-Messenger photo by Britt Kudla Desna Washington of Iowa Central makes the catch for a touchdown against Independence on Saturday inside Dodgers Stadium

Jesse Montalto knows that his seventh-ranked Iowa Central football team will need to be better prepared this weekend when they take to the field.

The Tritons welcome in top-ranked College of DuPage, the defending NJCAA Div. III national champions.

Kickoff is set for noon inside Dodger Stadium.

Iowa Central (3-1 overall) earned a 66-32 victory over Ellsworth last week in its ICCAC debut. The Tritons racked up over 500 yards of total offense and scored in each quarter, but Montalto was far from pleased with the performance.

“We’ve had a great week of practice, especially in terms of our focus,” Montalto said. “I think them seeing how our lack of focus hurt us last week helped them get after it.”

Zach Marker made his return to the lineup, starting the second half and going 7-for-11 for 100 yards and three touchdowns. Justin Silverstein also tossed three TD passes, completing 10 of 16 for 133 yards.

Desna Washington caught four passes for 122 yards and Izaiah Haslett had two receiving scores and returned a kickoff back for another TD. Cayne Smith ran for a team-high 66 yards and fournd the end zone.

On the year, Silverstein has 456 yards passing and eight touchdowns without throwing an interception on 67 attempts. Marker has 244 yards and six TDs, while Jadon Washington leads the ground unit with 190 yards.

Washington, Haslett, George Sims and Jamarien Wheeler all have over 100 yards receiving, as Washington leads the way with 220. Cal Weidemann is right behind with 98 and has caught four TD passes.

“We are just trying to hold the kids accountable with everything,” Montalto said. “Practice, games, school; everything they do will result in wins at the end of the day if they do it the right way.”

DuPage (4-0), who plays as an independent, has picked up wins over Ellsworth, Rochester, Hocking and Community Christian. Max General has thrown for 490 yards and four TDs in two games, while Gavin Sukup has played in all four with 368 and three.

Jaden McGill and Samson Zander have 195 and 192 yards rushing, averaging 15 and 11 yards per carry with five TDs. Marquel Porter, Demetrius Kellie, Vince Brown and Myles McKatherine all have over 100 yards receiving.

“DuPage is just a really good football team,” Montalto said. “Watching them on film, it is a lot like looking in a mirror because they do so many things just like us.”

Last year, DuPage knocked off Nassau for the title, avenging a regular season loss and going 9-2 overall. The only other defeat came to Iowa Central, 41-14, as the Tritons raced out to a 24-0 lead.