Anna Faltermeier/Sun NewsPark Hill High running back Sam Pour breaks into the opening field during a 21-19 victory against North Kansas City on Friday, Aug. 29. The Trojans finished with 235 yards rushing and just more than 6.3 yards per carry.
Join our Mailing List!
Please click the link below to sign up for your community paper mailing list. Stay up to date with all the events going on in your community as well as the latest news.Sign Up Today!
OFF AND RUNNING: Trojans await angry Jaguars this week
By Bill Knust
It is one thing to play a Class 6 Blue Springs South team coming off a normal week.
Park Hill High will find out how different it is to play a Jaguars team coming off a 42-14 pasting by Rockhurst the previous week.
South is led by senior quarterback and Missouri recruit Blaine Dalton, but returns only four starters from a team that advanced to the state semifinals a season ago. The kicker to that is all four starters are on the offensive side of the ball. The Jaguars have no defensive starters back from last season.
That could bode well for a Trojans team that ran the ball 37 times for 235 yards in a 21-19 win against North Kansas City on Friday, Aug. 29. Park Hill’s front five dominated the line of scrimmage in the first half, opening gaping holes for all of its running backs to go through.
The one weakness South could exploit is the deep pass. Multiple times North Kansas City receivers were able to sneak behind the Trojans’ secondary. However, Northtown senior quarterback David Parker was never able to capitalize. Dalton and returning senior receiver Nate Ingram may be able to.
“Every thing worries me about Blue Springs South,” Park Hill coach Greg Reynolds said. “They’re one of the best-coached teams in the city, and they have one of the best quarterbacks in the state. We are going to have to play a great game, there is no doubt about it.”
On offense, Reynolds said South will bring defenders from multiple places.
“It is not just one thing with them,” Reynolds said. “It starts with (head coach) Greg Oder and Kelly Groom, who spearhead their defense and their offense. It is going to be a lot more tape watching and getting into it more mentally than we have in the past.”
Park Hill 21,
North Kansas City 19
The Trojans raced to a 21-0 halftime lead behind the strong play of their offensive line. Three different Trojans running backs scored — seniors Sam Pour and Tyler Gable, and junior Sean Gorman. Reynolds said it took a good pep talk the Wednesday before their game to get his offensive line firing on all cylinders.
“We haven’t done it all year in practice,” Reynolds said. “Wednesday night we had a little come-to meeting with me about the way we are attacking things.”
Whatever Reynolds said worked, because the Trojans averaged 6.3 yards per carry and picked up 235 yards on the ground.
North Kansas City did not go quietly, though. The Hornets opened the second half with an 18-play drive that covered 90 yards in seven and a half minutes. Parker shook off a tough start and picked his play up in the second half.
“It was a garbage first half, terrible,” Parker said. “I just had to flush it, though. You have to be a six-second team. You just have to move on to the next play.”
Parker’s 14-yard pass to senior receiver Bill Anderson got the Hornets on the board, but miscommunication on the point-after snap caused a miss. A little razzle-dazzle in the fourth quarter drew the Hornets even closer. Anderson hit senior receiver Lucas Bixler on a reverse pass to draw the Hornets to 21-12. Parker was stopped on his two-point run, leaving the deficit at nine points.
Northtown coach Chad Valadez was ecstatic with the way his team performed in the second half, and said his team will need a full four quarters against its opponent this week, Kansas foe St. Thomas Aquinas.
“We hope that second half is an indication of our resiliency and our ability to fight adversity,” Valadez said. “If we don’t, next week is going to be real long, because I think St. Thomas Aquinas is a good team.”
Sports writer Bill Knust can be reached at 389-6605 or billknust@npgco.com.
printable version
e-mail this story
Park Hill High will find out how different it is to play a Jaguars team coming off a 42-14 pasting by Rockhurst the previous week.
South is led by senior quarterback and Missouri recruit Blaine Dalton, but returns only four starters from a team that advanced to the state semifinals a season ago. The kicker to that is all four starters are on the offensive side of the ball. The Jaguars have no defensive starters back from last season.
That could bode well for a Trojans team that ran the ball 37 times for 235 yards in a 21-19 win against North Kansas City on Friday, Aug. 29. Park Hill’s front five dominated the line of scrimmage in the first half, opening gaping holes for all of its running backs to go through.
The one weakness South could exploit is the deep pass. Multiple times North Kansas City receivers were able to sneak behind the Trojans’ secondary. However, Northtown senior quarterback David Parker was never able to capitalize. Dalton and returning senior receiver Nate Ingram may be able to.
“Every thing worries me about Blue Springs South,” Park Hill coach Greg Reynolds said. “They’re one of the best-coached teams in the city, and they have one of the best quarterbacks in the state. We are going to have to play a great game, there is no doubt about it.”
On offense, Reynolds said South will bring defenders from multiple places.
“It is not just one thing with them,” Reynolds said. “It starts with (head coach) Greg Oder and Kelly Groom, who spearhead their defense and their offense. It is going to be a lot more tape watching and getting into it more mentally than we have in the past.”
Park Hill 21,
North Kansas City 19
The Trojans raced to a 21-0 halftime lead behind the strong play of their offensive line. Three different Trojans running backs scored — seniors Sam Pour and Tyler Gable, and junior Sean Gorman. Reynolds said it took a good pep talk the Wednesday before their game to get his offensive line firing on all cylinders.
“We haven’t done it all year in practice,” Reynolds said. “Wednesday night we had a little come-to meeting with me about the way we are attacking things.”
Whatever Reynolds said worked, because the Trojans averaged 6.3 yards per carry and picked up 235 yards on the ground.
North Kansas City did not go quietly, though. The Hornets opened the second half with an 18-play drive that covered 90 yards in seven and a half minutes. Parker shook off a tough start and picked his play up in the second half.
“It was a garbage first half, terrible,” Parker said. “I just had to flush it, though. You have to be a six-second team. You just have to move on to the next play.”
Parker’s 14-yard pass to senior receiver Bill Anderson got the Hornets on the board, but miscommunication on the point-after snap caused a miss. A little razzle-dazzle in the fourth quarter drew the Hornets even closer. Anderson hit senior receiver Lucas Bixler on a reverse pass to draw the Hornets to 21-12. Parker was stopped on his two-point run, leaving the deficit at nine points.
Northtown coach Chad Valadez was ecstatic with the way his team performed in the second half, and said his team will need a full four quarters against its opponent this week, Kansas foe St. Thomas Aquinas.
“We hope that second half is an indication of our resiliency and our ability to fight adversity,” Valadez said. “If we don’t, next week is going to be real long, because I think St. Thomas Aquinas is a good team.”
Sports writer Bill Knust can be reached at 389-6605 or billknust@npgco.com.