Twelve area high school football players received all-state recognition in their respective classifications when the 2017 Iowa Newspaper Association all-state football teams were released on Tuesday.
Selections for Class 4A, 3A, 2A, 1A, A and 8-Man all-state teams — first, second and third teams in each class — were made by 105 INA members. Media members made the selections through an online voting system for the first time.
Newton High seniors Benny Cheng, Jace Lukefahr and Zach Combs were named INA 2017 All-Class 4A first-team members. Senior Grayson Graham earned 4A third-team honors.
In Class 2A, Prairie City-Monroe juniors Wes Cummings and Cole Dustin received third-team honors as an offensive back and a defensive lineman, respectively.
Lynnville-Sully senior Brevin Hanson was named to the All-Class A first team as a utility player. Also in Class A, Lynnville-Sully seniors Jesse Van Wyk and Carson Dunsbergen and Colfax-Mingo junior Zarek Hill claimed third-team honors — Van Wyk as an offensive lineman, Dunsbergen and Hill as defensive backs.
Garnering 8-Man first-team honors were Baxter seniors Travis Lindemoen and Braydon Aker as the top wide receiver and quarterback, respectively, in the division. It was the first season of 8-Man football for Baxter, which went 8-1, but was not eligible for the playoffs.
Cheng and Lukefahr were offensive linemen for Newton, helping the Cardinals lead Class 4A District 4 in total rushing with 1,820 yards on 262 carries, averaging 6.9 yards a carry, and 24 touchdowns.
Newton, which was 7-2 overall and third in its district, finished second in 4A rushing offense with 3,435 yards on 472 carries, averaging 7.3 yards per rush. The Cardinals’ 48 rushing touchdowns did lead Class 4A. The Cardinals’ total offensive production for the season was 4,037 yards, which included 602 yards passing. Newton had 56 touchdowns and scored 412 points.
Defensively, Combs, Newton’s free safety, led Class 4A District 4 with 31 solo tackles and in total tackles with 37.5 tackles. Overall, Combs had 50 solo tackles and 58.5 tackles for the season. He had six tackles for loss, one quarterback sack and one interceptions during the season.
As the Cardinals’ cornerback, Graham recorded 19 solo tackles and one assisted tackle in district games and had one interception. Overall, Graham had 28 solo stops and two assisted tackles for the season. He also tied two Newton records for returning two interceptions for touchdowns in a season and in a career. Graham had five interceptions for the season.
The Prairie City-Monroe football team dominated Class 2A District 6, going 7-0 in convincing fashion. The Mustangs reached the 2A playoffs, losing in the first round to go 8-2 for the season.
Dustin was the 2A District 6 defensive MVP after claiming 22 tackles, eight tackles for loss and one sack as a starting defensive end. He had 18 solo tackles. For the season, Dustin recorded 25 solo tackles, 9.5 assisted tackles, 12 tackles for loss, two quarterback sacks and one fumble recovery.
Cummings rushed for 686 yards and nine touchdowns in District 6 games. He averaged 12.3 yards per carry. Cummings also caught eight passes for 187 yards and two scores. Cummings finished 18th in 2A rushing with 913 yards on 96 carries and nine TDs. He caught 16 passes for 267 yards and two touchdowns.
Hansen was named All-District 6 first team utility player. Hansen was a wide receiver and a top specialty teams player for the Hawks.
Hansen led his district in PATs, hitting 26-of-29 attempts, and he had 1,844 yards on 44 kickoffs with one touchback. Hansen returned kickoffs and punts. Hansen caught 12 passes for 141 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 21 yards. He scored 44 points. He had one kickoff return for a TD and had an 18.4-yard average on his 10 punt returns.
Van Wyk was an all-district offensive lineman helping the Hawks score 35 touchdowns in District 6 games and 271 points. They rushed for 1,301 yards on 194 carries. For the season, Lynnville-Sully rushed for 2,068 yards on 351 carries, scoring 32 TDs, and had 1,036 yards passing with 17 TDs.
Colfax-Mingo’s Hill and Lynnville-Sully’s Dunsbergen were two of the top Class A defensive backs. Hill led Class A with a school-record eight interceptions and Dunsbergen had five interceptions, which tied him for fourth in Class A.
Hill had 46 tackles, and tied for sixth in Class A with three fumble recoveries. He led Class A District 5 with seven interceptions, had two fumble recoveries, one sack and 40 tackles. He also scored two defensive touchdowns.
Dunsbergen was the A District 6 leader in interceptions, with one returned for a touchdown. He had 17 solo tackles in district play. His five interceptions tied him for fourth in Class A with 10 others. Dunsbergen recorded 41.5 total tackles for the season with 38 solo stops.
Baxter’s Aker and Lindemoen made their mark in 8-man play this season.
As the passing leader for the division, Aker went 142-of-214 for 2,615 yards for an 18.4-yard per pass average. He threw 52 touchdown passes and had four interceptions. Aker finished second in 8-man total offense — passing and rushing — as he had 647 yards on 112 carries for the Bolts.
Aker’s top target of the season was Lindemoen, who led 8-man receivers with 69 catches for 1,662 yards for a 24.1-yard per catch average. He caught 36 TD passes. Lindemoen was fifth in total offense — receiving and rushing — in 8-man as he rushed for 81 yards on 10 carries.
Contact Jocelyn Sheets at
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