Pirates thump Bears
The Platte County Pirates started fast and never looked back in a season-opening 58-0 blur of William Chrisman on Friday, Aug. 30, at Pirate Stadium.
The Pirates scored 23 points in the first quarter and led 51-0 at halftime. The Pirates had 433 yards of offense including 273 yards through the air. Junior starting quarterback Rocco Marriot completed 12 of 20 passes for 230 yards and four touchdowns. Backup Brady Davis completed five of seven passes for 43 yards.
The Pirates also racked up 160 yards on the ground led by Marriot who had 84 yards on two carries and a touchdown. Senior running backs Isaiah Seymour and Dayton Doll both found the end zone on the ground. Seymour carried the ball four times for 46 yards and Doll carried four times for 19 yards.
Junior Brayden Stevens led the Pirates in receptions with six for 180 yards and four touchdowns. Ty Christopher had three catches for 36 yards. Jack Utz, Hudson Humes, Tres Baskerville, Lane Webb, Chase Huelett, Brooks Hall, and Doll each had a reception.
The Pirates will head out on the road this week to Grain Valley who also won its opening week game 29-14 over Raytown. The Pirates will look to avenge two losses to Grain Valley last season. The Eagles ended Platte County’s season last year with a 27-25 loss in the postseason and the Eagles won last year’s regular season match-up 45-24.
Trojans win OT thriller
Park Hill Head Coach Andy Sims thought his team would get an early test and they passed it with a 46-45 win over Rockbridge in triple overtime at home on Friday, Aug. 30.
It’s the third straight season the Trojans have opened the season with a win over a Columbia high school. The last two seasons Park Hill has opened with convincing wins over Battle High School.
Trojans’ junior Zane Thomas completed 30 of 41 passes for 270 yards and four touchdowns. Sophomore Riley Haney completed four of seven passes for 27 yards and a touchdown.
The Trojan were led by senior Gage Dorrell who caught nine balls for 91 yards and a touchdown. Junior Brayln Agee caught seven passes for 91 yards and two touchdowns. Junior Daniel Easter and junior Noah Vance each had touchdown receptions.
Easter led the way for the Trojans on the ground with 54 yards on 14 carries while Thomas had 28 yards on six attempts. Senior Owen Keller scored on a two-yard run.
Keller led the Trojans on defense with a total of 19 tackles followed by junior Sai’Quan Copeland and senior Davion Seymour who each had 12 tackles. Senior Davis Livingston had 11 tackles while junior Ja’Mare Bell had three sacks and junior Jonah Were had two sacks. Were had seven quarterback pressures.
The Trojans will be on the road next week to take on North Kansas City.
Jays run past Polo in opening game
The West Platte Blue Jays opened the 2024 football season with a 35-26 win at home over Polo on Friday, Aug. 30.
Senior quarterback Kane Cogan threw for 81 yards and two touchdowns, both to sophomore wide receiver Blaze Masoner who also racked up 47 yards combined on the two touchdown receptions. Senior Afton Buckler ran for 151 yards on 17 carries and found the end zone three times for scores and as a team, the Blue Jays racked up 272 yards on the ground.
On defense, the Blue Jays allowed only 46 yards rushing and were led by junior Marshall Winker with eight tackles followed by Buckler who had six tackles and 1.5 sacks of the quarterback.
The win snaps a two-game losing streak in the opening game versus Polo and is the first opening week win since 2021 when the Blue Jays beat Lone Jack 42-27. Polo beat the Blue Jays in the opening game 30-26 in 2022 and 29-0 in last year’s contest.
This week the Blue Jays are at home again but will play on Saturday at 1 p.m. versus Liberty (Mountain View) who lost their first game 34-22 to Strafford.