Ballard, Collins-Maxwell combine for 21 all-district football selections
The Ballard and Collins-Maxwell football teams combined for 21 all-district selections during the 2022 season.
Ballard had 12 players receive all-district honors in Class 3A District 2. The Bombers had four players make the first team, three land on the second and five named honorable mention.
Junior running back Eli Rouse and linebackers Gabe Christensen, Brody Sampson and Jayden Swain were the four Bombers named to the 3A District 2 first team.
Rouse ran for 521 yards and eight touchdowns and had nine catches for 121 yards and one score in five district games. Christensen made 34 tackles, three tackles for loss and one fumble recovery and interception apiece, Sampson had 31.5 tackles and 4.5 sacks and Swain ended up with 29 tackles, two fumble recoveries and one sack and interception apiece.
Receiver and defensive back Chance Lande, offensive lineman Caleb Larsen and defensive lineman Trevor Kalsem were the three Bomber players named to the 3A District 2 second team. Lande caught 18 passes for 224 yards and one touchdown and made three interceptions, Larsen anchored a Bomber offensive line that helped produce 256.6 yards per game and Kalsem made 16.5 tackles and one sack.
Parker Becker, Isaac Buller, Henry Christensen, Jakson Fleischmann and Jack Nelson were the Bombers named honorable mention. Becker and Buller were important pieces of the Bomber offensive line, Christensen made 25.5 tackles and two sacks, Fleischmann recorded 13 receptions for 162 yards and two touchdowns and added 21 tackles and Nelson finished with 12.5 tackles, one sack and a fumble recovery.
Collins-Maxwell had four players make the 8-player District 4 first team. The Spartans also put two players on the second team and had three named honorable mention.
Freshman Cooper Wierson, sophomore Josef Dvorak and seniors Luke and Jace Huntrods were the four Collins-Maxwell players named to the 8-player District 4 first team.
Wierson caught 16 passes for 223 yards and two scores and added one touchdown passing and rushing apiece plus three interceptions with a touchdown on defense in district play. Dvorak ran for 203 yards and six touchdowns, had 121 yards and two scores receiving and made 35.5 tackles, Luke Huntrods caught seven passes for 102 yards and one touchdown and added 12.5 tackles and Jace Huntrods threw for 602 yards and seven touchdowns, ran for five scores and made 12 tackles.
William Booth and Blake Huntrods were the two Spartan players named to the second team. Booth had 2.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks on the defensive line and Huntrods contributed 17.5 tackles and one sack.
Tyler Gross, Lane Oswalt and Caleb Dvorak were the three Collins-Maxwell players named all-district honorable mention.
Gross was an important contributor on the offensive line and also made six tackles on defense and Oswalt made eight tackles and an interception on defense. Caleb Dvorak was an honorary all-district pick after missing the season with an ACL injury.
This article originally appeared on Ames Tribune: Ballard, Collins-Maxwell combine for 21 all-district football picks
