WELLSVILLE — After giving away the ball five times, including thrice in the red zone, Iola High School’s junior varsity football team lost 58-16 to Wellsville on the road Monday night.
The defeat was the Mustangs’ first since Sept. 21 when they lost 66-22 to Labette County High.
“Despite the score, we actually played tougher than what it indicated,” coach Dana Daugharthy said.
Iola held strong its rushing attack thanks to Tayton Driskel picking up 174 yards on the ground in just 21 carries.
The freshman running back also recorded the Mustangs’ only two scores of the day, which were both rushing touchdowns.
The passing game was fairly productive as well.
Quarterback Kane Rogers finished the day 5-of-10 for 71 yards through the air.
Derek Bycroft was Rogers’ favorite target. Iola’s leading receiver on Monday recorded 54 yards on three receptions.
“Bycroft had a great game,” Daugharthy said.
Driskel also showed off his arm with a pass attempt that went for 35 yards.
Daugharthy said another effective weapon on offense and defense was Cale Barnhart, who finished the contest with 26 rushing yards on eight attempts.
“Cale had a really good game,” Iola’s JV head coach said. “He blocked really well on offense and played hard on defense.”
Despite the Mustangs’ ability to drive down the field behind players like Rogers, Driskel and Barnhart, Iola was unable to remain in the game because of its five turnovers.
“(That) alone makes it very difficult to win,” Daugharthy said. “And on their following drive, (the Eagles) were able to punch it in the end zone very quickly. So what looked like would have been six points for us turned out to be six points for them. This makes it even more difficult to win. What was most encouraging was that most of the kids stayed in the game and played hard.”
Mustangs JV football commits 5 turnovers in 58-16 loss
