CEDAR FALLS — What a difference a year can make.
Just one year after falling short in the Class 5A state football semifinals, Iowa City Liberty shined in the UNI-Dome on Nov. 14, as the Lightning rolled to a 31-15 win over Waukee Northwest to reach the state championship game.
The Lightning looked comfortable this time out on a big stage by going wire-to-wire in victory. Senior quarterback Reece Rettig played with a swagger, recording two passing touchdowns on 26-of-31 passing. He added a rushing touchdown and 66 yards on the ground.
The defense, however, was the story. The explosive offense of Waukee Northwest found the end zone just once, which came late in the fourth quarter with the game in hand. Aside from that, Waukee Northwest’s other touchdown came from its defense, as the offense controlled possession and the defense limited big plays.
“They played lights out,” Rettig said. “They played unreal.”
It was all Iowa City Liberty in the first half, jumping out to a 14-0 lead at the break. It was the first time all season that the Wolves have been shut out in the first half. The defense shined early on as well, allowing just 54 yards of offense, but Rettig’s start was nearly perfect to get things rolling.
Along with making several key conversions on third and fourth down for Liberty, he had a stellar 16-of-19 passing for 124 yards and a touchdown in the first half. He found Pryor Reiners for a 12-yard touchdown strike on the opening drive of the game, and helped lead the next offensive drive for Liberty to let Brody Beaver cap it off with a six-yard touchdown run.
Leading 14-0, Rettig’s lone mistake was an interception with 42 seconds remaining deep in Waukee Northwest territory. Elliot Combe came up with the turnover, keeping his team within two scores going into the locker room.
In the second half, the Wolves’ first drive stalled due to penalties. However, Rettig was backed up to his own end zone following a solid punt. Rushing the ball, it was knocked loose by Eli Eckerman. Bodie Morrison recovered to make it 14-7 and end the shutout with 5:49 left in the third.
While the momentum had turned to the Wolves, another lengthy touchdown drive put Liberty back in firm control. Rettig capped off a touchdown drive of more than six minutes with a two-yard designed quarterback run. The Lightning led 21-7 with 11:18 remaining. After a three-and-out from Waukee Northwest, Liberty added a 22-yard field goal to take a 24-7 lead.
A fumble from Waukee Northwest on the ensuing drive with less than seven minutes to go ensured Liberty’s victory and the school’s first state final. A 25-yard touchdown strike from Rettig to Logan Laubenthal on fourth down with 3:45 left, followed by a touchdown pass for Waukee Northwest from quarterback Mack Heitland to Jordon Green with 1:42 remaining was added to the final ledger, making it a 31-15 final score.
Rettig’s big, improvising plays were the highlights of the night, and they led to extended possessions. Iowa City Liberty had the ball for 32:39 to Waukee Northwest’s 15:21, allowing Liberty’s defense to play well-rested and tough most of the night.
Liberty advances to face No. 1 seed Dowling Catholic, with the Lightning seeking their first state title against a longtime power in the state.
“Going up against this offense that led the state in a ton of categories and to just play as well as we did, just really proud of the way we played,” Iowa City Liberty coach Scott Chandler said. “Really proud of the execution.”
Waukee Northwest concluded its best season in school history with a 10-2 record. The loss will sting for the Wolves, who held state title aspirations, but coach Corey Kopatich was proud of his team’s effort on the year.
“It’ll sting tonight, but when it wears off they’ll think about all the stuff we accomplished,” Kopatich said. “We had a really close team, good group of guys, great senior leaders.”
Eli McKown covers high school sports and wrestling for the Des Moines Register. Contact him at Emckown@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @EMcKown23.
This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: Iowa City Liberty football defeats Waukee Northwest, cruises to Class 5A state title game
Reporting by Eli McKown, Des Moines Register / Iowa City Press-Citizen
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