Northern Iowa coach Todd Stepsis says offense holds the key going forward. The Panthers are 0-2 in the Missouri Valley after a loss at second ranked South Dakota State and will return to action at home on Saturday against South Dakota. UNI turned it over five times last week.

Stepsis feels there is potential on offense.

Stepsis says success on offense begins with the run game.

Quarterback Matthew Schecklman has struggled the past few weeks and had two interceptions at South Dakota State.

Stepsis says the challenge for the Panther defense this week will be slowing down South Dakota running back L.J. Phillips. He has already topped one thousand yards on the ground.

The top ranked teams are the same in the latest Radio Iowa High School Football Poll. Todd Kimm reports.

Class 5A
1. Waukee Northwest (7-0), LW #1 vs Waukee
2. WDM Valley (6-1), LW #2 @ #6 Ankeny
3. Dowling Catholic (6-1), LW vs #10 Ankeny Centennial
4. Iowa City Liberty (6-1), LW #5 vs Iowa City High
5. Sioux City East (6-1), LW #7 vs CB Abe Lincoln
6. Ankeny (5-2), LW #6 vs #2 Valley
7. Iowa City West (6-1), LW #8 @ CR Prairie
8. Cedar Falls (6-1), LW #9 @ Linn-Mar
9. Johnston (5-2), LW #4 @ S.E. Polk
10.Ankeny Centennial (4-3), LW (X) @ #3 Dowling

Class 4A
1. Cedar Rapids Xavier (7-0), LW #1 vs #8 Decorah
2. Sergeant Bluff-Luton (6-1), LW #2 vs Sioux City West
3. North Polk (6-1), LW #3 vs Carlisle
4. ADM (Adel) (6-1), LW #4 vs Lewis Central
5. Newton (6-1), LW #5 vs Grinnell
6. Gilbert (7-0), LW #6 vs DSM North
7. Pella (6-1), LW #7 vs Clear Creek-Amana
8. Decorah (6-1), LW #8 @ #1 Xavier
9. Western Dubuque (5-2) LW (X) vs Clinton
10.Fort Dodge (6-1), LW #10 vs Le Mars

Class 3A
1. Clear Lake (7-0), LW #1 @ Charles City
2. Solon (7-0), LW #2 @ Mount Pleasant
3. Bishop Heelan (6-1), LW #3 @ Humboldt
4. West Delaware (7-0), LW #5 @ Benton
5. Sioux Center (6-1), LW #6 vs MOC-Floyd Valley
6. Des Moines Christian (6-1), LW #9 vs #10 Nevada
7. Wahlert Catholic (5-2), LW #8 @ #9 Mount Vernon
8. Central DeWitt (5-2), LW (X) @ Maquoketa
9. Mount Vernon (5-2), LW #4 vs #7 Wahlert
10.Nevada (5-2), LW (X) @ #6 DSM Christian

Class 2A
1. Kuemper Catholic (7-0), LW #1 vs #4 Okoboji
2. Osage (7-0), LW #2 vs Forest City
3. PCM (Monroe) (6-1), LW #3 vs #5 Centerville
4. Okoboji (7-0), LW #4 @ #1 Kuemper
5. Centerville (7-0), LW #5 @ #3 PCM
6. Mid-Prairie (Wellman) (6-1) LW #6 @ West Burlington/ND
7. Bellevue (7-0), LW #7 vs West Branch
8. Van Meter (5-2), LW #9 vs Clarke
9. Woodward-Granger (6-1), LW #10 @ Clarinda
10.Alburnett (5-2), LW (X) vs Anamosa

Class 1A
1. Grundy Center (7-0), LW #1 vs Eagle Grove
2. West Lyon (7-0), LW #2 @ Lawton-Bronson
3. Regina Catholic (7-0), LW #3 vs Louisa-Muscatine
4. Treynor (6-1), LW #4 vs Missouri Valley
5. Pleasantville (6-1), LW #5 @ Panorama
6. South Hardin (6-1), LW #6 @ Central Springs
7. Beckman Catholic (6-1), LW #7 @ Lisbon
8. Underwood (5-2), LW #8 @ Red Oak
9. West Marshall (5-2), LW @ West Central Valley
10.Cascade (5-2), LW (X) vs Camanche

Class A
1. West Hancock (7-0), LW #1 @ Belmond-Klemme
2. Saint Ansgar (7-0), LW #2 @ North Butler
3. MMCRU (7-0), LW #3 @ HMS (Hartley)
4. AC/GC (7-0), LW #4 vs #8 Riverside
5. North Linn (7-0), LW #5 @ #7 Wapsie Valley
6. Woodbury Central (7-0), LW #6 @ Saint Albert
7. Wapsie Valley (7-0), LW #7 vs #5 North Linn
8. Riverside (Oakland) (6-1), LW #8 @ #4 AC/GC
9. Pekin (7-0), LW #10 @ Columbus
10.West Sioux (6-1), LW #9 @ Gehlen Catholic

8-Player
1. Bishop Garrigan (7-0), LW #1 vs West Bend-Mallard
2. Iowa Valley (7-0), LW #2 vs WACO
3. Gladbrook-Reinbeck (7-0), LW #3 @ North Tama
4. Woodbine (7-0), LW #4 Idle
5. Audubon (7-0), LW #5 vs Exira-EHK
6. Edgewood-Colesburg (7-0), LW #6 vs Central Elkader
7. GTRA (7-0), LW #8 @ Harris-Lake Park
8. Bedford (6-1), LW #10 vs Lamoni
9. Easton Valley (6-1). LW #9 vs Calamus-Wheatland
10.Don Bosco (4-2), LW (X) @ Tripoli

CAM TOURNAMENT

Atlantic – 2 vs CAM – 0

Atlantic – 2 vs ACGC – 1

Atlantic – 2 vs Fremont-Mills – 0

Riverside – 2 vs Fremont-Mills – 0

Riverside – 2 vs Atlantic – 1

Riverside – 2 vs ACGC – 0

Riverside – 2 vs CAM – 0

Riverside – 2 vs Sidney – 0

ACGC – 2 vs Sidney – 0

ACGC – 2 vs CAM – 0

Sidney – 2 vs Atlantic – 1

Sidney – 2 vs CAM – 1

Fremont-Mills – 2 vs Sidney – 1 

CAM – 2 vs Fremont-Mills – 1

Indianola Tournament 

Glenwood – 2 vs Fort Dodge – 0 

Glenwood – 2 vs CR Kennedy – 0

Ballard – 2 vs Glenwood – 0

Indianola – 2 vs Glenwood – 10

Glenwood – 2 vs Clarinda – 0

Ballard – 2 vs Clarinda – 0

Clarinda – 2 vs Urbandale – 0 

Clarinda – 2 vs Gilbert – 0

Indianola – 2 vs Clarinda – 0

Earlham Tournament 

Woodward-Granger – 2 vs Griswold – 0

Woodward-Granger – 2 vs Earlham – 0

Woodward-Granger – 2 vs South Central Calhoun – 0

Woodward-Granger – 2 vs Grand View Christian – 0

Woodward-Granger – 2 vs Treynor – 0

Treynor – 2 vs Earlham – 0

Treynor – 2 vs South Central Calhoun – 0

Treynor – 2 Grand View vs Christian – 0

Treynor – 2 vs Griswold – 0

Grand View Christian – 2 vs Earlham – 1

Grand View Christian – 2 vs Griswold – 0

Earlham – 2 vs South Central Calhoun – 0

Earlham – 2 vs Griswold – 0

South Central Calhoun – 2 vs Griswold – 0

Iowa State has dropped out of the AP Poll. The Cyclones lost at Colorado 24-17 and they enter a bye week on a two game losing skid.

Campbell pointed the finger at himself.

The Cyclones are 5-2 and return to action October 25th by hosting 15th ranked BYU.

Campbell is confident the Cyclones will get things turned around.

Several players from Northwestern College in Orange City were injured Saturday in a wreck on the way to a game in Sioux City. Five players were hospitalized after one of the Northwestern buses carrying the team’s offensive players to Sioux City for a game against Briar Cliff struck a light pole near the entrance to Briar Cliff’s football field. One of the players taken to the hospital has a broken sternum and another suffered a broken nose.

Several other players suffered facial injuries when their heads hit the seat in front of them. The start of the game was delayed for four hours. Ten players, including several offensive linemen, were unable to play Saturday.

The Northwestern coaches moved other position players to the offensive line — and those players came through as Northwestern beat Briar Cliff 28-to-zero on Briar Cliff’s home field.

IOWA CITY, Iowa – The No. 7 University of Iowa women’s soccer team defeated No. 18 Michigan State, 5-3, on Sunday afternoon at the Iowa Soccer Complex. The Hawkeyes move to 10-2-3 on the season and 5-1-2 in Big Ten Conference play.

Michigan State struck first with Emerson Sargeant finding the net in the 15th minute to give the Spartans the early lead.

Freshman Liana Tarasco would respond in the 28th minute to tie the match up. Junior Sofia Bush was credited for the assist.

Graduate student Kelli McGroarty would find the net for the second straight game to give Iowa a 2-1, advantage in the 37th minute. Fellow graduate student Eileen Solomon was credited for the assist.

At the half, both teams fired seven shots while Iowa put four on goal to Michigan State’s two. Graduate student Kenzie Roling led all players with three shots at the break.

The two teams combined to take 10 corner kicks in the first half as Iowa led, 2-1.

Michigan State’s Sofia Beerworth would tie the game just one minute into the second half. However, it wouldn’t take long for Iowa to respond as sophomore goalkeeper Fernanda Mayrink would convert on a penalty kick after freshman Elle Wildman was fouled in the box to give Iowa the lead again.

Maggie Illig of Michigan State would respond in less than a minute to tie the match up again at 3-3. Wildman would then convert on a goal in the 66th minute to give the Hawkeyes a 4-3, lead that they would protect for the rest of the match.

Sophomore Berkley Binggeli delivered the dagger in the 89th minute to give Iowa a two-goal cushion as they led, 5-3.

The Hawkeyes would hold on to win behind their three second half goals.

UP NEXT
The Hawkeyes travel to Los Angeles where they take on UCLA. The match is set for Oct. 16 and will start at 8 p.m. (CT) while being streamed live on B1G+ (subscription required).

IOWA CITY, Iowa — The No. 10 University of Iowa field hockey team shut out Saint Louis, 7–0, on Sunday afternoon at Grant Field.

“We needed to get back in the win column, so that was what we did today,” head coach Lisa Cellucci said. “This gives us some momentum going into a really big weekend, so it feels good. Our midfield shape and our movement at the midfield were things we’ve been working on. We felt like they let us down a little bit in the second half against Maryland, but it was much better today, especially through the first three quarters.”

The Hawkeyes started strong in the first quarter with two goals. Frederique van Cleef collected her seventh of the season at 4:20, while Hannah Maney scored her first of the season unassisted at 6:36.

Iowa continued its scoring dominance with three goals in the second quarter. Van Cleef netted her second unassisted goal of the day at 18:41. Maney followed with another goal at 19:55, assisted by Lieve van Kessel. Dionne van Aalsum added her first of the day at 23:56.

Two third quarter goals would round out the scoring for the Hawkeyes with Jordan Byers and Dionne van Aalsum each finding the back of the net.

The Hawkeyes outshot the Billikens 28–3 and held a 10–1 advantage in penalty corners. Goalkeeper Mia Magnotta recorded two saves in the shutout win.

Notables 

• Maney and Byers each scored their first goals of the season.
• Alexa Knott and Mae van Aalsum made their Hawkeye debuts.
• This was Iowa’s first shutout of the season.

Up Next 

Iowa travels to State College, Pennsylvania, for a Big Ten matchup against Penn State on Friday, Oct. 17, at 4 p.m. CT.

ANN ARBOR, Michigan – The University of Iowa women’s tennis team continued competition at the Michigan Invitational on Saturday, picking up two singles victories.

In singles play, sophomore Emma Tothová recorded her second win of the weekend, defeating Sabrina Tolstova of Eastern Michigan, 6-0, 6-4. Nikita Vishwase added a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Eastern Michigan’s Pehal Kharadkar. Eline Bex forced a third set against Regina Mendez of Eastern Michigan but fell 4-6, 6-3, 6-4. Pia Kranholdt battled Aely Arai of Miami before dropping a 6-2, 7-6 (3) decision, while Sally Xu lost 6-2, 6-4 to Eastern Michigan’s Matilde Parreira.

In doubles action, Kranholdt and Xu were defeated 6-0 by Sophia Cisse and Flora Johnson of Ohio State, while Vishwase and Tothová fell 6-2 to Ohio State’s Megan Basil and Hephzibah Oluwadare.

The Hawkeyes will conclude competition at the Michigan Invitational on Sunday.

Singles
Nikita Vishwase (Iowa) def. Pehal Kharadkar (Eastern Michigan), 6-1, 6-2
Emma Tothová (Iowa) def. Sabrina Tolstova (Eastern Michigan), 6-0, 6-4
Regina Mendez (Eastern Michigan) def. Eline Bex (Iowa), 4-6, 6-3, 6-4
Aely Arai (Miami) def. Pia Kranholdt (Iowa), 6-2, 7-6 (3)
Matilde Parreira (Eastern Michigan) def. Sally Xu (Iowa), 6-2, 6-4

Doubles
Sophia Cisse/Flora Johnson (Ohio State) def. Pia Kranholdt/Sally Xu (Iowa), 6-0
Megan Basil/ Hephzibah Oluwadare (Ohio State) def. Nikita Vishwase/Emma Tothová (Iowa), 6-2

3A District 6

Atlantic – 46 vs Greene County – 7

Harlan – 63 vs Perry – 0

Carroll – 50 vs Creston – 0

 A District 7 

Riverside – 57 vs Central Decatur – 6

ACGC – 42 vs AHSTW – 14

Mount Ayr – 47 vs Nodaway Valley – 6

A District 6

Madrid – 54 vs Martensdale-St. Marys – 20

Earlham – 27 vs North Mahaska – 7

Lynnville-Sully – 56 vs Colfax-Mingo – 6

 A District 8

St. Albert – 14 vs Akron-Westfield – 7

IKM-Manning – 43 vs Westwood – 0

Woodbury Central – 33 vs Logan-Magnolia – 14

1A District 8

Tri-Center – 36 vs Missouri Valley – 7

Underwood – 36 vs Shenandoah – 7

Treynor – 56 vs Red Oak – 0

 1A District 7 

Ogden – 42 vs Panorama – 13

Pleasantville – 49 vs West Central Valley – 7

West Marshall – 43 vs Interstate 35 – 0

 2A District 8

Clarinda – 57 vs Clarke – 0

Woodward-Granger – 34 vs Chariton – 0

Van Meter – 27 vs Grand View Christian – 13

 2A District 2 

Kuemper Catholic – 48 vs Estherville-Lincoln Central – 6

Okoboji – 17 vs OABCIG – 15

Spirit Lake – 56 vs Southeast Valley – 27

11-Man Non-District 

West Monona – 44 vs Southwest Valley – 0

 8-Man District 9

Audubon – 86 vs Coon Rapids-Bayard – 30

Exira-EHK – 54 vs Glidden-Ralston – 18

CAM – 66 vs Griswold – 12

8-Man District 10

Woodbine – 62 vs Boyer Valley – 7

Fremont-Mills – 60 vs Stanton/Essex – 13

 8-Man District 8 

Bedford – 72 vs East Union – 0

Lenox – 50 vs Seymour – 14

Murray – 50 vs Mormon Trail – 26

8-Man Non-District 

Lamoni – 39 vs Sidney – 6

Ar-We-Va – 61 vs Newell-Fonda – 39

The Atlantic Trojans moved one-step closer to clinching a postseason berth with a dominant 46-7 win over the Greene County Rams Friday night. It was a near perfect performance for Atlantic. Outside of a single turnover and a few penalties, there was very little to critique. The run game continued to make explosive plays while the defense was not only shut down but was able to force turnovers. In a game many thoughts would be competitive, the Trojans made a statement and are now a win away from a potential postseason berth.

For all the points the Trojan offense put up, the offense was a little slow to start. The saving grace was that the Atlantic defense was able to stop the Rams. Over the Rams’ first two possessions, the Trojans turned it over on downs and forced a three and out as the first quarter ended in a scoreless tie.

Although Atlantic fumbled on their second possession, the Trojans took it right back by forcing a fumble of their own. After the fumble recovery it took just four plays for Atlantic to open the scoring on an Ethan McNeal 13-yard touchdown run, and the Trojans never looked back.

By the time the clock hit zero Atlantic had put together their best performance of the season. They accumulated 453 rushing yards led by McNeal who finished with 256 yards and 4 touchdowns including one from 71 yards out. Zander Killion also continued to establish himself in the run game with a pair of touchdowns in addition to his 100+ yards. On defense, the Trojans held Greene County scoreless into well into the third quarter. Two of their three turnovers led to scores including Jake Wailes interception at the end of the first half. Even the special teams got involved as Donovan Hedrington ran back an onside kick recovery for a touchdown after Greene County’s lone touchdown. It was a complete effort as the Trojans seem to be hitting their stride at the right time. Head coach Joe Brummer was very pleased with the way his team executed, especially on defense.

In addition to the linebacker core, the secondary was very good, especially Hunter Nelson.

The win marks four in a row for the Trojans and during that stretch the offense, in particular the run, game seems to be hitting its stride at the right time.

The win also brings Atlantic to within one game of reaching the post season and will have a chance to clinch at home against rival Harlan next week.

The game next Friday will be the biggest game of the year for the Trojans. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 pm at the Trojan Bowl.