SMITHVILLE, Mo. — Emotions ran high following a tightly contested Class 3 District 16 championship game rematch. A rivalry matchup ended with players from Platte County and Smithville being physically separated Thursday, Oct. 29 at Smithville High School. The host and top seed secured a 2-1 victory in the second meeting of the year, marking the sixth time in seven years the Warriors ended Platte County’s season in districts.
Last season, Platte County ended a long losing spell against Smithville, avenging a regular season loss and reaching the playoffs for the second time in program history.
Smithville sophomore midfielder Carter Tietjens scored both goals in this victory, which followed up a 4-1 win vs. the Pirates earlier in the season. He scored 6 minutes into the game and 6 minutes from the end of regulation to put the Warriors up 2-0 and seemingly ice the district title.
Tietjens’ first goal came after a thunderous Trent Williams shot, which Platte County goalkeeper Pirates goalkeeper Bailey Ride saved onto his crossbar — one of 11 saves he made. The rebound bounced right to Tietjens, who didn’t miss on an empty net.
In the 74th minute, Tietjens pounced on a loose ball following a corner kick. Platte County centerback Mason Hays prevented the breakaway on the original effort but could only put the ball out for the fateful corner.
Platte County ended up closing its gap in half, giving faint hope of a comeback.
Chandler Peterson, a sophomore midfielder, answered Tietjens second 2 minutes on a nifty throughball from senior forward Baylor Cox. Peterson however received a second yellow card a minute later, and Platte County finished the game trying to tie the score at 2-2 with 10 men.
Overall, there were eight cautions issued from the center referee — five for Platte County and three for Smithville. Tempers increasingly flared as the time ticked off of the clock with the Warriors in no hurry to put the ball back into play.
This led to a mass confrontation with administrators and coaches from both teams needing to separate the former Midland Empire Conference rivals on the field after the final whistle.
Platte County finished the season with a 17-7-1 record and a 7-3 record in the Suburban Conference Blue Division, good for second place behind unbeaten Belton.