(Cedar Falls) For the 14th time in school history Harlan is a state football champion. The #1 Cyclones edged #2 Mount Vernon 30-23 in comeback fashion Friday afternoon.
Harlan finishes the season with a 12-game win streak. Mount Vernon lost for the first time since Week 6 of the 2021 campaign. Defense carried the Cyclones for much of the game. They held a short handed Mustang squad to 64-yards passing and 42 rushing yards. Mount Vernon was without starting quarterback Joey Rohmberg. The junior, who passed for 2,543 yards on the year, was sidelined with an injury sustained late in their 14-6 semifinal win.
Harlan’s offense overcame four turnovers. Teagon Kasperbauer connected on 22/39 pass attempts with 220 yards, three TD’s, and two interceptions. Mount Vernon’s defense entered the game with an average of 5.4 points per game allowed. They took away two of Harlan’s main weapons, but Jacob Birch stepped up with a big day in the win. Harlan’s senior tight end caught 11 passes for 138 yards and a TD. Harlan ran for 71 yards on 30 attempts. William Kenkel posted 43 yards while Aiden Hall carried for 37 yards and one score.
Mount Vernon capitalized on an early takeaway with Henry Ryan’s 32-yard TD pass on 4th down to Jensen Meeker. It was one of only five completions for the Mustangs on the day as Ryan, their typical starter at running back, filled in for Rohmberg at QB. Harlan answered on the next possession, grabbing their first lead at 7-6, with Aidan Hall’s 20 yard scoring run. A 30 yard field goal from Ben Crock with 3:49 left in the half put Mount Vernon in front 9-7 at the break.
Some big defensive plays helped coach Lance Pedersen’s team extend their lead in the 3rd quarter. Jackson Jaspers ran an interception back 26 yards for a touchdown and Jensen Meeker’s interception on the next series set up a Henry Ryan one yard scoring run on a sneak. With 4:28 left in the 3rd quarter it was Mount Vernon leading 23-7.
Harlan got on the comeback trail. Jacob Birch caught a six yard TD with :16 left in the 3rd and Cade Sears hauled in a two-point conversion to close within 23-15. With 3:39 left in the game it was Sears catching a three yard pass from Kasperbauer. Harlan used their final timeout ahead of the 2-point try and then converted with pass to Birch to tie the game. The Cyclone defense followed with a stop which allowed plenty of time to go in for the winning score. The decisive TD was a 48 yard pass from Kasperbauer to Sears which gave Harlan the 30-23 lead. It was Kasperbauer’s 106th career TD pass (#2 all-time in Iowa) and Sears’ 15th of the season.
Zane Bendorf’s sack of Henry Ryan in the final minute sealed the deal for Harlan. All of Mount Vernon’s offensive scores were the result of a short field. Matthew Sorfonden led a stout Harlan defense with 9.5 tackles and a blocked PAT. Franz Reisz made 4.5 stops while Aidan Hall and Bret Van Baale each recorded four tackles.
Harlan has gone 36-2 over the last two seasons with two state titles and one runner-up finish. Mount Vernon finishes as the state runner-up for the sixth time in program history.
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