Cardinals hold Grayhounds at bay

BURLINGTON — With the game outcome still in the balance, Newton High’s Cardinals rose to the challenge in a 14-minute span at the end of the third quarter and the beginning of the fourth period Friday night.

The Cardinals protected a 28-21 lead against host Burlington en route to a 35-21 victory.

Newton is 4-0 as it heads into Class 4A District 4 play. Newton began the 2014 season 4-0, finishing 7-4 in the 3A playoffs.

“Our kids competed hard. I thought these guys had it in them, but until you see it, you just don’t know,” Newton head coach Ed Ergenbright said. “Our ability to run the ball and take time off the clock was big. I was impressed with how our kids responded and competed tonight.”

Newton finished with 392 yards on the ground led by seniors Reese Rosenquist and Jordan Norvell. Rosenquist rushed for 128 yards on 17 carries and Norvell had 120 yards on 13 carries.

A Cardinal fumble was recovered by the Grayhounds at the Newton 40-yard line. Newton was whistled for a 10-yard defensive holding penalty to help the Grayhound drive.

Tykell Gordon was running for Burlington gains. Backup quarterback Tyler Conner, who had directed a TD drive earlier in the third quarter, connected with Jesse Bolander for 32 yards.

The play put the Grayhounds in a first-and-goal at the Newton 2-yard line. They were denied entry on a defensive stand by the Cardinals.

Gordon got one yard on the first play then Burlington was backed up five yards on second down on an assisting the runner penalty. Conner’s second-down pass was incomplete. Newton’s Josh Gulling met Gordon at the line of scrimmage to put the Grayhounds in a fourth-and-goal at the 6.

“We needed a stop really bad, and coach told us to go get the back,” Josh Gulling said. “I saw the kid (Gordon) come off the edge, and I guess I came off the edge a little bit harder than he did. I was able to get him down.”

The Grayhounds called a passing play on fourth-and-goal. Newton linebackers Brady Smith and Joe Busch sacked Conner at the Newton 14-yard line ending the scoring threat.

Newton was not out of danger. A holding penalty pushed the Cardinals to their own 7-yard line then quarterback Garrett Sturtz ran for 2 yards. Sturtz was sacked at the 1-yard line on second down.

On the play, a Burlington defender was hurt. During the injury timeout, Burlington head coach Zach Shay drew a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against his team. Shay and the Grayhounds believed they had pulled Sturtz down in the end zone for a safety and two points, but officials called the Newton quarterback down at the 1 yard line.

Sturtz was sacked again on the first play of the fourth quarter. He punted the ball for the Cardinals to the Newton 43. Burlington’s possession started with a five-yard penalty followed by a 12-yard run by Conner.

Newton’s defense turned away the Grayhounds once again stopping Conner and Gordon for no gains on the next two plays. A fourth-down pass went incomplete turning the ball over on downs to Newton.

“We had several critical plays on defense tonight. We just stay together as a team,” Josh Gulling said. “We’re a family.”

There was 10:16 left on the game clock when the Cardinals started their march at their own 36. They used about four minutes to score on an eight-play drive even overcoming a 10-yard penalty.

Rosenquist, Norvell and Smith provided the running power for Newton while Sturtz hit Trevor Ergenbright on a big 10-yard pass play. Norvell had a 14-yard run followed by a 31-yard run by Rosenquist to put Newton at the Burlington 5-yard line.

Smith banged forward for 2 yards then bulled over from 3 yards out for the touchdown. Zach Combs kicked his fifth extra point of the night.

“We knew we were in a tough, physical game. We fought through the pain and stayed positive,” Rosenquist said. “I think that’s what makes us a really good team. We keep fighting no matter how much adversity we face.”

Sturtz completed 6-of-9 passes for 88 yards. Ergenbright hauled in four catches for 46 yards.

“We gave it our all again tonight,” Trevor Ergenbright said. “We prepare each week with the schemes the coaches give us. They give us an opportunity to win each week. It’s awesome to be 4-0, and we’re ready to continue to work hard the rest of the season.”

Newton led 35-21 with 6:44 left in the game. Burlington never mounted another scoring threat down the stretch.

Burlington (2-2) opened the game with an 11-play, 63-yard scoring drive led by starting quarterback L.T. Beck. Gordon had several big gains to move the chains for the Grayhounds. Beck found Mason Leinbach on a 17-yard scoring pass on a fourth-and-7 play with 10:08 left in the first quarter. Cooper Wiemann kicked the extra point.

Newton responded with its own scoring march of 12 plays. Seven plays into the drive, Newton lost the services of running back Jaron Roush. Roush had 20-yard run but was shaken up on the tackle and never returned to the field.

The Cardinal ground game pushed down into the red zone. A five-yard penalty on Burlington set up a run by Rosenquist to the 1-yard line. Smith went up the middle for the touchdown at the 5:23 mark. Combs’ kick tied it at 7-all.

“We knew we had to step it up after they scored,” senior offensive lineman Caden Manning said. “We got a little tired, but we regrouped and got things going in the second quarter.”

Beck and Gordon got loose for big runs to put Burlington at the Newton 25. Smith sacked Beck for a loss of 12 yards, but the Grayhound quarterback found Blaise Rosson for a 30-yard pass to the Newton 8.

Josh Gulling stopped Gordon for a 12-yard loss on the first down. Beck connected with Spencer Sherwood for a 20-yard TD pass with 2:26 left in the first quarter.

The Cardinals turned the tide in their favor in the second quarter and the opening drive of second half.

Trailing 14-7 about midway through the second period, Newton tied the game on one play. Sturtz touchdown. Combs kicked tied the game again, 14-14.

Newton got the ball back with a little more than 2 minutes remaining the in the first half. The Cardinals used a clock-eating nine-play drive to go 80 yards for the go-ahead touchdown. Jace Lukefahr pushed over the goal line from 2 yards out with 13 seconds left.

“We say it every game — the first five minutes of the second half are the most important. Yes, we came out and made a statement with that first drive,” Manning said as he held the No. 52 jersey of his late NHS teammate Trenton Brady after the game.

“Whenever I have it (the jersey), I feel he is with me all the time on the field. It’s a good luck charm as well,” Manning said. The jersey of Brady, who died in a car accident in June, is displayed in the Newton team bench area at all its games.

The Cardinals took the opening possession of the third quarter to the house in two plays. Norvell broke off a 58-yard run, and Rosenquist found a crease through the middle for the final 5 yards for the score.

“We got the momentum back at the end of the first half then the kids came out and made a statement with the opening drive of the second half,” Ergenbright said. “Burlington is a tough team to defend. Our kids hung in there. You hate to see anybody’s players get hurt.”

Burlington’s Beck was injured on the first play of its first possession of the second half. He was tackled and appeared to suffer a shoulder injury. Beck did not return to the game.

Conner took over the quarterback spot, moving the Grayhound offense quickly to a touchdown. Conner and Gordon picked up chunks of yardage on the eight-play drive. Rosson scored on a 5-yard run with 9:30 left. It was 28-21.

Newton’s defense held the Grayhounds to 176 yards rushing and 149 yards passing. Beck was 7-of-18 passing for 107 yards and rushed for 32 yards before being hurt. Gordon finished with 106 yards on 26 carries.

Smith led the defensive charge for the Cardinals with eight solo tackles and four assisted tackles. Zach Combs racked up seven solo stops and five assisted tackles while Josh Gulling had seven solo tackles and three assisted tackles.

Busch was credited with six solo tackles and two assisted tackles. He and Smith each had 1.5 quarterback sacks. Grayson Graham made an interception late in the game.

“This is a special bunch of kids. We have a tough stretch coming up, but tonight they passed a major test. They will battle with anyone,” Ergenbright said. “It’s homecoming week and all the distractions. Our seniors know the importance of us getting better. There’s more in this team.”

Newton opens Class 4 District 4 play at home in a 7:30 p.m. game Friday against Marshalltown at H.A. Lynn Stadium. Marshalltown (1-3) lost to Waterloo West 41-7 Friday.

Newton 7-14-7-7 — 35

Burlington 14-0-7-0 — 21

Burlington — Leinbach 17 yd pass from Beck (Weimann kick)

Newton — Smith 1 yd run (Combs kick)

Burlington — Sherwood 20 yd pass from Beck (Weimann kick)

Newton — Sturtz 84 yd run (Combs kick)

Newton — Lukefahr 1 yd run (Combs kick)

Newton — Rosenquist 5 d run (Combs kick)

Burlington — Rosson 5 yd run (Weimann kick)

Newton — Smith 3 yd run (Combs kick)

Newton Burlington

20 First Downs 23

53-392 Rushes-Yds 42-176

88 Passing Yds 149

480 Total Offense 325

6-9-0 Passing 9-29-1

4-2 Fumbles-lost 1-0

8-74 Penalties-Yds 8-75

3-46 Punts-Avg. 5-39

Individual Leaders

Rushing: Newton-Rosenquist 17-128, Norvell 13-120, Sturtz 12-98, Roush 2-23, Miller 3-12, Smith 4-11, Lukefahr 1-1. Burlington-Gordon 26-106, Beck 7-32, Conner 5-25, Rossen 4-13.

Passing: Newton-Sturtz 6-9-88-0. Burlington-Beck 7-18-107, Conner 1-10-32-1, Leinbach 1-1-10-0.

Receiving: Newton-Roush 1-19, Ergenbright 4-47, Rosenquist 1-22. Burlington- Franklin 4-39, Leinbach 1-17, Bolander 1-32, Peterson 1-11, Rosson 1-30, Sherwood 1-20.

Punting: Newton-Sturtz 3-138 (46 yd avg.). Burlington: Sherwood 5-196 (39 yd avg.)

Newton Defense

Tackles (solos/assisted): Smith 8/4; Combs 7/5; Josh Gulling 7/3; Busch 6/2; Rosenquist 3/0; Graham 3/0; Steinbach 2/2; Kite 1/4; Jaise Gulling 2/0; Peterson 2/0; Rhone 1/2; Baltisberger 0/1.

Quarterback sacks (solos/assisted): Smith1/1, Busch 1/1.

Fumbles (forced/recovered): Jaise Gulling 1/0.

Interceptions: Graham-1.

Contact Jocelyn Sheets at
641-792-3121 ext. 6535 or jsheets@newtondailynews.com