North Platte couldn’t come up with an answer until too late against a Class 1 powerhouse.
Hamilton senior LaTroy Harper ran for touchdowns of 52, 29 and 61 yards on three of his four carries in the first quarter, and the Hornets pulled away for a 53-18 win on Friday, Oct. 6 in Hamilton, Mo. North Platte trailed 34-0 before scoring late in the first half and added a pair of touchdowns in the second half of a second straight loss.
North Platte dropped to 2-6 overall and 2-4 in KCI Conference play with a home game this Friday to conclude the regular season. The Panthers host Plattsburg in a Class 1 District 7 matchup that could affect the final seeding.
Plattsburg enters at 4-4 and at No. 3 in the standings, while North Platte dropped from No. 4 to No. 5 following the loss to Hamilton.
North Platte enters having used both senior Austin Snook and sophomore Andrew Hernandez at quarterback in what ended up being a pass-heavy attack. Hernandez finished with 133 yards on 5-of-8 accuracy with a 71-yard touchdown pass to senior Will Morse in the third quarter to cut Hamilton’s lead to 40-12.
Snook went 5-for-5 for 91 yards with a 3-yard touchdown pass to sophomore Ty French in the fourth quarter for the game’s final points.
North Platte ran for just 38 yards on 27 attempts against Hamilton (7-1), ranked No. 4 in Class 1. Remington Wilson, a senior, had 26 yards on his eight attempts.
Hunter Hendricks, a junior, led North Platte with seven tackles, but the Panthers allowed 123 yards passing on six completions and more than 300 yards rushing. Harper had 140 yards on four attempts, while sophomore Ryan Cook ran for 77 yards and two touchdowns.
Harper and Cook also threw a touchdown each.