Offensive spurt not enough for Mt. Pleasant football

KEOKUK — The Mt. Pleasant football team hit a season-high in points on Friday night at Calvert Stadium in Keokuk, but that wasn’t enough to bring home its first win.

Keokuk’s offense was too much for the Panthers, who fell 45-29 to fall to 0-3 to start the season.

In what has been a tough season for the Mt. Pleasant defense, the Panthers gave up 40-plus points for the third game in a row.

“Our kids came to play. We’ve been practicing well and they believe in each other,” said Mt. Pleasant coach Shawn Sriegel. “We just made some mental mistakes and sometimes we’re just getting beat by better athletes.”

The Panthers had another big day in the passing game. Jacob Richtman finished 21-for-38 for 312 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.

“Jacob does a great job and our receivers adjust well to a lot of different defenses,” said Striegel.

One of those receivers, Wyatt Woodsmall, went over 100 yards for the second week in a row. Woodsmall caught eight passes for 138 yards and a touchdown.

Bowen Davis had a nice game, catching two balls for 82 yards and a score. Carter Amos caught six passes for 62 yards.

Mt. Pleasant’s rushing game was led by Zerek Venghaus, who ran for 32 yards and a touchdown.

Sophomore Payton Walker had the only Mt. Pleasant takeaway on the day. He picked off Keokuk quarterback Brenton Hoard, a sour spot on what was a four-touchdown day for the Chiefs’ sophomore slinger.

Mt. Pleasant enters the last game of non-district play with an 0-3 record. They will host West Burlington, which also sits 0-3. The Panthers had their only win of the season against West Burlington last year.