IOWA CITY, Iowa – Senior Sara Wheaton’s 54th-minute goal proved to be the game winner in the University of Iowa soccer team’s 2-1 Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Series victory over Iowa State on Thursday night at the Iowa Soccer Complex.

The win moves the Hawkeyes to 3-0 for the second time in three seasons.  Iowa has won 11 of the last 13 meetings over Iowa State.

Wheaton’s first goal of the season came off a free kick following an Iowa State red card issued to Tyra Shand.   Freshman Addie Bundy served a ball to the cutting Wheaton who beat Iowa State goalkeeper Jordan Silkowitz to make the score 2-0.

The strike was Wheaton’s fifth career goal and she was the fourth Hawkeye to score this season.

Iowa State cut its deficit in half in the 74th- minute when Claudia Najera sent a through ball to set up a 1v1.  The Cyclones’ Magdalena Keck found the back of the net, making the score 2-1.

The Hawkeyes took a 1-0 lead into the half when senior Courtney Powell scored on a 50-50 ball in the 22nd minute.  Senior Hailey Rydberg lifted a ball to Powell, who chipped the ball past former teammate Silkowitz for her first goal as a Hawkeye.  Powell transferred in the offseason after graduating from Iowa State.

“(Scoring) is something I have been waiting for the last four games, so it’s rewarding,” said Powell. “I think it will bring my confidence back.  My season was dedicated to my dad and that goal was for him.  It was emotional, but it felt good to get it and get the win.

“I had a lot of family and friends here tonight. It was hard playing without my dad in the stands, but having that extra support means the world and it feels good to win on our home field and in front of all these fans.”

NEXT UP

The Hawkeyes return to action Sunday at Kansas. Kick is at 1 p.m. (CT) and the game is televised on ESPN+.

The Atlantic football team opens up the season Friday night at the Trojan Bowl against the Glenwood Rams. New Atlantic head coach Joe Brummer said the team has shown some good things early in practice and in their scrimmage against Carroll.

The Trojans and the Rams have quite a few similarities heading into the season. They both have two guys back that have experience at quarterback, they both have some rushing experience returning, and they both will be replacing talented receivers and offensive linemen. Brock Sell and Tate Mayberry both ran the quarterback spot for the Rams at different times last year and Coach Brummer said they will need to be aware of where those guys are on the field.

Atlantic hopes they will be able to mix things up on offense with Garrett McLaren and Caden Anderson both capable under center. Coach Brummer said they will need to not just show multiple looks but execute them well to have success.

You can get prepped for Trojan football on Friday night by listening to our full interview with Coach Brummer on Trojan Preview at 4:45 p.m. on Friday afternoon. The Trojans and Rams will kickoff at 7:00 p.m. on Friday night.

The Atlantic cross country teams have been working hard to get ready for the 2021 season that opens up at Glenwood this Saturday. Both the boys and girls teams have some strong leaders to replace from last year. State qualifying stalwarts Taylor McCreedy and Craig Alan Becker have moved on to college. Coach Vargason said he’s seen some good response from a number of runners on each side to lead the way this year.

Coach Vargason said a key for the boys will to be to close the gap from top to bottom in finishes in order to score well as a squad. The girls have Ava Rush as the top returner as she has looked really strong early this year. The improvement the team has had between their first two time trials has been outstanding according to coach Vargason.

The Trojans will face some strong competition as always at the opening meet in Glenwood on Saturday. Coach Vargason said he’s looking for more than just times in the first meet and part of what they want to see is toughness.

Catch the full interview with Coach Vargason at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday morning during our Saturday Morning Coaches Show.

The IKM-Manning Wolves are getting prepped for the 2021 football season with some strong senior leadership. Like all teams the Wolves lost some great production from last year with top rusher and tackler Kyler Rasmussen graduated, as well as leading receiver Drew Doyel and second leading tackler Brody Swearingen. But there are some experienced players moving up to take on leadership roles. Nolan Ramsey is back at quarterback and Cooper Irlmeier returns in the backfield. Head Coach Cory McCarville has liked the early leadership they’ve had.

The Wolves went 3-6 in 2020 and they were hampered with a number of big injuries. Coach McCarville said it will be great to get some guys back out there.

Coach McCarville has liked the work the team has put in during camp and the early during practice. A couple of the youthful spots are on the defensive side of the ball and Coach McCarville hopes that those guys catch on quickly.

The Wolves open up on Friday at home against AHSTW. We’ll have coverage of the game on KJAN and KJANTV. Chris Parks and Mike Smith will have the call from Manning with pregame at 6:30 p.m. and kickoff at 7:00 p.m.

The Atlantic volleyball team will get their season started on Thursday night with a dual at Des Moines Roosevelt followed by a weekend appearance at the AHSTW Tournament. The Trojans are looking to build off an 11-20 season in 2020 but will need some new faces to fill big roles.

Leading hitter Alyssa Derby has graduated along with assist leader Haley Rasmussen. Those two were also the top two players at the service line and Derby led the team in blocks last season as well. It will be a group of Juniors that will need to lead the way after getting some good experience as sophomores. Lexi Noelck, Aubrey Guyer, and Abby Smith are the most experienced returners. Smith was second on the team with 120 kills last season and Guyer was third with 100. Noelck was second in assists with 169.

The program has seen some gradual improvement and last year saw one of the most competitive top to bottom seasons in quite a while. Now we’ll see if they can take another step. We’ll have an interview with head coach Michelle Blake on Saturday morning for you on KJAN during our Saturday morning coaches show and that will continue throughout the season.

(Radio Iowa) – Cooper DeJean says he is adjusting to the college level as he goes through preseason practice at Iowa. The multi sport standout led OA-BCIG to a state title last fall and has been working at safety for the Hawkeyes.

DeJean says there have been some “freshman” moments along the way.

DeJean has been working at string and free safety and has spent a lot of time with senior Jack Koerner (kerner).

DeJean says he learned quickly how important film study is in college football.

The Hawkeyes open September fourth at home against Indiana.

(Radio Iowa) – Former Iowa defensive lineman Jack Heflin has been battling long odds for much of his career. Heflin is trying to make the Green Bay roster as an undrafted free agent and has impressed in the preseason. He began his college career as a walk-on at Northern Illinois before going to Iowa as a grad transfer.

Heflin says a big reason he signed with Green Bay is because of Packer defensive line coach Jerry Montgomery.

Heflin on if he is feeling pressure as the preseason draws to a close.

2-0 Riverside def. Essex (25-20, 25-18)
2-0 Riverside def. Bedford (25-22, 25-13
2-0 Bedford def. Essex (25-20, 19-25, 15-7)

2-0 Logan-Magnolia def. Heartland Christian (25-9, 25-11)
2-0 Logan-Magnolia def. West Harrison (25-16, 25-12)
2-0 Heartland Christian def. West Harrison

3-0 Clarinda def. Lenox (25-12, 25-18, 25-17)
3-0 Stanton def. Lenox (25-18, 25-15, 25-22)
3-1 Stanton def. Clarinda (19-25, 25-21, 27-25, 26-24).

3-0 Panorama def. I-35 (25-20, 25-11, 25-21)
2-0 Greene County def. Glidden-Ralston (25-22, 25-23)

According to multiple reports the St. Louis Cardinals and catcher Yadier Molina have reached an agreement on a one year contract extension worth $10 million. The two sides have been in heavy talks the past week to bring Molina back for 2022.

The 39-year-old Molina has been a 10 time All-Star in 18 seasons in St. Louis. He has accumulated nine gold gloves and has helped the Redbirds to two World Series titles.

Molina is currently hitting .259 this season and is on pace to become third on the Cardinals all-time hits list.

The AHSTW Vikings are excited for more opportunities to compete on the football field in 2021. All teams dealt with an unusual campaign in 2020 but unfortunately for the Vikings they were affected with the loss of competition. The Vikings got in a total of five contests last season, going 2-3 in the process and enduring a three week stretch of cancellations.  Vikings head coach GG Harris said they have a group that is just excited to get more reps.

The Vikings have a number of players that tasted success in other sports such as basketball, wrestling, and baseball. Coach Harris thinks that success along with their extra work will pay off on the football field.

Coach Harris thinks the Vikings have a chance to be a fast and physical team. He feels like they have a lot of guys that can impact the game on offense but they may be even deeper on defense and that will help them adjust to opponents.

AHSTW opens up the season on Friday night on the road against Western Iowa Conference foe IKM-Manning. We’ll have coverage of that game on KJAN and KJANTV. Chris Parks and Mike Smith will have the call from Manning with pregame at 6:30 p.m. and kickoff at 7:00 p.m.