Friday night lights: Kansas high school football highlights from around the KC metro
The big showdown in the Sunflower State turned out to be a track meet for Gardner Edgerton.
In a battle of the No. 1 team in Kansas Class 6A versus the No. 1 team in Kansas Class 5A, Gardner Edgerton dismissed any doubt early in a 49-10 blowout of Mill Valley.
From the outset, GE hit the four-time defending state champs with big plays. The first was quarterback Bravin Powell’s pass to Randy Singleton, who curled to the outside, juked a Jaguars defender and jetted down the sideline for a 48-yard touchdown.
Following a short punt, the Blazers took over at the GE 43. Four plays later, Powell connected with Singleton over the middle for another TD and 14-0 lead.
The roundhouses kept coming via Syre Padilla’s 47-yard TD run with 6:41 until intermission and 51-yard scoring run by Powell. Powell and Singleton connected from 42 yards out with 1:54 left and GE had a 35-3 halftime lead.
Powell’s third-quarter touchdown pass of 39 yards to Colton Hawkinson gave the high-powered Blazers six scores of 39-plus yards Friday night.
Gardner Edgerton (4-0) will host another state power in Olathe North (4-0) next Friday, while Mill Valley travels to Olathe South (3-1).
Rockhurst 21, Bishop Miege 14
Rockhurst’s senior-laden team was determined to end its series against Bishop Miege with a win.
And the Hawklets succeeded in taking Friday’s showdown, earning a 21-14 victory over the Stags one year after Miege had beaten Rockhurst.
Rockhurst, ranked No. 8 in the 810 Varsity Top 25, asserted its ground game early with runs of 19 yards by senior Aidan Ryan and 20 by senior Tommy Coppinger. Senior quarterback Ethan Hansen connected with fellow senior Maeson Tunley for a 32-yard touchdown and 7-0 lead.
On the Hawklets’ next possession, an 11-play, 64-yard drive culminated in Coppinger’s 9-yard scoring run up the middle. Rockhurst led 14-0 at halftime.
Miege, ranked No. 7 in the Top 25, held strong. Quarterback Marco Rodriguez faked a handoff and then quick hit Hollis Moeller in the left flat. Moeller raced inside the 10 and broke two tackles for a touchdown that halved the deficit at 14-7.
The Hawklets answered with a seven-play, 67-yard drive capped by a Hansen keeper to the right, and Miege countered with a pitch to running back David Garcia that resulted in a 19-yard heave to the end zone. Peter Gibson was wide open and hauled it in, making it 21-14.
Miege had another chance when Rockhurst fell short on a fourth-down attempt at the Miege 18. But the Stags couldn’t muster a solid drive and punted with 7:45 left. Two penalties set Rockhurst back at its own 15, but the Hawklets were able to run out the clock.
Rockhurst (4-1) will travel to No. 4 St. Thomas Aquinas (4-0) net Friday, while Bishop Miege will face Blue Valley (2-2).
Blue Valley West 21, Staley 7
Blue Valley West ran it right at Staley and the Falcons had no answer.
Senior running back Sage Huffman scored three touchdowns and the BV West defense came up with two fourth-quarter takeaways as the Jaguars won 21-7.
After a scoreless first quarter, Huffman scored on runs of 1 and 16 yards in the second. Huffman’s second TD came on a fourth-and-3.
Staley got a 49-yard TD run from KV Stone to keep it a one-score game at the break, but the Falcons got no closer. Huffman’s third TD, with 54 seconds left in the third quarter, was more than enough to seal it.
“The fact that we were able to make those game-winning types of plays on both sides of the ball is big for us moving forward,” Jaguars coach Josh Koerkenmeier said. “Hopefully we can do that a lot more moving forward.”
BV West (2-2) faces BV Northwest (2-2) next week, while Staley (1-4) will play host to Liberty (3-2).
Blue Valley 22, Blue Springs 15
Blue Valley pulled out a 22-15 cross-state win against Blue Springs Friday night at Blue Valley District Stadium.
Long-time powers in Kansas and Missouri, respectively, Blue Valley and Blue Springs entered the game with a combined 3-4 record.
The Tigers reached back for some of their BVHS magic at home. Trailing 15-14 late in the fourth quarter, Blue Valley engineered a drive that extended nearly six minutes. Martel Buchanan eventually broke away for a 21-yard touchdown, and an ensuing two-point conversion with 4:24 put the Tigers ahead for good.
After trailing from the outset, Blue Valley blocked a punt and scored on a Thomas Hoskins run for a 7-6 lead. Hoskins added another score in the second quarter for a 14-6 Blue Valley lead at halftime.
Blue Springs converted a field goal to get it to 14-9, then retook the lead with 10 minutes left on Donavan George’s second TD run of the night before Blue Valley’s game-winning drive.
Blue Valley will travel to Bishop Miege (3-1) next week, while Blue Springs faces Liberty North (4-1), the No. 2-ranked team in the 810 Varsity Top 25.
For more scores, stats, rankings and features, visit 810Varsity.com.
