The last time the West Platte football team (2-2) stepped onto the field it was homecoming, and the Blue Jays put on a show on the royal night en route to a 48-0 obliteration over Plattsburg (0-4) on September 16.
The Blue Jays were shut out for the first time since 2019 the week before, but their offense was clicking on all cylinders against the Tigers. West Platte had 495 yards of offense and jumped out to a 32-0 lead by the time the clock ran out in the opening period.
West Platte junior Cohen Kite stiff arms a Plattsburg defender in the Blue Jays dominant 48-0 win over the Tigers on Sept. 16.
“After last week’s loss we made it a point of interest all week to make sure we didn’t come out flat and without emotion,” West Platte head coach Jim Newsted said. “I thought the kids responded well to the advice and it showed with our first quarter performance.”
West Platte didn’t waste much time getting on the scoreboard with Dalton Woodward rushing in from 2-yards out with 2:31 into the game. Junior quarterback Kane Cogan found Peyson Chandler for a 9-yard touchdown on the ensuing drive, then Woodward ran in for a 28-yard score with 4:23 left in the first period.
The Blue Jays scored twice in the final 1:51 of the first quarter with a 3-yard run by McClain Zendejas and a 30-yard run by Afton Buckler. Woodward found the end zone one more time in the opening half – on a 3-yard rush with five seconds left – and West Platte led 39-0 at the break, while only allowing 13 yards of offense by Plattsburg.
“We decided as a staff that offensively we had to find ways to spread the ball around in our play calls and defensively we had to be more aggressive in our decisions while being sound in our pass defense. The offensive game plan held strong with four players having great nights with the ball in their hands,” Newsted said.
Christian Larrabee had seven carries for 109 yds, Woodard had 92 rushing yards on 12 attempts and three touchdowns and Buckler tallied 85 rushing yards and a score. Zendejas had five rushes and two of them were touchdowns, while Cogan threw the ball six times completing four of them with 52 yards and a touchdown.
The Blue Jays added 10 points in the third quarter, starting with a 6-yard rushing touchdown by Zendejas with 9:20 on the clock. With less than four minutes left in the third period, freshman kicker Alex Allison converted on a 20-yard field goal.
“Homecoming week is always a great week of school spirit in any high school atmosphere, and we used the energy to come out and dominate between the lines. It was a great week for us as a football team, the school district, and the community,” Newsted said.
On defense, the trio of Peyson Chandler, Lane Scott and Larrabee combined for 30 tackles, seven tackles for loss, and two sacks, while Cohen Kite had a big interception in the first quarter to kill the only positive drive the Tigers had. West Platte will try to earn back-to-back wins for the first time this season against Lawson (2-2) on September 23.