WEST BURLINGTON — The varsity Spartans improved to 3-2 on the season (1-0 in Class 3A District 5 competition) with a 36-0 road win over West Burlington Friday, Sept. 23.
Solon led 16-0 at the end of the first quarter after a five-yard quarterback keeper by Blake Timmons for a score, a successful point after kick by Grant Knipper, a blocked punt good for a safety by Zeb Kleinsmith, and a second five-yard scamper for a score by Timmons followed by another good Knipper kick.
Brett White made it 22-0 in the second with a one-yard dash to score, Timmons scurried three yards on his third keeper for a touchdown of the night to make it 28-0, and Knipper struck again with a good PAT for a 29-0 halftime advantage. A two-yard run by White in the third quarter led to another Spartan touchdown, a 35-0 lead, and activation of the continuous clock after Knipper’s fourth PAT made it 36-0.
“Obviously (we’re) always pleased to get a win, and I am happy for our players and staff that their work from the week paid off for a TEAM win,” said Coach Lucas Stanton. “I was proud of many guys who normally do not start or get to play a lot. It was great to see them get in and see their hard work pay off.”
White led the ground attack with 78 yards on a dozen carries, Timmons went 72 yards on eight keepers, Mac McCarty made six carries for 37 yards, Milo Ashbacker had four carries for 22 yards, Zach Capper made four carries for 16 yards, Brayden Ruskey had four for a dozen yards, Oaken Foster went eight yards with one carry, and Barret Schade had two for five yards.
Timmons completed six of ten passes for 28 yards, Ruskey relieved Timmons in the second half but went 0-2. Ryan Rasmussen caught two passes for 13 yards, Foster had two for seven yards, White made one reception for six yards, and Ben Kampman had one for two yards.
Brayden Moore led the defense with three solo tackles, Knipper, Kampman, and Dawson Fordice had two apiece while White, Keenan Kruse, Gavin Sieverding, Rocky Yasutake, Capper, Schade, Will Cusick, David Karam, Kleinsmith, Landon Shive, Fischer Harrison, and Aidan Doyle made one apiece.
Although it was dominating win, the coach wasn’t entirely happy with the Spartans’ efforts.
“I was not pleased with our pre game focus and thought it showed at times. Regardless of who we play, who is in the game, what the score is , etc., etc., we need to play Solon Football, every player every play, with an edge, and everyone doing their job for the TEAM. We need to continue to respect what it takes to win as a team and focus on fundamentals and doing the little things daily to improve. Right now I don’t think we play consistently enough as a TEAM. We kind of have too much playing as individuals at times and you just can’t do that in the game of football. We need to be more consistent in a lot of ways.”
Next up is a Homecoming visit from the Washington Demons (2-3/0-1) Friday, Sept. 30. The freshmen will kick off at 5:00 p.m. with the varsity to follow around 7:30 p.m. Coaches often see Homecoming week as a time of great distractions. Coach Stanton sees the positives.
“Homecoming week is always a great week and also a busy week. It’s a great week to be reminded of the great support we get from our community and just how special it is to be a Spartan Football Player. It’s a good test for our team as Washington is always ready to play us tough. I look forward to seeing how our team handles the week and the preparation.”
Class 3A District 5 Standings
Season District
Fairfield 3-2 1-0
Solon 3-2 1-0
Grinnell 2-3 1-0
Keokuk 2-3 0-1
Washington 2-3 0-1
West Burlington 1-4 0-1

Gallery • 8 Photos

Becky Shive • Contributed Photo

Brett White (28) carries the ball while Keenan Kruse (20) watches.