It is hard to believe that we are over halfway through the fall sports season, but district tennis has started for the girls in singles and doubles while the football season heads into week six this weekend. Also, big conference battles on the pitch and the diamond this past week.
Let’s get caught up on it all in this week’s edition of the Friday Fast Break.
On the soccer field, De Smet needed overtime and penalty kicks to claim a 2-1 win over Vianney this past Thursday evening. Hank Walbert opened the scoring early in the first half as he scored off a Jake Panagos pass to give the Spartans a 1-0 lead. The Golden Griffins evened the match with just over 16 minutes remaining in the first half as Jackson Ahearn collected a pass from Jack Clough and found the back of the net to make the score 1-1. After 40 minutes of play in the second half and 20 minutes in overtime, the two teams remained tied at 1-1 and went to penalty kicks. Kyle Crosswhite stopped all three Vianney attempts while after De Smet made their first two kicks, Walbert sealed the deal to help the Spartans improve to 8-3 on the year.
In a big conference match-up on the diamond, Marquette scored four runs in the top of the seventh inning to pull away from Eureka and claim a 6-1 victory to improve their record to 12-7 on the year. The Mustangs grabbed an early 2-0 lead after scoring a run in the first and third innings, but the Wildcats cut the lead in half in the fourth as Sydney Bailey scored to make the score 2-1. Marquette broke the game open in the top of the seventh with a four-run outburst to claim the win. Grace Bonczek drove in a pair of runs while Hailey Neuner had two hits and scored three times to aid the Mustangs in the win. Maddie Carney earned the win in the circle as she went the distance and gave up three hits and had five strikeouts in the victory.
The district tennis competitions got underway on Thursday as the singles and doubles tournaments began at sites around the area. In Class 2, Ladue will look to send many of their players to the sectionals as Angel Chen and Saba Fajors each had straight-set wins in the second round of the district on Thursday at the Webster Groves Tennis Center. Chen will take on Mehlville’s Stefanie Wong Friday in one semifinal while Fajors will play Milly Benkelman from Webster Groves in the other semifinal. The winner will meet in the district final at 4:15 Friday. In doubles action in that district, Ladue and Webster Groves will have both of their groups competing in the semifinals Friday.
It will be another busy weekend on the football field as many games will go a long way in determining conference champions over the next few weeks.
Kirkwood will play host to Marquette Friday night as the Pioneers will look to snap a three-game losing streak to the Mustangs. Kirkwood is coming off a bye week and will turn running back Deion Brown to continue to lead their offensive attack. Brown has 634 yards on the ground and has scored 10 times while he has also caught a touchdown pass for the Pioneers. Patrick Fortune and Kam Richardson each have 27 tackles on the year to pace the Kirkwood defense. Marquette is 4-1 on the year and is coming off a 41-0 win over Northwest last week. Senior quarterback Jack Ahlbrand leads the Mustang attack with 810 yards through the air with seven touchdowns while he has added another 218 yards rushing and five more scores. Gavin Marsh is Ahlbrand’s favorite target as he has grabbed 25 passes for 505 yards and six touchdowns. Brian Fitzmaurice is the defensive leader for Marquette as he has 35 stops on the year with a pair of sacks.
In a battle for the top of the Metro League, Lutheran North travels to West County to take on MICDS. The Rams hold a 12-10 advantage in the series and won last year’s contest 56-37. The Crusaders enter the game with a 3-2 record and are coming off a 55-7 win over Lutheran South last week. Running back Ricky Dixon leads the Lutheran North rushing attack with 422 yards and nine scores while Dakarri Hollis has thrown for 780 yards and five touchdowns. Karvon Jefferson paces the Lutheran North defense with 51 tackles and a pair of sacks. The Rams are ranked third in the latest Class 5 rankings and remain undefeated after defeating John Burroughs 44-3 last week. Steven Hall is leading the Rams offense with 595 yards rushing with 16 touchdowns while Winston Moore has added another 396 yards on the ground with 11 scores. Cortlin Dalton paces the MICDS defense with 49 tackles and three sacks on the year.
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
