The Roland-Story Norsemen are back at Kerry Van Winkle Field this Friday night for a matchup with their conference rivals in the West Marshall Trojans. Roland-Story enters Friday night with a 4-2 record, and a 3-0 district mark, while West Marshall enters with an unblemished 6-0 mark, and a similar 3-0 record in Class 2A, District 7. The Trojans are currently ranked #3 in Class 2A in this week’s Radio Iowa poll.
Friday’s game is a game in which it’s magnitude has not been seen in Norse country for a number of years. The last tie the Norsemen had a chance to claim a district title this late into a season was in 2016, when they fell to Dike-New Hartford 42-3, 6 years to the day in which Friday’s game was played.
Lining up against Roland-Story is a veteran, experienced West Marshall squad that is gunning for a 2nd-straight undefeated regular season. The Trojans are led by do-everything quarterback Peyton Hart, who was thrown for 942 yards and 12 touchdowns, while rushing for another 521 yards and 10 touchdowns. However, Hart’s rushing numbers have taken a steep decline in district play, rushing for only 141 yards in the last 3 games, including a 13-12 squeaker against PCM. However, sophomore running back Ben Gonzalez has picked up the slack in the mean time, as he’s rushed for nearly 800 yards on the season. Hart’s favorite target has been fellow senior Grahm Nason, who’s caught 17 balls for 402 yards and 7 touchdowns on the season. Fellow receivers Preston Reese, Jace Eich and Caden Vellinga have all surpassed 100 receiving yards on the season as well.
Defensively, the Trojans have hung their hat on the play of their front seven, particularly from linebacker Caden Vellinga and defensive lineman Austin Pfantz. Vellinga leads West Marshall in tackles with 54.5, while amassing 2 sacks and 8 tackles for loss. On the defensive line, Pfantz is 2nd on the team with 47.5 tackles, 1 sack, and 15 tackles for loss. Elijah Meester and Sam Schaper have also made noise up front, with Schaper accumulating 23.5 tackles, 2.5 sacks and 4.5 tackles for loss, while Meester has recorded 16.5 tackles, 2 sacks and 2.5 tackles for loss. The Trojans secondary has been led by Grahm Nason, who holds an interception, along with 35 tackles. Junior Carson Davis leads the group with 2 interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown.
For Roland-Story, Friday will be about playing their fast, up-tempo style of football without easing into a “street fight”. If Matt Finn and company can continuously rip off big plays, and containing West Marshall quarterback Peyton Hart, they have a shot at taking the drivers’ seat for their first district title since 2008.
Kickoff is slated for 7:30 PM from Kerry Van Winkle Field in Story City on Friday night.