Rockhurst, Oak Park, Park Hill, Liberty & Platte Co. celebrate Missouri football wins

Two of the top teams in the Kansas City metro will meet for a district title in high school football next week, thanks to a Rockhurst romp.

The Hawklets cruised past Lee’s Summit West 31-8 to reach the finals in Class 6, District 6 on Friday night. The win advances coach Kelly Donohue’s squad to the district final against No. 1-ranked Lee’s Summit North (10-0) next week.

No. 3-ranked Rockhurst got two touchdown runs from Aidan Ryan. Quarterback Ethan Hansen threw for a pair of scores, as well.

Rockhurst (9-1) scored the first 24 points of the game — including a 29-yard field goal by Logan Kuechler.

The only points for the Titans (7-3) came on a 13-yard touchdown pass from Caden Carter in the fourth quarter. Jackson Torry caught the two-point conversion.

Ben Stringer had a pair of interceptions for the Hawklets — the first was followed by a touchdown pass from Hansen to Maeson Tunley to make it 14-0 in the first quarter.

Hansen completed 14 of 20 passes for 219 yards, connecting with eight different targets. Ryan ran for 152 yards on 24 carries as the Hawklets tallied 416 yards of total offense.

Lee’s Summit West’s seven wins were its most in the past five years.

Park Hill 35, St. Joe Central 28

Park Hill will battle Oak Park in the Class 6, District 8 finals next week. But both had to rally late to get there.

The Trojans built an early lead against St. Joseph Central but needed a late touchdown pass from Gavin Schaag to Gage Dorrell to secure a 35-28 win in at Noyes Field in St. Joseph.

Schaag had an earlier touchdown pass to Bryce Lisaka and added a touchdown run for the Trojans (5-5).

Oak Park 28, Staley 21

Oak Park (10-0) rallied from a 21-10 deficit to snap a 14-game losing streak against the Falcons.

Quarterback Aiden Hinkle connected with Drew Clemens on a pair of touchdown passes for Oak Park. A safety by the Oak Park defense pulled the Northmen within a point late, and Evan Braxton’s touchdown run with 2:49 left was the game-winner.

The last time Oak Park and Park Hill clashed was the first round of districts in 2015. That game between the two Northland teams ended in a 41-7 Trojans win.

Liberty 42, Blue Springs South 28

Liberty advanced to the district final with a win against Blue Springs South.

The two teams played their second straight game against each other due to a unique scheduling twist. On Oct. 20, the Blue Jays won 13-10 in overtime. After a bye last week, Liberty and Blue Springs South met again at the same location: HyVee Field at Liberty High.

The Jaguars (2-8) made things interesting late when Ayden Wilhelm threw a touchdown pass to Caysen Stevenson with 3:22 to play. But on the third play of the ensuing Liberty drive, Jaxon Hicks broke through for a 42-yard touchdown run with 2:15 remaining.

That was all the cushion Liberty (7-3) would need. Both teams scored twice in the fourth, trading touchdowns. Wilhelm threw a TD pass to Will Grice for 41 yards, while Liberty QB Christian Kuchta ran for a 15-yard score.

Kuchta ran for a pair of touchdowns and threw for 149 yards, completing 10 of 15 passes. Hicks ran for 205 yards and three touchdowns for the Blue Jays, averaging 10.2 yards per carry. He also threw a TD pass to Jackson Froehlich in the first quarter.

Kendrick Hawkins Jr. ran for 155 yards and a touchdown for the Jaguars. Wilhelm ran for 56 yards and a TD and threw for 199 yards.

The win pushes the Blue Jays into the Class 6, District 7 final against Liberty North, a 31-7 winner over Liberty in Week 2.

Platte County 28, Fort Osage 21

Platte County is headed back to a district title game for the first time since reaching the state finals in 2020.

The Pirates (9-2), winners of six in a row, built a 20-0 lead in this Class 5, District 7 showdown, then held off a late charge by the Indians (6-5).

The victory sets up a showdown between Platte County and Grain Valley, ranked No. 6 in the 810 Varsity Top 25. Platte County lost 45-24 to Grain Valley in Week 4.

Junior Dawsen Mizell caught his second touchdown with 7:11 left from Rocco Marriott, giving the Pirates a 26-20 lead. The Pirates went for two and Adam Gisler ran it in.

The Pirates’ defense then forced a turnover on downs at their own 7. But a fumble gave the Indians another chance with less than three minutes to play. Two plays after the turnover, Kyle Wilson hit Trace Smith for a 16-yard TD to help Fort Osage narrow the gap with 2:35 to go.

Platte County recovered the onside kick but ultimately had to punt it with less than a minute left. Then Fort Osage lost 12 yards on third and 8. An incomplete pass on fourth down gave the Pirates the ball back a final time, enabling Marriott to take a knee and run out the clock.

Marriott finished 11 for 16 for 219 yards and two touchdowns (one to Mizell and another to Tres Baskerville). Marriott also ran for a 61-yard TD that made it 20-0 in the first quarter.

Platte County’s defense held standout Indians back Ryver Peppers to 95 yards. Alex Snodgrass had a pair of scores for Fort Osage, a 17-yard catch and a 3-yard run, which helped make it 20-14 at the break. Wilson completed 18 of 22 passes for 139 yards.

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