Prep football roundup: Pekin beats Cardinal, Van Buren County survives

The first full night of high school football came with its ups and downs. Among the area action included Pekin’s big rivalry win over Cardinal. Van Buren County won a nail-biter, while Winfield-Mount Union, WACO and Columbus piled on the points.

Pekin 20, Cardinal 0

For the first time since 2019, it was Pekin that bested rival Cardinal, as the Panthers bounced back from a blowout loss last year to skunk the Comets in Packwood.

Luke Long ran for 70 yards and threw for 62 yards and two scores, one each to Will Adam and Jaedon Wolver. The Panthers, as a team, rushed for 212 yards and one touchdown, scored by Logan Lauderman.

Cardinal’s Carson Kenney ran for 46 yards and passed for 30 in the loss.

Van Buren County 22, Central Lee 20

The Warriors battled to the bitter end with neighbor Central Lee, and in the end, Van Buren County came away with a two-point road victory.

Jackson Manning threw for 104 yards and ran for 24 yards and two scores. Sam Warth rumbled for 41 yards and a touchdown. Cayden Summers led the team with 17.5 tackles, and Anthony Duncan had a fumble recovery.

Mid-Prairie 28, West Burlington 18

Braden Hartley ran for 198 yards and two touchdowns as the Golden Hawks scored a come-from-behind road victory.

Collin Miller threw two touchdown passes, one each to Cain Brown and Cobi Hershberger. Brown had a big day defensively as well, picking off two passes.

No. 4 (8-Player) WACO 57, Springville 22

WACO scored the first 49 points in a blowout home win to move to 2-0.

The Warrior defense dominated, forcing four turnovers on the day and giving up no points through three quarters. Simeon Reichenbach scored three times on the ground and once through the air. Reece Oswald scored twice. Isaac Oswald ran for one and threw for one, and Clayton Miller caught a 67-yard touchdown pass.

Winfield-Mount Union 64, Moravia 50

The Wolves were all tied up, 38-38 with the Mohawks at the half, but Winfield-Mount Union pushed through, thanks in part to a five-touchdown day from Cam Buffington.

Buffington rushed for 239 yards and four scores and caught a touchdown pass from Cole Milks. Abram Edwards rushed for 88 yards and a score, and Milks got in once on the ground.

Columbus 55, Louisa-Muscatine 14

The Wildcats thrashed the Falcons all night, piling up 383 yards and six touchdown on the ground en route to a blowout victory.

Triston Miller ran for 172 yards and a score in the win. Cole Storm dashed for 79 and two scores, and Riley Kaalberg ran for 70 yards and a couple touchdowns. The Wildcats attemped just one pass all night.

Clarksville 38, New London 24

New London made the long trip north and held a lead late in the second quarter, but Clarksville was too much in the second half.

Evan Reed had a big day for the Tigers, catching three passes for 77 yards and a score, the only touchdown thrown by Dom Lopez in the game. Reean Seberg and Boden Pickle each found the end zone on the ground, and Pickle scored once on a kick return.

Durant 38, Sigourney-Keota 14

The Cobras took a rare loss in the snake pit, getting biten by Durant in Game 1.

Despite the loss, Cole Clarahan ran for 122 yards and a touchdown. Cole Kindred scampered for 43 yards and a score of his own.

East Buchanan 54, Highland 0

The Huskies had a tough time playing against a stacked East Buchanan squad on the road.

The Buccaneers scored 40 points in the first half to secure running clock to start the second, and Highland was never able to make a stand.