Courtesy of The Daily Nonpareil
Fort Scott, Kansas
Iowa Western hit the road Saturday in search of its fifth straight victory.
The 13th-ranked Reivers (6-3) not only came away on top but also reached a milestone with their 100th win in program history after posting a 31-10 triumph over 17th-ranked Fort Scott (4-4).
"We've had a lot of great players who've come through this program," Iowa Western coach Scott Strohmeier said. "Our first five (wins) and the last five may have been the hardest to win. Hopefully, we can continue what we've been doing. That's definitely something to be proud of."
The Reivers reached the century mark Saturday the same way they've enjoyed success over the last month: Defense and special teams. IWCC forced five turnovers on the afternoon and had six sacks for a loss of a combined 66 yards. Former Tri-Center standout Ben Sorenson finished with two quarterback takedowns, and Dominic Quewon, Isaiah Coe, Perrion Winfrey and Devin Drew each tallied at least a half sack.
"They play so hard," Strohmeier said. "We have eight guys who can play, and that made all the difference today. They're playing hard right now, and that's the biggest thing."
Another key factor was punter Cody Lindquist and kicker Chase Contreraz. Lindquist finished with eight punts on the day totaling 295 yards and Contreraz added booming kickoffs, the combination often pinning Fort Scott in poor field position.
"(He) did a nice job punting the ball for sure," Strohmeier said. "and Chase forced two fumbles on the kickoff in back to back kickoffs. From that point forward, (Fort Scott) fair caught every kick after that."
Fort Scott grabbed the first lead of the game after Jonny Kilgo converted a 43-yard field goal, but it was all Reivers thereafter as they responded with 31 unanswered points.
JaVonte' Richardson gave the Reivers a 7-3 lead after catching a 14-yard touchdown pass from Cam Thomas with 1:58 left in the first quarter.
Brian Snead made it 14-3 52 seconds later, scoring on a three-yard run. He pushed the lead to 21-3 five seconds into the second quarter when he found the end zone from four yards out.
Thomas scored on a 12-yard run with 1:10 remaining in the half, and Contreraz closed the Reiver scoring in the fourth quarter when he converted on a 30-yard field goal to push the Reiver lead to 31-3.
Snead, who suffered a foot injury in the first half, toughed it out, finishing the game with 26 carries for 116 yards and two scores.
"We needed him to step up right there, and he did," Strohmeier said.
The Reivers didn't play a perfect game. They were flagged for 10 penalties totaling 173 yards.
More discipline will be required next week when IWCC welcomes eighth-ranked Butler to Titan Stadium.
"It's a top-10 team," Strohmeier said. "We'll need to be ready to go."
Iowa Western (6-3) 14 14 0 3 — 31
FS: Jonny Kilgo FG 43
IW: JaVonte' Richardson 14 pass from Cam Thomas (Chase Contreraz kick)
IW: Brian Snead 3 run (Contreraz kick)
IW: Snead 4 run (Contreraz kick)
IW: Thomas 12 run (Contreraz kick)
IW: Contreraz FG 30
FS: Jon Jiles 76 pass from Carlos Davis (Kilgo kick)
