By Sam Parsons
The Oskaloosa Indians hosted the #6 Pella Dutch on Friday night for their final home game of the season, celebrating the 13 senior players on their roster in the process. Unfortunately for the Indians, the game was decided relatively early, but the contributions of the senior class were nevertheless honored by those in attendance.
The Dutch came into the game with one of the best defenses in the state, while the Indians’ offense had been reeling with only 14 points scored in their previous 3 games. The meeting of those two units went about as expected, based on the matchup on paper: Oskaloosa managed only 51 yards of offense and failed to get on the scoreboard. Junior quarterback Tyler Edgar was moved to wide receiver during the first half, allowing sophomore Coleton Fawcett to receive some playing time; neither player was able to find their rhythm against a stout defense, as they combined to go 6/12 with 27 passing yards and 2 interceptions (1 from each player). On the ground, the Indians’ struggles continued, as they had 24 total rushing yards on 31 total rushing attempts (0.8 YPC).
Defensively, Oskaloosa was able to produce some nice moments. The highlight of the night came from junior linebacker Trace Rupprecht, who made a shoestring catch to intercept Pella QB Michael Manning late in the 2nd quarter and ran the ball back 57 yards, ultimately getting pushed out of bounds inside the Pella 10 yard line. The Indians would then run the clock down in an attempt to kick a field goal before halftime, which missed wide left from 32 yards out.
For the Dutch, their offense was able to mostly avoid any mistakes that could have given the Indians life in the game. Manning finished the game 12/17 with 135 passing yards and 3 total touchdowns. Senior RB Emmanuel Diers ran the ball 12 times for 67 yards and a score. The Dutch brought the score to 35-0 in the 3rd quarter with a 5-yard TD pass from Manning to junior wideout Logan Van Den Broek, prompting a running clock for the rest of the game, and Pella was able to sit on that lead until the end. The final score was 35-0, improving Pella’s record to 6-1 on the season while Oskaloosa dropped to 0-7.
Oskaloosa will travel to Marion on Friday (10/17) in search of their first win of the season. That game will be broadcast live on KBOE 104.9 FM and kboeradio.com beginning at 7pm.
