Share on FacebookTweetFollow us
Read More
Comets, Stars, Spartans Begin District Football Early; Hawks Visit Jeff City
MC CLUER HIGH QUARTERBACK LYNEX OWENS appears to hand off the ball (to a player out of the picture) last Saturday in a 28-21 home win over Pattonville. Owens ran for a touchdown, passed for another, ran for two points and passed for two more.
STORY & PHOTO BY JIM WIENERS
Qualifying for the Missouri State High School Activities Association Football (post-season) playoffs since 1988 is usually the last three weeks of the season. However, four districts in Class Five have five teams instead of four so the start of district play for the five-team districts is this weekend. That includes Hazelwood East, McCluer North and McCluer in Class Five, District Two which also includes Wentzville-Holt and Troy-Buchanan.
Saturday at 1 p.m. McCluer North, in their homecoming game, hosts Ferguson-Florissant School District and Suburban North Conference, rival McCluer in one of the two Class Five, District Two games. The other Class Five, District Two game, also Saturday at 1 p.m., has Wentzville-Holt visiting Hazelwood East.
McCluer has won the last three games after losing the first two by a combined total of 13 points. McCluer North has four straight wins after losing the season opener to Pattonville, 21-14. McCluer North owns a commanding 30-6 lead but McCluer head coach Joe Henke said he wants to “bring back the (McCluer North-McCluer) rivalry the way it used to be (large crowds, forget the win-loss records or stats).”
Henke said McCluer North “is going to be a ball control offensive team” and the Stars are disciplined on defense. McCluer North head coach Jim Schottmueller said the Comets are an experienced, well coached and their success so far is “not a surprise to me.”
“It’s going to be a pretty good match-up (against McCluer),” said McCluer North junior Damonte Bell.
Hazelwood East is going into this Saturday’s non-conference game against Holt with a 4-1 record after the Spartans out scored Riverview Gardens and Hazelwood West 75-7 combined, in a pair of one-sided wins. East was also awarded a forfeit win over Pattonville because the Pirates used an ineligible player. Holt is 3-2, all in the Gateway Athletic Conference South Division, winning over all three Francis Howell School District high schools and losing to two of the Fort Zumwalt School District high schools, West and South.
OUTSIDE OF DISTRICTS — HAZELWOOD CENTRAL will be the guests of Jefferson City’s homecoming game Friday at 7 p.m. Last year Hazelwood Central defeated Jeff. City at home, 31-28, as the Hawks won the game with 20 seconds left. Hazelwood Central goes to Pete Adkins Stadium with a 3-2 record, including a 32-7 win at Ritenour following a 14-9 homecoming loss to McCluer North, while the Jays are 4-1.
TRINITY CATHOLIC sophomore Marquise Hill has 10 touchdowns including four last Friday on seven carries for 202-yards in a 48-0 homecoming shutout of John F. Kennedy. After the Kennedy game Hill said “Next week is going to be a big-time game” and that game is Saturday, 2 p.m. at Westminster Christian Academy as the 4-1 Titans put their team-best start on the line. “For our kids (Saturday’s game) is a big, big game,” said Trinity head coach Mark Harris.
HAZELWOOD WEST and Ritenour look to end their four-game losing streak and improve on their 1-4 records but only one will do so as the Huskies host the Wildcats Friday at 7 p.m.
Three of West opponents — McCluer North, Oakville and Columbia Rock-Bridge — each won their first game at the ‘Cats expense.
RIVERVIEW GARDENS (0-5) hopes to snap a seven-game losing streak, dating back to last season when the Rams play Normandy Saturday, 1 p.m., at the newly renovated Viking Field.
McCLUER SOUTH-BERKELEY — 3-1 with wins over Soldan, Ladue and Normandy and a 6-0 loss to Jennings — hosts Affton Saturday at 1 p.m. LUTHERAN NORTH — 2-3 and coming off their second win of the season, 50-0 over Lutheran South a week after losing to Priory — hosts Principia Saturday, 1 p.m.
