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Tritons fall in finale

—Photo by Paul DeCoursey Iowa Central’s Paul Campbell tries to run against Butler Saturday inside Dodger Stadium.

Iowa Central football coach Kevin Twait always appreciates enthusiasm and effort from his players.

Without discipline, though, the Tritons fall right back to where they started.

Costly penalties and critical turnovers quelled Iowa Central’s chances for an upset here on Saturday, as 17th-ranked (NJCAA) Butler Community College pulled away for a 31-9 victory to leave Twait’s squad winless for the 2016 campaign.

The Grizzlies (7-4 overall), who were the No. 2 team in the nation early in the season before a three-game losing streak derailed their championship dreams, scored the final 24 points of the contest after falling behind 9-7 early in the second quarter. Iowa Central committed five personal-foul penalties and threw four interceptions, consistently putting itself in compromising positions with the physical and mental breakdowns that have plagued Twait’s squad all year long.

”The penalties and turnovers hurt us big time,” Twait said. ”Two of their touchdowns were set up by our interceptions, and we gave them extra yardage and first downs by not keeping our composure.

”It’s hard, because we came out with fire and energy — that’s what we needed. But when frustration builds, sometimes that fire and energy can work against you. Our guys are frustrated about the results from the season, and it spilled over (on Saturday) at times. I like the fight, I like the emotion, but we just weren’t smart enough in the decisions we made.”

The Tritons held Butler to under 300 yards of total offense, but the Grizzlies rarely had to drive more than half the field for their scoring strikes. Three of Butler’s four touchdown possessions started in Iowa Central territory.

Sophomore running back Devin Tripp did offer a boost to the maligned Triton offense, with 97 rushing yards on 21 carries. Iowa Central managed only eight complete passes for 48 total yards through the air, though, leaving them shy of the 200-yard mark for total production yet again.

Quarterback Paul Campbell had the lone Triton touchdown on a 26-yard keeper early in the second period. Iowa Central’s other two points came on a safety moments after being stopped in a 4th-and-goal situation inches away from paydirt in the first quarter.

The Grizzlies won five of their last six regular-season contests to position themselves for a bowl game. Meanwhile, Twait was forced to reflect on a year that saw little tangible reward for the work and sacrifices his program endured.

”It’s hard to accept, especially for our sophomores,” Twait admitted. ”It’s time to analyze everything and see what we need to do better and what changes need to be made in order to get this thing back on track.

”(Being winless) is a demoralizing feeling. We have to take a long, hard look in the mirror, from myself on down. All of us.”

 

B    IC    First Downs    15    11

Rushes-Yards    46-159    36-132

Passing    135    48

Comp-Att-Int    12-24-0    8-21-4

Total Offense    294    180

Punts-Avg.    7-29.0    8-42.0

Fumbles-Lost    3-1    0-0

Penalties-Yards    9-75    9-97

Butler    7    10    14    0–    31

Iowa Central    2    7    0    0–    9

Scoring Summary

Butler — Kevon Abrams (4-yard run), 3:47 left first quarter. Luke Winter kick.

Iowa Central — Safety (ball fumbled out of end zone), 1:32 left first.

Iowa Central — Paul Campbell (26-yard run), 13:48 left second. Jose Fuentes kick.

Butler — Abrams (2-yard run), 5:37 left second. Winter kick.

Butler — Winter (42-yard field goal), 0:11 left second.

Butler — Gerrit Prince (19-yard pass from Easton Bruere), 10:11 left third. Winter kick.

Butler — Bruere (13-yard run), 5:52 left second. Winter kick.

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING — Iowa Central: Devin Tripp 21-97, Paul Campbell 10-26, Dadrian Ellis 5-6. Butler: Kevon Abrams 26-121, David Isreal 2-20, Duron Lowe 6-12, Trenton Autry 5-10, Easton Bruere 7-(minus-4).

PASSING — Iowa Central: Paul Campbell 8-20-3-48, Caleb Sieler 0-1-1-0. Butler: Easton Bruere 7-17-0-92, David Isreal 5-7-0-43.

RECEIVING — Iowa Central: Ryan Douglas 5-36, Brady Beal 2-15, Devin Tripp 1-(minus-3). Butler: C.J. Sims 7-79, Gerrit Prince 1-19, Tyler Currie 1-15, Josh Wilkes 1-11, Bret Waddell 1-8, Myron Mitchell 1-3.

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