Sports
A look back at DCG’s sports highlights in 2024
To wrap up the 2024 season, Dallas County News takes a moment to highlight some of the biggest accomplishments for Dallas Center-Grimes (all listed items are unranked).
Piper Messerly surges to cross country individual title
Coming into the final meet in Fort Dodge, sophomore Piper Messerly had a good idea of where she could finish. A top-five ranked runner all season, Messerly peaked at No. 1 twice but had fallen down to No. 5 at the end of the season.
But she proved herself with a final push at the state meet, trusting the process, as she slowly overtook those in front of her.
Through the first mile, the sophomore champ was situated in fourth place. Moved up to second with the fourth-ranked runner just two paces ahead of her. But by the end, she had a five-second lead and crossed the tape first at 17 minutes 59 seconds, putting a target on her back for 2025.
Taitn Gray’s race for the home run crown
Helping the Mustangs win their most games since the 2012 season, Taitn Gray was at the center of it all.
Over the past few seasons, DCG was blessed with a powerful bat from Clayton Campidilli who hammered eight home runs in 2023 and 14 in 2022. But Gray proved to be a worthy replacement, crushing 14 home runs himself for a banner junior season. That would ultimately be tied for the most in the state.
His biggest performance came in a two-home run game against Carlisle, driving in five runs (Keaton Fenn also had two homers that night).
End of legendary softball tenure
No matter if it ended in a loss or a championship, it was a success. This year marked the end of the road for Steve Schlafke after a 48-year coaching career. That was over 2,000 games.
With 13 seniors on the 2024 roster, the Burnett Complex saw some pristine play that pushed the Mustangs back to the state tournament after missing the cut in 2023. Schlafke’s last two games in front of a home crowd were 15-0 and 10-0 wins.
Girls soccer team brings home back-to-back-to-back title
The road may have been a bit shakier compared to a historic run in 2022 and 2023, but it ended in a championship all the same.
In 2022, DCG went a perfect 22-0. In 2023, the Mustangs finished their season with nine consecutive shutouts, ending in a defensive 2-0 battle for the crown. So by that mark, the Mustangs enjoyed a bit more breathing room winning 6-1 against North Polk in the championship.
It was another incredible year through-and-through, with DCG holding an 18-3 mark. All-state selection Kylie Knief led the team with 19 goals while fellow senior Hannah Renz was also named to the first-team all-state team after leading the team in assists. Second on the team in both categories, senior Olivia Cyr was a second-team selection.
Boys soccer adds to trophy collection after OT win
After their state tournament was upended in 2023 in the quarterfinals, the Mustangs had a perfect showing in Des Moines, winning three games en route to the 2024 3A state title.
And for extra theatrics, it took extra minutes to get that trophy, with DCG winning penalty kicks against Des Moines Hoover for the program’s first-ever boys soccer crown, getting an assist from Tate McDermott to Ben Jackson to seal the win.
Jackson had one other goal in the game to complete his illustrious career, as did fellow graduate Brogan Fuller, and Cyrus Khosravi also wrapped his time in Dallas Center with two crucial assists.
Girls wrestling swarms state meet
Placed 37th out of over 150 teams that made it to the state meet, the Mustangs had five participants in 2024.
That was led by Bella Mulder placing 7th in the 135-pound class. Mulder finished her season with a 32-6 record after grabbing five wins, including a 6-0 decision in the final match of her season.
The Mustangs also had Josephine Bond, Asia Jahangir, Jenah Gray and Halley Beaudet on hand.
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