Kevin White,
kevin.white@nonpareilonline.com
Iowa Western punter Hunter Pinegar insists he's not trying to take Mekhi Sargent's job.
Sargent ran for a school-record 376 yards the previous week to earn national player of the week honors. But the record will show that Iowa Western's rushing leader on Saturday was Pinegar, a freshman who actually was Ankeny Centennial's second-leading rusher last season with 640 yards.
Pinegar's 50-yard run on a fake punt midway through the third quarter set up the go-ahead score, and top-rated Iowa Western scored the final 27 points to pull away from upset-minded Highland 48-24 at Titan Stadium.
With heavily favored Iowa Western trailing the Scotties 24-21, it faced a fourth-and-8 at its own 25 with about nine minutes left in the third. The 6-foot-2, 195-pound Pinegar took the snap, saw no one paying attention on Highland's left side and sprinted 50 yards to the Scotties' 25.
It was the fourth straight game he has run for at least 20 yards and a first down out of punt formation. He gained 23 against Garden City, 26 against Dodge City and 22 against Coffeyville. Pinegar credits the relationship with special teams coach Jake Crain.
"I think there's enough trust in the both of us that he just says, 'If you see it, go ahead,''' Pinegar said. "I saw it was a crucial time. We were down by three and I just figured that if I get this first down, it's a huge momentum-changer. I'm only taking that risk if it's wide open.''
Pinegar's run was one of several big special-teams plays that allowed the Reivers to avoid a major upset and keep alive their hopes of a national championship. The Scotties, who dropped to 2-5, won the total-yards battle, 370-350. Naricuss Driver, a 6-3, 240-pound converted tight end, made his first start at quarterback and guided a 334-yard rushing attack.
After Pinegar's 50-yard run, Mike Hill took a short pass from Kai Locksley, juked a pair of defenders and completed an 11-yard score to give the Reivers a 27-24 lead with 8:29 left in the third.
Desmond Lockett's 42-yard punt return, aided by a crushing block from Raekwon Chatman, set up Locksley's six-yard TD run for a 34-24 lead with 5:34 left in the third.
Lockett was at it again later in the quarter, catching William Solomon's 45-yard field-goal attempt eight yards deep in the end zone and returning it 69 yards to the Highland 39. On the next play, Locksley hit a wide-open Vincent Perry for the 39-yard score to push the Reivers' lead to 41-24 at the 1:17 mark of the third.
Noah McWell's outstanding tackle on the ensuing kickoff pinned Highland at its 2, and after a three-and-out, Locksley completed the scoring with his third touchdown pass to Hill, from 37 yards out, with 13:59 remaining.
The other big special-teams play came after Highland had scored with 18 seconds left in the first half to lead 17-14. Markeis Hallback returned the ensuing kickoff 75 yards for a touchdown.
"In games like this, you need a spark in some way,'' Iowa Western coach Scott Strohmeier said. "If it's (the fake punt), if it's the field goal that was short and we returned it, there's different things within the course of the game that we needed a spark, and I think we got it on special teams tonight.''
The elusive Hill, a 6-1, 170-pound freshman out of Richburg, South Carolina, caught four passes for 184 yards and three touchdowns. It was the fourth-most receiving yards by an Iowa Western player in school history.
"He's a fearless competitor,'' Strohmeier said. "He's goes up and gets it, and it doesn't matter if he's going to get hit hard. He's going to pinball off people and not go down.''
Other than the special-teams brilliance and the big plays from Locksley to Hill, Iowa Western struggled in some areas. The Reivers rushed for just 115 yards and allowed the Scotties to pick up 24 first downs. Highland hadn't scored a touchdown in 13 quarters of regulation play entering the game.
"I thought we had guys who didn't play their best, and we can't have that,'' Strohmeier said. "But you've got to give Highland credit. I told the guys Sunday, 'That's not a 2-4 football team.'''
Locksley turned it over three times but accounted for five touchdowns, completing 8 of 11 for 235 yards and four scores in addition to his rushing touchdown.
Iowa Western plays its lone conference games next, at home against Iowa Central (0-8) and then at Ellsworth (3-5), before traveling to College of DuPage (5-2) to close the regular season. The Reivers are hoping to be ranked in the final two of the final NJCAA poll, which would send them to the national championship game.
Strohmeier said Saturday was a prime example of why nothing should be expected to come easily.
"We're going to get everybody's best,'' he said. "(Iowa Central's) not preparing for a bowl game, so their bowl game is going to be against us.''
Highland (2-5) 7 10 7 0–24
Iowa Western (7-1) 7 14 20 7–48
H: Albert Howard 5 pass from Naricuss Driver (William Solomon kick)
IW: Mekhi Sargent 1 run (Eddie Ogamba kick)
IW: Mike Hill 76 pass from Kai Locksley (Ogamba kick)
H: FG Solomon 44
H: Ronnie Jamison 1 run (Solomon kick)
IW: Markeis Hallback 75 kickoff return (Ogamba kick)
H: Driver 2 run (Solomon kick)
IW: Hill 11 pass from Locksley (kick failed)
IW: Locksley 6 run (Ogamba kick)
IW: Vincent Perry 39 pass from Locksley (Ogamba kick)
IW: Hill 37 pass from Locksley (Ogamba kick)
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING: H, Willie Jordan 23-129, Naricuss Driver 23-86, Trey Willis 7-57, Ronnie Jamison 7-28, Justin Ruiz 5-23, D.D. Hull 5-11. IW, Hunter Pinegar 1-50, Mekhi Sargent 13-43, Joe Jordan 1-12, Kai Locksley 8-6, T-Boy White 5-5, team 1-(-1).
PASSING: H, Naricuss Driver 7-17-0, 36 yards, 1 TD. IW, Kai Locksley 8-11-1, 235 yards, 4 TDs.
RECEIVING: H, Albert Howard 5-28, Cody Summers 1-4, Steven Delaine 1-4. IW, Mike Hill 4-184, Vincent Perry 2-43, Joe Jordan 1-11, T-Boy White 1-(-3).
TACKLES (solos-assists): H, Jeremiah Hill 7-0. IW, Ky'el Hemby 9-3, Desmond Lockett 8-2, Jabari Meyers 5-5, Raekown Chatman 7-1.
