[ By STEVE CARPENTER ]

[ HCC Sports Information Director ]

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Sophomore defensive end Ronheen Bingham seemingly lived in the Iowa Western backfield on Saturday as the No. 16 Hutchinson Community College football team knocked off the No. 6 Reivers 21-12 on Saturday at Gowans Stadium.

That performance earned the Blue Dragon sophomore defensive end Jayhawk Conference Defensive Player of the Week honors.

Bingham, a 6-foot-2, 242-pound sophomore from Bennettsville, S.C., had 10 total tackles, including  3.5 tackles for loss and 0.5 quarterback sacks against the Reivers on Saturday. In addition to the plays he did statistically count for, Bingham continually created problems for Iowa Western’s offense with constant penetration.

Bingham made the play of the game on the final play of the contest. With the Dragons up only 15-12 and Iowa Western in the red zone with 10 seconds to play, Bingham scooped up a fumble and traveled 77 yards for HCC’s only touchdown of the game, which clinched the program’s first win over Iowa Western.

This is the second-straight week a Blue Dragon player has earned conference defensive honors. Last week, teammate Adrian Cross was the conference’s defensive player of the week.

Bingham is now eligible for national defensive player of the week honors. That award will be announced on Thursday.