MUSKEGON – Sterling Alexander, like most college football players, pictured himself someday competing in the National Football League.

Arena football was definitely not in his plans.

But like most college players who finish their careers, the NFL didn’t come calling for Alexander, and he was looking for an opportunity to stay in the game and continue to develop his promising skills.

He found the West Michigan Ironmen, and they’re happy to have the speedy wide receiver, who has been catching his share of touchdown passes all season.

That continued on Sunday when he hauled in four scoring passes from quarterback Alex Carder to lead the Ironmen to a 62-0 victory over the Kentuckiana Kurse at Mercy Health Arena.

Ironmen wide receiver Sterling Alexander points to a teammate after catching one of his four touchdown passes. Photo/Jeremy Clark

The victory left the Ironmen with a 3-1 season record. They will play again at home on June 4 against the Carolina Predators.

“I was trying to play pro,” said Alexander, who attended Concordia University in St. Paul, Minnesota. “I wanted to continue my career and I’m from Southfield (Michigan). I knew about West Michigan, and I knew (Ironmen receiver) Mike Wynn. I played with Mike and I just hit him up on Facebook and got out here.

“I’m loving it. I’m having fun and meeting new people. I love all these connections I’m making and I just love everything here.”

Ironmen Coach Nate Smith says Alexander is successful because he’s a workhorse.

Alexander is lifted up by a teammate after catching a TD pass. Photo/Jeremy Clark

“He’s a player,” the coach said. “He puts in the work and tries to get better every day. He comes to practice ready to go. It’s no surprise he’s having the success he’s having. Hard work pays off and he does a lot on his own.”

Some fans might have worried about the Ironmen being rusty on Sunday, since they hadn’t played a game since April 23, when they traveled to North Carolina and lost to a touch Charlotte Thunder squad.

But clearing away the cobwebs didn’t turn out to be a problem at all for the Ironmen, who scored on all but one offensive possession.

Quarterback Alex Carder had six touchdown passes, including four to Alexander and two to Mike Wynn. Hakeem Stokes and Ryan Williams each had interception returns for touchdowns and Williams added a tackle in the end zone for a safety.

West Michigan’s Ryan Williams scores after making an interception. Photo/Jeremy Clark

Ruby Colston also had a 10-yard touchdown run for the Ironmen.

“After having a couple weeks off, the guys were excited to get back to it,” Coach Smith said. “We had a couple things to work on. The competition level wasn’t what we want it to be. That always makes it a challenge to stay focused, but I’m pretty pleased with how we did.

“We practice like we’re going to play every week. We’ll have a bye week this week and give the guys a chance to recover. But we’re competitive and they want to play. We don’t have to motivate them. They’re internally motivated and that’s a great thing for us.”

SCORING SUMMARY

1st Quarter:

WM: 14:15 – Ruby Colston 10-yard touchdown run. PAT failed. 6- 0

WM: 8:21 – Alex Carder three-yard touchdown pass to Sterling Alexander. Kick good. 13-0.

WM: 2:11 – Carder six-yard touchdown pass to Alexander. PAT good. 20-0

2nd Quarter

WM: 10:55 – Carder 15-yard touchdown pass to Mike Wynn. PAT failed. 26-0

WM: 1:13 – Carder five-yard touchdown pass to Alexander. PAT kick good. 33- 0

3rd Quarter

WM: 4:10 – Hakeem Stokes 38-yard interception return touchdown. PAT kick good. 40-0.

WM: 3:08 – Ryan Williams tackles Krunch for safety. 42-0

4th Quarter

WM: 13:55 – Carder 49-yard touchdown pass to Wynn. PAT good. 49-0

WM: 9:00 – Ryan Williams 28-yard interception return touchdown. PAT good. 56-0

WM: 0:44 – Carder eight-yard touchdown pass to Alexander. WM 62-0

West Michigan linebacker Derek VandenBosch (0) gets ready for a play. Photo/Jeremy Clark

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