The second week of the football season got off to an early start Thursday evening as Kirkwood and Parkway Central earned victories to kick off a busy holiday weekend in prep sports in the area. Plenty of big matchups are coming up this weekend, and one of the biggest early seasons cross country meets takes place this afternoon at McNair Park in St. Charles.
Kirkwood avenged a week one loss with an impressive 42-14 win over Pattonville Thursday evening. After the Pirates grabbed an early 7-0 lead at the end of the first quarter, the Pioneers offense kicked it into high gear as Kirkwood ran off 28 unanswered points over the next two periods to take a 28-7 advantage into the fourth quarter. Deion Brown scored two of his three touchdowns during that stretch to push the Pioneers ahead. The Pirates cut the lead to 28-14 early in the fourth quarter as Lawrence Jackson scored on a 27-yard run, but Omar Hopkins and Brown each found the endzone on long runs to seal the victory for Kirkwood as that improved their record to 1-1.
The Colts improved to 2-0 on the young season with a 22-0 victory over McCluer Thursday evening. DJ Burgess opened the scoring in the first quarter with an 11-yard to give Parkway Central a 7-0 lead. The Colts defense then provided a spark early in the second quarter as Marvell Vails returned an interception 35-yards to the house to give Central a 14-0 advantage. Burgess added to the lead later in the second period with a six-yard dash to push the lead to 20-0. The Colts defense once again put points on the scoreboard late in the contest with a safety to clinch the victory.
On the soccer pitch, Oakville moved their record to 2-0 with an impressive 2-1 win over Summit Thursday evening. The Tigers scored twice in the first 40 minutes as Mohammed Al-Kenani and Zach Pommer each found the back of the net to give Oakville a 2-0 lead. The Falcons battled back in the second half as Landin Hoyle scored to cut the advantage to 2-1, but the Oakville defense was able to hold on to the lead to earn the victory.
It will be a busy weekend on the football ball field as many huge matchups highlight the schedule.
Marquette and Summit will play for the first time since 2017 as both squads enter the game after winning their opening week games. The Mustangs defeated Lafayette in week one 21-14 with Connor Griebenow pacing their running game with 134 yards on the ground and a touchdown while Jack Ahlbrand threw for 212 yards and a touchdown in the win. The Falcons opened their season with a convincing 61-0 win over Webster Groves last week as the Summit defense limited the Statesmen to under 50 yards of total offense. Elijah Stevens led the way for the Falcons with 133 yards on the ground and three touchdowns while Grant Gibson threw for 137 yards and four scores.
Saturday is going to be a huge day on the football schedule as there are a pair of games that feature four of the top teams in the area.
MICDS will play host to Chaminade Saturday afternoon in what could be a preview of a big district matchup later in the year as the Rams will move up to Class 5 this season and are in the same district as the Red Devils. MICDS won their meeting with Chaminade last season and is coming off a 37-2 victory over Harrisonville last week. Steven Hall led the Rams offense with 107 yards on the ground with Winston Moore adding 79 yards rushing to help the Rams to the win on the road. The Red Devils are coming off a 28-26 loss to Lindbergh last week and will look to get a bounce back early season win on the road. Madden Irving rushed for 132 yards in the loss while Drake Faust had 220 yards throwing and a pair of touchdowns to lead the Chaminade offense.
The feature game of the week is over in East St. Louis at Clyde C. Jordan Stadium as the two top teams in the area hook up as CBC travels to take on the Flyers Saturday at 6 p.m. The Cadets are coming off an impressive 41-27 win over perennial Georgia state power Milton last week at Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio. Ralph Dixon rushed for 139 yards and a score while Dylan Van added another 130 yards and two touchdowns to lead the way for CBC. The Cadet defense was outstanding with four sacks and a caused fumble to aid in the win. The Flyers enter the game after falling to the No. 3 team in the country, St. Frances, Md. 20-13 in the same showcase that CBC played in at Hall of Fame Stadium. East St. Louis will rely on quarterback Robert Battle to control the offense as he threw for 123 yards with a touchdown and rushed for another score last week in the loss. The Flyers defense will count on Dominic Dixon to have another big night after he led the way with 10 tackles last week.
In Field Hockey, the Gateway Classic will take place at the SportsPort Athletic Complex this weekend with all the top teams in the area taking part in the event. Villa Duchesne, MICDS, and Kirkwood highlight the Classic that starts Friday afternoon and finishes Saturday evening.
McNair Park will be the place to be Friday afternoon as the First Capital meet takes place with many of the top squads opening their seasons by joining the meet. Herculaneum highlights the field after winning another state championship last season with Visitation and Whitfield headlining the girls’ side of the meet.
Jim Powers has been covering prep sports in the St. Louis area for 15+ years and a part of the Missouri State High School Activities Association Championship Broadcasts for the past 11 years. Powers is also a part of the Fox 2 Verlo Mattress Prep Zone Friday nights at 10:10 during the football and basketball seasons. If you have a prep sports story, please contact Jim at japowers2421@yahoo.com. Follow Jim at @hssportscaravan
