Ankeny Centennial’s quest for a berth to the Class 5A football playoffs took another hit on Friday night at Ankeny Stadium.
Valley quarterback Jack Tracy threw for touchdowns on his first three passes and the Tigers went on to defeat Centennial, 45-20, in a matchup of teams desperate for a victory to bolster their postseason hopes.
Valley ended a two-game losing skid while evening its record at 3-3. It was the third straight loss for the Jaguars, who dropped to 2-4 with the first Class 5A RPI rankings slated to be released on Monday.
“It was back and forth there the first half,” said Centennial co-head coach Ryan Pezzetti. “We came out the second half and put a nice drive together and got back in the game, but we just weren’t consistent enough as a team to get it done.”
Valley built a 28-7 lead at halftime before Centennial opened the third quarter with a 12-play scoring drive that was capped off by a 4-yard pass from Brekken Miller to Cade Newman. Newman had four catches for 32 yards on the drive.
After the Tigers answered with a long kickoff return that led to a 25-yard field goal by Conley Harne, Centennial’s next possession got off to a promising start when Miller connected on passes of 34 yards to Hunter Derby and 12 yards to Matthew Nichols.
However, on the next play, Miller tried another pass that was picked off by linebacker Alec McClinton, who returned the ball 58 yards to the Centennial 10. Blake Dorenkamp then scored on a 9-yard run two plays later to give Valley a 38-14 lead with less than a minute left in the period.
“We had to take some chances to get back in the game,” Pezzetti said. “When you’re playing against the clock and you need multiple scores, you’ve got to press a little bit. That gets uncomfortable and it puts the kids in a tough spot, but our kids played hard.”
The Jaguars used a 12-play, 86-yard drive to pull within 38-20 on a 2-yard pass from Miller to Owen Gasperi with about 8 minutes remaining. Gasperi made a 41-yard reception on fourth down to set up the score.
Valley sealed the victory, though, after recovering Centennial’s onside kick. Backup running back Nathiyus Akuar carried the ball on five consecutive plays for 55 yards and scored on a 2-yard run for the Tigers.
Valley outgained Centennial by a 399-311 margin. Dorenkamp ran 18 times for 104 yards, while Akuar added 78 yards on nine attempts.
Tracy completed 11-of-15 passes for 173 yards, doing most of his damage in the first half. He threw scoring passes of 39 and 43 yards to Owen Woods on the Tigers’ first two possessions, then later connected with Mario Sciorrotta for a 20-yard touchdown.
Miller threw a 6-yard scoring pass to Derby in the first quarter, cutting Valley’s lead to 14-7. He completed 22-of-39 passes for 241 yards and three touchdowns.
The Jaguars’ defense made a big play early in the second period when Rilynd Pezzetti forced a fumble by Akuar as he was just about to cross the goal line. Centennial’s Tate DeRouchey pounced on the ball at the 1-yard line, but Valley forced a punt shortly thereafter and then capitalized on a short field to extend its margin on Sciorrotta’s touchdown.
Dorenkamp later scored on a 7-yard run to give the Tigers a 28-7 advantage with less than 3 minutes to go in the half.
“There’s nothing to take away from our kids,” Pezzetti said. “They played hard, and we’re just looking forward to the last third of the season and to try to be a little more consistent, and they can do it.”
Newman finished with nine catches for 72 yards, Derby caught six passes for 92 yards, and Gasperi had four receptions for 64 yards. Nichols rushed for 67 yards on 14 carries.
Both Miller and Derby were banged up during the game, but Pezzetti said he thinks they’ll both be ready for Friday’s road trip to Indianola.
“I think we’re going to be ok injury-wise,” he said. “When we meet on Sunday, we’ll have a better idea but we’re hoping to have everybody. At this time of the year playing the schedule that we do, you’re going to get beat up. We are definitely fighting some injuries and trying to keep everyone healthy.”
Indianola (4-2) is coming off a 42-16 win over Des Moines Lincoln. It was the fourth straight victory for the Indians, who posted a 34-29 triumph at Valley a week ago.
Indianola is coached by former Ankeny standout Eric Kluver, who is in his 23rd season with the Indians.
“Eric does a great job,” Pezzetti said. “He’s a very good friend and a good person, and he’s a great coach. They started off a little slow, but right now they’re playing as well as anyone it seems like.”
