Blog

Hazelwood Central Football Takes 7-0

Record to McCluer North, Districts

By Jim Wieners

It has been nearly a year since Hazelwood Central has lost a varsity football game and the Hawks will take on the team that they lost to, 31-30 at home in the first week of Class Six, District Four last year.

Saturday at 1 p.m., as of Oct. 11, Hazelwood Central will travel to McCluer North to open play in Class Six, District Four play. This will be the second year the Missouri State High School Activities Association will take the top two teams from each district and last year Central took advantage of the district runner up finish to eventually beat McCluer North 24-6 in a rematch in the Class Six Quarterfinals as the Hawks went on to win their fourth state title in the Hazelwood/Hazelwood Central history.

The Hawks go into the game with a record of 7-0 overall, 4-0 in the Suburban North and is currently on a 13-game winning streak dating back to last season. Going back to the last two games of 2007 Central has won 21 of their last 23 games following a 34-8 Suburban North win last Friday night at a damp and cold Pattonville Stadium. So far it has been a compete team effort, according to Hawk head coach Rich Nixon but said “we still need to clean up on mistakes (particularly putting the ball on the ground). We’ll be ready to play.”

McCluer North is 4-3 overall, 3-1 in the Suburban North after traveling to Evansville, Ind., North and the Stars came home from last Friday’s game with a 34-26 win. Nixon said the Stars “are well coached (led by the dean of Suburban North coaches, Jim Schottmueller) and they make the least amount of mistakes.”

The Hawks and Stars can be seen on Charter Cable Channel 3 this Saturday at 7 p.m. and this Sunday at 12 noon.

ELSEWHERE IN CLASS SIX, DISTRICT FOUR, Hazelwood West, 4-0, 6-1, will host Riverview Gardens, 3-1, 5-2 this Saturday at 10 a.m. (note the change in starting time) in a Suburban North game. West saw their unbeaten hopes dashed last Saturday at home when Metro Catholic Conference champion DeSmet (7-0) defeated the Wildcats, 49-20. Riverview has lost their last two, including a 36-32 loss last Friday at Columbia-Rock Bridge, after opening the season by winning the first five.

“We got to crank it up,” said Wildcat head coach Keith Herring. “We just have to work hard (and) we’ll be all right. DeSmet, who knocked the ‘Cats from the ranks of the unbeaten for the second year in a row, are “a real deal,” said Herring.

CLASS FIVE, DISTRICT FOUR — HAZELWOOD EAST (3-2 SNC, 3-4) AT PATTONVILLE (1-4, 1-6), FRIDAY, 7 p.m. — FORT ZUMWALT NORTH (3-4) AT McCLUER (0-5, 1-6), SATURDAY, 1 p.m. — Hazelwood East, since losing their first four games, has not won their last three including a 32-14 home decision last Friday over Ritenour (1-6, 1-6), the only team Pattonville has defeated this season. McCluer is winless in the Suburban North and only has a win over Jennings this season while Fort Zumwalt North finished 3-4 in the Gateway Athletic Conference North Division.

CLASS THREE, DISTRICT FIVE — LUTHERAN NORTH (1-6) AT TRINITY CATHOLIC (4-3), FRIDAY, 7 P.M. — McCLUER SOUTH-BERKELEY (3-4) AT JOHN BURROUGHS (4-2), SATURDAY, 1 P.M. — Trinity Catholic, after a 4-2 stint in the Archdiocesan Athletic Association, lost a 10-7 heartbreaker at St. Francis Borgia last Friday on a fourth-quarter field goal while Lutheran North has just a win over Lutheran South and is 1-3 in the ABC League. McCluer South-Berkeley finished 1-4 in the Suburban East Conference while John Burroughs is 2-2 in the ABC League.

QUARTERBACK BEN DANIELS (11) attempts a handoff for Hazelwood West in last Saturday’s 49-20 loss to DeSmet.                     Jim Wieners photo

Share on Facebook

Tweet

Follow us