Central in scoring. Carter Teelin lead the second half for the Titans, adding four field goals to finish the game with 12 points. With the win, the Titans improved to 4-1.

Head Coach Dalton Franken was proud of his group’s fight but said turnovers were a key issue.

Despite Lewis Central being in foul trouble for a good portion of the second half, Atlantic missed 10 free throws in the second half. Franken knows it’s an aspect of the Trojans’ game that needs to get better.

The Trojans head into the holiday break with a 1-5 record and will look to improve over the Christmas break.

Atlantic will be back in action on January 3rd when they host Shenandoah.

Iowa football coach Kirk Ferentz has named Brendan Sullivan the starter at quarterback for the Hawkeyes in the December 30th Music City Bowl against Missouri. Sullivan missed the final two games after suffering an ankle injury in the November eighth 20-17 loss at UCLA.

Stratton started the final two games of the regular season as the Hawkeyes beat Maryland and Nebraska. Ferentz says Sullivan is fully healthy and has returned to practice.

Ferentz says freshman receiver Reese Vander Zee will be available against Missouri. He missed the final four games with a lower leg injury.

The Iowa Hawkeye men return from final exams to take on Utah Saturday afternoon. The game will be at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls.

That’s Iowa coach Fran McCaffery. Sioux Falls has become a regular destination for the Hawkeyes.

Utah is 8-2 and beat the Hawkeyes in the second round of last season’s N-I-T.

It will be a 5:30pm tip-off in Sioux Falls.

SPRINGFIELD, MASS. – The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, Thursday, announced the list of eligible candidates for the Class of 2025, featuring several high-profile first-time nominees. Candidates for the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2025 include Carmelo Anthony, Sue Bird, Maya Moore, Dwight Howard, Doc Rivers, Billy Donovan, Sylvia Fowles, Chamique Holdsclaw, Mark Few, former Iowa Women’s Coach Lisa Bluder, Marc Gasol, and Micky Arison. The complete list of nominees can be found HERE.

Bluder is a Marion, Iowa, native who played basketball at Northern Iowa before going into coaching. She spent six seasons at St. Ambrose College in Davenport, where she had a 169-36 record between 1984 and 1990. She moved on to Drake University in 1990, where she had a 293-188 record over 10 years.

She spent 24 seasons at Iowa, where the Hawkeyes won at least 20 games in each of her last eight seasons — including 38 and 39 in the last two, respectively, when they reached the NCAA championship game. She was 528-254 overall at Iowa and 262-145 in the Big Ten Conference.

Lisa Bluder (University of Iowa photo)

The Missouri Valley Conference announced this week that Bluder had been selected for the MVC Hall of Fame. That induction ceremony will be held March 7 during the men’s basketball tournament in St. Louis, Missouri.

Finalists chosen from the applicable Category Screening Committees for the Class of 2025 will be announced on Friday, February 14, in San Francisco as part of NBA All-Star Weekend. The entire Class of 2025 will be unveiled during a nationally televised broadcast at the NCAA Final Four in San Antonio on Saturday, April 5.

The announcement time and broadcast network for both the Finalist and the Class Announcement will be announced in the near future.