Central Men Win Home Cross Country Race
Getting to run on its home course for the second time this season, the Central College men’s cross country team won the Dutch Open Friday night.
Central totaled 35 points in order to win its second team title in as many meets. Simpson College was second with 47 points. Jack Brown once again paced the Dutch with a runner-up finish in 26:07.9. William Wadsley was third overall in 26:07.9. Donovan Card gave the Dutch a third top-10 finisher by crossing the line sixth in 26:43.2. Sophomores Jack Every and Austin Vander Werf closed out the scoring portion of the Dutch lineup in 11th (27:17.2) and 13th place (27:26.2), respectively. Additional members of the varsity seven were Mason Back in 14th (27:28.9) and James Brant in 17th (27:35.0).
Central is set to run next Saturday at the Dan Huston Invitational hosted by Wartburg College at 10 a.m.
Dutch Women Win Third Team Title of Cross Country Season
With six of the top 10 runners at the Dutch Open Friday, the Central College women’s cross country team made it three consecutive team titles to start the 2025 season.
Central’s team score of 19 outpaced the runner-up squad from Grinnell College’s total of 42 points. Freshman Maddy Stevens was the individual champion, her second title in a row, completing the 6,000-meter course in 22 minutes, 57.8 seconds. Teah Miller had her best finish of the season, taking third in 23:24.2. Freshmen Breckyn Peterson and Kyra Cordes rounded out the top five in fourth (23:33.0) and fifth (23:36.7). The Dutch lineup was bolstered by the season debut of All-American Peyton Steffen from an offseason injury, as she placed sixth in 23:56.3. Also in Central’s top seven were Addie Doughan in 10th place (24:22.0) and Reeve Ristau in 11th place (24:25.9).
Central is set to run at the Dan Huston Invitational hosted by Wartburg College next Saturday at 10:45 am.
Central Sweeps Grinnell for Eighth Straight Volleyball Win
The hot streak continued for the Central College volleyball team with a Friday night sweep of Grinnell College.
The Dutch (13-5) took care of the Pioneers (5-10) in straight sets 25-16, 25-16, 25-21 for the team’s eighth win in a row. Outside hitter Leslie Snow had nine kills, a team-high 15 digs and a season-high seven service aces. Outside hitter Rachel Bowers and middle hitter Maelyn Wainwright each had seven kills. Middle hitter Kaitlyn Mumm had four blocks and four kills. Defensive specialist Alexis Crowley added four service aces and libero Colleen Kenney had three. Setter Makayla Ribble led the team with 16 assists.
Hitting the road for its next American Rivers Conference match, the Dutch are at Simpson College for a 6 pm contest Wednesday.
Luther Blanks Central Women’s Tennis Team
A trip to face the defending American Rivers Conference champion resulted in a 7-0 loss for the Central College women’s tennis team at Luther College Friday night. Central (4-2, 3-2 American Rivers Conference) ran into an undefeated Luther squad and were dispatched in the first match of its weekend trip to Northeast Iowa. At No. 1 singles, Jenna Mahoney challenged her opponent by reaching a super-tiebreaker set, before taking a 2-6, 6-2, 10-4 loss. Central continues its road trip today with a 10 am match at Wartburg College in Waverly.