Messenger photo by Britt Kudla: Jalen Lueth catches a touchdown pass on Saturday for Iowa Central inside Dodger Stadium. For more photos, please visit CU.messengernews.net

Even after a much-needed victory, the Iowa Central football team felt a tremendous sense of loss.

The Tritons snapped a four-game losing skid with a thrilling 35-30 victory here Saturday inside Dodger Stadium over College of DuPage.

But the win came at a huge cost.

Quarterback Tyler Smith, who replaced starter Trevon Taylor earlier this year, was lost to a foot injury during the contest. Meanwhile, Jalen Lueth — the second-leading receiver on the team — suffered a season-ending injury while hauling in the go-ahead touchdown.

All of that left Iowa Central head coach Jesse Montalto struggling to explain what had transpired.

“We’ve probably had more injuries than we’ve ever had here (this season),” Montalto said. “It just keeps adding up.

“Kids stepped up, though, and we got some big contributions from some (players) who might not have seen the field if we were healthy. These guys continue to work hard and compete, and that’s all you can ask of them.”

Cyncir Bowers ran for a career-high 143 yards and three touchdowns, with two catches for 37 more yards. Ty Purdy came on and tossed two TDs in his most significant playing time for the Tritons (2-4 overall), who had lost four times to ranked foes by a single possession in consecutive weeks.

Patrick Brown III had two sacks on his birthday, as did both Jawarren Corbin and BJ Elston. Ishamael Kante and Joseph Shannon each added one sack.

“Our defense really played a heck of a game,” Montalto said. “We didn’t do them any favors in the second half (with field position), but when we needed a stop, they stepped up and got one.”

Lueth, a sophomore from Ames, went up in the corner of the end zone and hauled in a pass from Purdy to make it 21-17 midway through the third quarter. When Lueth landed he suffered the injury, which resulted in a lengthy delay as medical staff quickly arrived on the scene.

“What an unbelievable play by Jalen to finish that and get the touchdown,” Montalto said. “We feel terrible for the kid as he now goes into surgery. We’re praying for him.

“It’s such a difficult situation because here is a kid that trusted us with his future. It’s really tough to see him go through an injury like this. We’ll do everything we can to motivate him back.”

Before he was injured, Smith completed 7 of 11 for 103 yards and contributed 20 yards rushing. The former Sergeant Bluff-Luton standout had thrown eight touchdowns on the year.

“Just like Jalen, we’ll do everything we can for Tyler,” Montalto said. “He broke his foot in high school…worst-case scenario, it might the same thing.”

Eight different players caught passes as Purdy — a Don Bosco grad — threw for 68 yards.

DuPage, the three-time defending Div. III national champions who are ranked No. 1 again at that level, were led by Justin Bland’s 287 yards and three touchdowns.

Iowa Central lost games in September to No. 10 Highland, top-ranked Hutchinson, No. 2 Iowa Western and 14th-rated Dodge City by a combined 12 points. That stretch included a pair of one-point defeats and an overtime setback.

The Tritons now continue their October homestand against Coffeyville on Saturday at 7 p.m., then Ellsworth the following weekend inside Dodger Stadium at noon.