By: Dana Becker
Messenger Sports Staff
The Iowa Central football team will conclude their regular season back at Dodger Stadium on Saturday.
Kickoff between the Tritons and Highland is set for noon.
Iowa Central (5-4 overall) suffered a third consecutive loss to a ranked team this past Saturday, falling to No. 2 Iowa Western on the road. Since downing Coffeyville back on Oct. 7, they have also dropped games to previously ranked Butler and ninth-ranked Dodge City.
The difficult stretch has seen the Tritons themselves plummet from No. 3 to outside of the Top-15.
"With this schedule we have, there are no cupcakes," ICCC head coach Jesse Montalto said. "There is no chance to play a prep school and get your confidence back or get healthy. You've just got to continue to push through.
"That can really wear on you and I think we've seen that these last few weeks."
Justin Silverstein, a sophomore, will lead the offense for a final time at home. Silverstein has almost 1,700 yards and 15 TD passes this year, adding 177 and three with his legs.
Mario Sanders is his favorite target, as the redshirt freshman has 65 receptions for 897 yards and 12 scores. Sophomores Michael Bartolotta, Ja'Vontae Williams, Tavis Maloy, Larenz Lacking and Spencer Zinn have all caught touchdown passes.
The Triton defense is anchored by sophomores Branson Peters, who has 44 tackles, Dan Knudsen, who has 4.5 sacks, and Eli West, who has 38 tackles, two fumble recovers and an interception.
"I think our guys on offense would admit they haven't quite performed like we expected," Montalto said. "But some of that is because of the high expectations they have for themselves.
"On defense, we've been really, really good against some high-level offenses."
Highland (6-4) opened the year with a win over Coffeyville before losses to Butler, Dodge City and Iowa Western. They followed that up with three consecutive shutouts and five consecutive wins before falling to top-ranked Hutchinson last week, 13-0.
Tysan Robbins has thrown for over 1,500 yards and nine touchdowns with Benson Prosper catching 52 passes for 820 and four. Jean Mendez Baptiste has 49 receptions for 466 yards and a score.
Last year, Iowa Central posted a 50-20 victory over the Scotties, earning a second straight win in the series. Highland won the first round meetings between 2016-19.
"This is a big one for us," Montalto said. "A win gets us to 6-4 with the chance to finish 7-4 with a win in a bowl game and end it the same way as we did last year.
"Our goal remains to develop these kids and get them a chance at the next level. We continue to do that."