Fresh off its second consecutive Pioneer League championship, Iola High’s football team piled up postseason recognition. LATTA, IN HIS first year on the football team, led the Mustangs with 17 receptions for 260 yards and two touchdowns. The senior also rushed twice for 19 yards and had 22 tackles on defense.
Seven Mustangs — wide receiver Adam Kauth, offensive linemen Derrick Weir and Alex Bauer, defensive lineman Bryce Misenhelter, linebacker Kaden Macha, defensive back Jacob Rhoads and kicker Isaias Macias — all were named to the All-Pioneer League first team.
Weir, Kauth and Macha were two-time honorees. Weir also was named to the second team as a defensive lineman, Macha as a punter, and Kauth earned honorable mention as a linebacker.
Five other Iola players were named to the second team — wide receiver Trent Latta, running back John Whitworth, offensive lineman Ethan Sigg, defensive lineman Eric Maxwell and linebacker Shane Walden.
Wide receiver Jesse Zimmerman earned honorable mention.
The all-league squads were selected Tuesday evening by the league’s coaches. Honorees were announced Wednesday.
With Weir, a senior, Bauer, a junior, and Sigg, a sophomore, anchoring the offensive line, Iola racked up 1,845 rushing yards in 2013 — more than 200 per game.
Kauth, a senior, tied for the team lead in touchdown receptions with two. He also had 132 yards on 10 receptions and rushed for 109 yards on the ground. On defense, he had 40 tackels, 25 solo, with seven stops for loss. He also had an interception.
On defense, Misenhelter, a senior, was second on the team with 93 tackles — more than 10 per game ‚ and led the Mustangs with 52 solo stops and 12 tackles for loss. He also led the team with three quarterback sacks.
Macha, a junior, meanwhile, was Iola’s leading overall tackler with 101 with a sack. As the team’s punter, he averaged 33 yards per kick on his 29 punts, including a 60-yarder. he pinned six of his kicks inside the opponents’ 20.
Rhoads, a senior, had 68 tackles, 43 solo, with an interception. on Offense, he rushed for 406 yards with five touchdowns.
Macias, meanwhile, converted on 19 of 21 extra point attempts and went 2-for-2 on field goals, including a 37-yarder. He is a senior.
Whitworth, a senior, rushed for a team-high 656 yards and five touchdowns. He also had one catch for six yards. He had 11 tackles on defense.
Maxwell, a senior, had 36 tackles, including a sack and two tackles for loss.
Zimmerman, a senior, had had nine receptions for 99 yards with a pair of touchdowns. He added 44 tackles on defense with two for loss.
Mustangs rake in Pioneer League honors
