Iowa
Hutchinson CC holds off No. 1 Iowa Western for NJCAA national championship
CANYON, Texas (KWCH) – In a rematch of a thriller in the season’s second week, the top two teams in junior college football faced off Wednesday night in the NJCAA DI National Championship in Canyon, Texas. For the second time in school history and the second time in the last five years, the Hutchinson Community College Blue Dragons are national champs. The third-ranked Blue Dragons fell into an early, two-touchdown hole, stormed back to take a two-possession lead in the second half and held off No. 1 Iowa Western, 28-23. Hutchinson wraps up its dream season with an 11-1 final record.
Hutchinson completed the season sweep of the nation’s top-ranked team after outlasting Iowa Western on the road, 38-37 in September. Playing for higher stakes on Wednesday night, Iowa Western threatened to put the hammer down early. The Reivers led 14-0 early and held that two-touchdown lead through the first quarter.
Hutchinson got on the board early in the second quarter on a Samari Collier 27-yard run, but trailed 17-7 at the break. The third quarter belonged to the Blue Dragons as they outscored Iowa Western 21-0 to build a 28-17 lead going into the fourth quarter. Capping the run was a Kordell Gouldsby 73-yard punt return inside the final three-and-a-half minutes of the third quarter.
In the final frame, the Reivers scored a touchdown with a little less than 11 minutes left in the game to trim an 11-point deficit to five.
The final half of the final quarter came with its share of drama. This included a blocked field goal that kept the Blue Dragons from expanding its lead and put Iowa Western in a strong position with time and field position on its side. Hutchinson’s defense answered the call and the Blue Dragons held on to bring another title to Hutchinson.
On offense, Hutchinson did most of its damage on the ground led by quarterback Collier who rushed for 109 yards on 16 carries and a touchdown. Through the air, Collier completed six of 16 passes for 80 yards and a touchdown. Backup quarterback Christian Johnson only completed one of five passes, but that completion was huge, a 34-yard third-quarter touchdown to Tre Brown.
Iowa Western quarterback Hunter Dekkers completed 29 of 51 passes for 412 yards, but in a bend-but-not-break performance, the Hutchinson defense stepped up to limit the Reivers’ trips to the endzone as Dekkers only completed two touchdown passes. The Blue Dragon defense also limited Iowa Western’s rush attack and sacked Dekkers four times, three of those by defensive end Marshon Oxley.
For the season, Hutchinson ended its magical ride on a four-game win streak after suffering its lone setback against Kansas Jayhawk Community College rival Butler Community College on Oct. 26.
Copyright 2024 KWCH. All rights reserved. To report a correction or typo, please email news@kwch.com
Iowa
Iowa State football lands 2027 3-star linebacker commit Keaton Wollan
Iowa State football coach Jimmy Rogers on offense, defense development
Iowa State football coach Jimmy Rogers on how the Cyclones offense and defense is developing.
After securing multiple commitments on the offensive side of the ball, Iowa State football has landed its first defensive commitment in the 2027 recruiting class.
Keaton Wollan, a three-star linebacker out of Amery, Wisconsin, committed to the Cyclones on April 21. The 6-foot-3, 205-pound linebacker announced his decision on social media.
He chose Iowa State over other offers from Texas Tech and North Dakota State. He previously visited Ames in March, but he also took recent visits to Minnesota and Wisconsin.
As a junior at Amery High School, Wollan was a two-way standout and earned all-state honors for the 2025 season. Defensively, he racked up a team-high 125 total tackles, including nine for loss and 1.5 sacks. He also had four forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries, three interceptions and one defensive touchdown.
Offensively, he had a team-high 932 rushing yards and eight touchdowns on 160 carries. He also caught 15 passes for 179 yards, and he was an impact player in the return game, logging more than 500 kick and punt return yards.
According to 247 Sports Composite rankings, Wollan is the No. 93 linebacker prospect in the country and the No. 11 overall recruit in his class from the state of Wisconsin.
Wollan is the sixth player to commit in the Cyclones’ 2027 recruiting class.
Iowa State football 2027 recruiting commitments
As of April 21
- Gavin Ericson-Staton, OL | Lombard, Illinois/Montini Catholic
- Isaiah Hansen, RB | Newton, Iowa/Newton HS
- Koen Hinzman, OL | Hudson, Michigan/Hudson Area HS
- Will Slagle, OL | Grinnell, Iowa/Grinnell HS
- Bryson Thompson, WR | San Antonio, Texas/Claudia Taylor Johnson HS
- Keaton Wollan, LB | Amery, Wisconsin/Amery HS
Eugene Rapay covers Iowa State athletics for the Des Moines Register. Contact Eugene at erapay@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @erapay5.
Iowa
Iowa DOT plans overnight I‑80 closure at northeast mixmaster
Avoiding common car crashes
Discover the common causes of car crashes and learn how to avoid them.
Prepare for more overnight closures at the northeast mixmaster as the Iowa Department of Transportation closes the ramp connecting westbound Interstate 80 and northbound Interstate 35.
Here’s what to know.
When will the Iowa DOT close the westbound I‑80 to northbound I‑35 ramp?
The westbound I-80 to northbound I-35 ramp will be closed to traffic from 10 p.m. until 5 a.m. the next morning from April 21-24.
What’s the detour when the Iowa DOT closes the westbound I‑80 to the northbound I‑35 ramp?
During the closures, drivers wanting to go from westbound I‑80 to northbound I‑35 will follow a signed detour.
Instead of taking the closed ramp, motorists will stay on westbound I‑80, bypassing the northeast mixmaster connection. They’ll then exit at U.S. Highway 69, turn around, and head back east on I‑80, where they can connect to northbound I‑35 using the open portion of the northeast mixmaster.
Cooper Worth is a service/trending reporter for the Des Moines Register. Reach him at cworth@gannett.com or follow him on X @CooperAWorth.
Iowa
Iowa women’s basketball transfer portal visitor commits to Big Ten foe
An Iowa women’s basketball transfer portal visitor committed to one of the Hawkeyes’ conference foes instead. Former Iowa State guard Kenzie Hare took a visit to Iowa during her transfer portal recruitment, but the 5-foot-9 guard committed to Indiana on Sunday night.
Hare had several visits throughout her transfer portal recruiting process, including trips to Michigan and Illinois State, but the Des Moines Register’s Chad Leistikow reported that Hare also visited Iowa.
On3’s Talia Goodman reported Hare’s commitment to the Hoosiers.
Hare has one year of eligibility remaining. This past season with the Cyclones, in 32 games played and 31 starts, Hare averaged 6.0 points and 2.5 rebounds per game on 40.5% field goal shooting and 40% from 3-point range. A hip injury limited Hare to just 10 games during her first year with the Cyclones in the 2024-25 season.
The soon-to-be redshirt senior transferred to Iowa State before the 2024-25 campaign after spending two seasons at Marquette from 2022-24. Hare averaged a career-best 14 points per game on 45.5% field goal shooting and 42.5% 3-point shooting during the 2023-24 season with the Golden Eagles.
Had Iowa been able to lure the Naperville, Ill., native to Iowa City, Hare would have been another valuable addition to the Hawkeyes’ backcourt depth. But, Iowa has landed other backcourt reinforcements throughout this transfer portal cycle.
The Hawkeyes inked both Dani Carnegie and Amari Whiting.
Carnegie was a first-team All-SEC selection this past season at Georgia, averaging 17.8 points per game on 42.7% field goal shooting, 35.4% from 3-point range and 83.3% from the free-throw line. Whiting averaged 9.6 points, 5.9 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.8 steals per game on 42.5% field goal shooting, 32.1% 3-point accuracy, and 71.6% free-throw shooting.
As Hare joins a promising core of players in Bloomington, the Hawkeyes will once again face the former Cyclone at least once this upcoming season as part of their Big Ten regular-season slate.
Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes, and opinions. Follow Scout on X: @SpringgateNews
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