The Pirates shocked the Hornets when the Platte County football team headed to North Kansas City High School and shut out its opponent 29-0 on Friday, Sept. 17.
Platte County’s Tristan Magnuson (#82) and Dayne Wimberly (#17) celebrate after a Pirate touchdown.
Heading into the contest, the Pirates and Hornets were both 2-1 in the fall season. In what was anticipated to be a highly competitive matchup between Class 5 District 8 opponents, the contest turned into a one-sided affair.
“Obviously this had a lot of hype leading up to it with it being a great matchup and it has become a bit of a rivalry over the past few years,” Platte County head coach Bill Utz said. “We knew that we were going to have to play our best and I think we did a great job of coming out and setting the tone early.”
North Kansas City started the contest off with a solid drive down the field, but it ended with a punt to give Platte County the ball. On third and 14 from the Hornets’ 20-yard line with 3:14 remaining in the first quarter, Jared Parsons connected with Nate Walls for the first touchdown of the night.
“Jared gets better every week; his first half was as good as I’ve seen him play. He did a great job, he made some plays that were good and he stood in the pocket to make throws,” Utz said.
The Pirate defense forced back-to-back turnovers from that point on as Cade Fowler and Dylan Mitchell both intercepted the Hornets’ quarterback. The Pirates were unable to capitalize on both turnovers, but scored on a short pass from Parsons to Tristan Magnuson with 9:09 remaining in the half.
After leading 14-0, Cole Rhoden knocked down a pair of field goals to give the Panthers a 20-0 halftime lead. The senior converted on a 27-yarder with 3:09 remaining and a career long 46-yard attempt right before the break.
The Pirate defense came out of the locker room prepared to continue the strong performance. Platte County forced North Kansas City to zero points, two punts and three turnovers on downs in the second half.
“I’m really please with how our defense played tonight. Anytime you can keep them scoreless, I like your chances,” Utz said.
Platte County scored nine more points to close it out with another Rhoden field goal and a 7-yard rushing touchdown from Nate Walls. This victory gave the Pirates their third straight win and they will be hosting a tough 4-0 opponent this Friday, Sept. 24, when they take on Smithville.