Resilient Trojans fall in quarterfinals, set new precedent

After winning their first district baseball championship since 1997, the Park Hill Trojans took it a step further last Tuesday as they advanced to the state quarterfinals with a win against Truman 5-3 to record the school’s first ever playoff victory. After giving up three runs early, pitcher Daniel Jessen held Truman steady the rest of the way allowing Park Hill’s offense to take over including two key RBI’s from James Vega.

The win led them to a quarterfinal matchup with Rockhurst (21-3) on Friday. Blue skies and eighty degree temperatures added to a near-perfect baseball atmosphere for an unprecedented crowd turn-out lined around the field. Coach Greg Reynolds talked about the mindset the Trojans looked to take against an intimidating Rockhurst team.

“They’re exactly like we are. They make errors. They put the ball in play. In baseball it doesn’t matter how big or what the name of your school is,” Reynolds said. “It just matters if you have nine or ten quality guys to put on the field each day.”

With Park Hill down 2-0 in the second, Adam Vanderpool hit a solo home run to make it 2-1. A two run homer in the fourth made the score 4-1 in favor of Rockhurst before Vega evened it up with a three run homer in the fifth. The Trojans kept finding themselves battling back, something they’ve held to their advantage all season. Rockhurst gained critical runs in the sixth and seventh to put Park Hill down 6-4 going into the last inning.

Leading off with the top of the lineup, Trojan fans hoped for another comeback. Nick Hughes walked to start the inning followed by two quick outs. Vanderpool ripped a double to right-center field scoring Hughes from first to make the score 6-5. With runners on first and second and two outs, Alex Otto’s shot to centerfield didn’t quite have enough power as the ball was caught for the final out of the game.

“We’ve come back a lot of different ways with a lot of different guys this year. The last couple games we’ve had guys hit home runs late in games that haven’t hit one all season. You can’t keep doing that, eventually you’ll get stung,” Reynolds said.

The mood was somber as 11 seniors ended their high school careers, but there were little words needed between Reynolds and his team in their post-game gathering to express their accomplishments.

“These guys know how to play the game. There’s nothing I can tell them. I’m proud of them and I told them that. These seniors took us to a spot we never thought we’d be and they did it because they listened, followed directions and showed discipline,” Reynolds said.

The slate is nearly wiped clean next year as the Trojans return five lettermen, two of them starters, from this year’s team.

“I hope it’s a carry over. Baseball is like a lot of sports where it’s always a learning experience with new players coming in. Our job as a program is to not have a letdown,” Reynolds said.

Spring Roundup: May 24-28

Park Hill Boys Tennis
Coach Ryan Kalis said last week that he felt his players would fair well at the state tournament this past weekend based on their experience, but also depending on their draw of competition. The latter didn’t play to their advantage as both Sam Barth in singles along with Mike Merchant and Brian Hillix in doubles faced stiff competition in their initial matches. Barth started off against eventual sixth place finisher Andrew Edmonds of Rockhurst and fell in consecutive sets 6-4 and 6-3. He went on to loss in the next round Greg Marifian of SLUH which resulted in his early exit from the tournament. Although also facing a first round loss to Rockbridge 5-7, 7-5, and 6-2, Merchant and Hillix battled back in the consolation bracket by winning consecutive matches by scores of 6-1, 6-1 and then came from behind to win 6-7, 6-3, 6-1. The opportunity to play for fifth place fell short as they lost to Lafayette 6-3, 6-3. As a team, Park Hill finished the season with conference, district, and sectional titles before falling to eventual state champion Rockhurst in the quarterfinals.

Park Hill Boys Track
Park Hill’s throwers performed well at the state track meet this past weekend, helping the Trojans accumulate 13 points for a 21st place finish out of 55 teams. Jack Pearl placed fourth in the discus and Nick Smith finished third in the shot put. Adrien Esaw who has performed well in the 300 hurdles all season concluded his year with a seventh place finish. The 4x800 relay team of Fernando Garcia, Nathan Koehler, James Leach, and Ricardo Garcia finished 12th with a time of 8:05. Park Hill concludes a season which featured a conference championship along with as district runners-up.

Trojans win districts, look to seal place in history

It didn’t seem like the Class 4 District 16 championship game would ever finally get played after being delayed several days due to the weather, but it was well worth the wait for the Park Hill Trojans (16-5) as they defeated St. Joe Central 10-8 Saturday to advance to the sectional round of the state playoffs. The few days wait was nothing compared to the wait they had to endure for their first district title since 1997, a year before the opening of now district rival Park Hill South divided the district into two high schools.

A win Tuesday against Truman (15-6) would represent the first time a Park Hill baseball team has won a playoff game in five attempts. Advancing would likely mean a showdown with a talented Rockhurst squad on Thursday.

Coach Greg Reynolds gives credit to a strong senior class and things falling into place at the right time for their impressive run through one of the areas’ toughest districts.

“We’ve got 11 seniors with varying degrees of playing time and every one of them has had to overcome something. They deserve this,” Reynolds said. “We had our pitching staff the way we wanted it and everything set up to the point where we knew if we put the ball in play we’d have a good chance.”

Senior Clay Smith, a stronghold on the pitching mound throughout the season, led the Trojans past Park Hill South in the district opener before also notching the win in the title game.

“We knew we had a chance to be strong and it wasn’t because of the talent, it’s because we’re all friends and we could play together with that chemistry,” Smith said.

Reynolds believes the Trojans reached a turning point mid-season during a double-header against William Chrisman.

“We had a couple selfish acts during a stretch earlier in the season where we knew we wouldn’t be able to beat teams like Kearney and St. Joe Central,” Reynolds said. “We wouldn’t beat them unless we did it as a team and the kids really bought into it.”

It was a team effort in Saturday’s title game as an offensive battle ensued as Central scored two runs in the first inning. Park Hill came back in the second inning as Alec Kennedy batted Adam Vanderpool in followed by Daniel Jessen scoring on an error to tie it at 2-2. Central added a run in the third before a two-run homer from Park Hill’s J.D. Weyer made the score 4-3. Central then brought in ace Keaton Steele to quiet the Trojan bats, but they sealed their title in the fifth by taking advantage of a huge opportunity. With the Indians up 6-4, Park Hill had the bases loaded and no outs. James Vega scored on an interference call and an Alex Otto sac fly scored Weyer to tie the score at 6-6. Kennedy used the momentum to blast the Trojans ahead with a three run homer making the score 9-6. A Nick Hughes RBI later scored Weyer for the sixth run of the inning for the Trojans. Central added two more runs, but it wasn’t enough as Park Hill claimed the title with a 10-8 victory.

The team discussed what a district title would mean, but the immediate focus was on the next game.

“This is a group that is playing one more day for each other. It doesn’t matter who you play anymore, it just matters that you’re playing,” Reynolds said. “If you believe you can beat anybody, which we’re starting to get there, we’ll be alright.”

Spring Roundup: May 17 - May 22

Park Hill Girls Soccer
The Park Hill Girls Soccer season came to an end last week against Park Hill South in the semi-finals of the District 16 tournament. Sydney Hultz was the lone goal for the Trojans, but it wasn’t enough as Alyssa Weatherly contributed three scores along with Katy Lindsey and Katy Riojas’ one goal apiece. A down note for the Trojans was they lost leading goal scorer Emma Gossett mid-way through the second half with a severe knee injury. They end the season with a 9-11-1 record.

Park Hill Tennis
After sweeping through districts, the Park Hill Boys Tennis team started again this past weekend where they left off with a convincing victory against Lee’s Summit West in the state sectionals. Sam Barth (6-4, 6-2), Mike Merchant (6-1, 6-0), Michael Jones (6-0, 6-0), and Austin Caldwell (6-0, 6-1) won consecutive singles matches to beat the Titans 5-0. The same afternoon in the quarterfinals, Park Hill had quite an obstacle to overcome in defending state champ Rockhurst. Favored again this year, Rockhurst was too much for the Trojans as the Hawklets won five of the six singles matches to win 5-1. Brian Hillix had their sole victory by a score of 6-2, 6-4.

“I’m proud of them for their efforts. They’re conference and district champions, so it’s been a great season and they left it all on the court today,” Coach Ryan Kalis said.

Although the team season is now over, Sam Barth in singles along with the duo of Mike Merchant and Brian Hillix in doubles will continue on to the state tournament as individual entries based on their top finishes in the districts two weeks ago.

“If the draw looks alright and we’re playing well we could go far. They’ve been there before so they’re not nervous and it’s a big deal compared to being there for the first time. I know they’re excited about this week,” Kalis said.

Park Hill Boys Track
Jack Pearl in the discus and James Leach in 800 meter dash were the top performers at the Class 4 sectional this past weekend as they both took second in their respective events. Nick Smith placed third in the shot put while Adrien Esaw placed fourth in the 300 hurdles. The 4x800 relay team also placed fourth. All qualified for the state track meet next weekend by placing fourth or higher. The 4x100 relay barely missed qualifying after their fifth place finish. Park Hill scored 55 team points and finished sixth out of 21 teams participating.

Park Hill Girls Track
The Park Hill Girls Track team didn’t quite get the performance they were looking for this past weekend at the state sectional meet. They came just short of advancing a couple athletes to the state meet. A difference of .06 seconds made the difference between Helena Hudson qualifying in the 100 meter hurdles, she fell on the wrong side of the difference by finishing in fifth place. The 4x100 relay team also came up short with their fifth place finish. Other notables include Stephanie Atkinson’s seventh place finish in the pole vault and Betty Grauberger’s eighth place finish in the triple jump. Park Hill finished with 11.5 team points.

Trojans best Panthers, look to title game

With scattered showers and sometimes thunderstorms canceling a majority of last week’s games, the Park Hill and Park Hill South baseball teams had a longer break between their final regular season game and first round district games than they would have liked. The weather was no different this past Saturday, but district tournament officials were determined to get the game in even with the variation of light sprinkles and steady drizzle. The muddy dirt and gray skies were equally as satisfying as the performance on the field.

“We knew something that shouldn’t determine a district game between two good teams at this level might come into play,” Park Hill coach Greg Reynolds said of how the conditions could affect the game.

Pitching would come into play as pivotal in such conditions and the first two innings demonstrated just that as the only base runner came from Park Hill when Nathan Shores was hit with a pitch, but he was caught leaning and picked-off before the next pitch was thrown to end the inning.

“Anytime the ball touched the ground, you’d need a new one,” Reynolds said. “After two or three pitches it’d be soaked.”

Things picked up in the third when Park Hill’s Daniel Jessen led off the inning with the game’s first hit. After Jessen was sacrificed to second, a Nick Hughes line drive to left field was dropped leaving the Trojans with runners at second and third with one out. Park Hill South’s Pat Brady got out of the jam by delivering two important outs with the final being a strikeout of J.D. Weyer. In the top of the fourth, Park Hill South got on the board when a failed pick-off attempt at first got past the first baseman allowing Matt Robaska to score from third to make the score 1-0.

Passed balls from both teams all day were caused by the sloppy ground conditions, but came back to bite Park Hill South in the bottom of the sixth as they gave up four unearned runs to the Trojans. A James Vega walk followed by two passed balls allowed him to score to tie the game 1-1. With runners at first and second and two outs, Shores’ swinging bunt was thrown into left field in an attempt to get Chris Burr at third, which allowed him to score. Alec Kennedy and Shores later scored on two additional passed balls making the score 4-1.

For the most part, the game was well-pitched by both sides. Each team only had three hits while Park Hill struck out eleven batters and Park Hill South got five. The Trojans closed out the game in the top of the seventh and advanced to the district semifinals against Kearney.

After lossing earlier in the season 10-0, a tremendous performance from pitcher Daniel Jessen allowed the Trojans to upend Kearney's title hopes as they upset the Bulldogs 7-4 to advance to Saturday's title game against St. Joseph Central.

Spring Roundup: May 10- May 15

Park Hill Boys Track

The Park Hill Boys Track team will have a strong presence this weekend at the state sectional meet at Blue Springs South High School. Placing second in this past weekend’s district meet with 128 team points, they’ll be represented in 15 different events from a broad range of categories including both short and long-distance, throws, and jumps. The top four finishers in each competition qualified for the sectional meet and it will be the same case in moving onto the state meet next weekend. First place finishers included James Leach in the 800 meter dash, Adrien Esaw in the 110 hurdles (2nd in the 300 hurdles), Nick Smith in the shot put, and the 4x800 relay team of Fernando Garcia, James Leach, Nathan Koehler, and Ricardo Garcia.

Park Hill Girls Track

The Park Hill Girls Track team squeaked into the top four in their district meet last weekend with their 62 team points. Although they would have liked to see better performances from athletes who just barely missed the cut, the Trojans will have representatives in five events. Helena Hudson continued a strong season with a second place finish in the 100 hurdles. The 4x100 and 4x800 relay teams placed second and fourth respectively while Stephanie Atkinson in the pole vault and Betty Grauberger in the triple jump both placed fourth. Park Hill barely missed qualifying in a couple events including long jump (6th), discus (6th), shot put (5th), 100 meter dash (5th), and 1600 meter run (5th).

Park Hill Boys Tennis

Park Hill Boys Tennis brought home another consecutive district title last week. Qualifying as a team, Sam Barth, Mike Merchant, Brian Hillix, Bryan Willis, Michael Jones and Austin Caldwell will represent the Trojans in the state playoffs. Barth qualified as an individual to continue in the single tournament while the doubles duo of Merchant and Hillix will compete in the doubles bracket. Regionals were held Monday at Park Hill as the Trojans looked to avenge an early season loss to Liberty.

Brothers in Arms

Last week was a big one for the Park Hill Boys Tennis Team as they clinched another consecutive suburban conference championship by defeating Truman 8-1. They followed it up by hosting the Sixth Annual Brandon McPherson Memorial Tournament along with their Third Annual Tennis Block Party over the weekend. The week itself tells you about the strength of the Trojan tennis program, but also represents the vision of two brothers, Ryan and Tim Kalis, and their passion for the sport.

Ryan came to the district fifteen years ago as a middle school math teacher and assistant tennis coach under then head coach Kathy Loepp.

“The girls were already going the right direction under Kathy,” Ryan said. “As far as the guys, we knew we weren’t competitive. You could have called us the local ‘door mat’ at the time.”

When Loepp stepped aside, Kalis took over as head coach for both the girls and boys. The first couple years were rough for the boys as they went 5-9, 6-8, and 8-6 in those seasons, but things started coming together around the time younger brother Tim joined Ryan eight years ago. Natives of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, they’re separated by five years, but have similar stories. Both went to Northern Iowa to play college tennis and both became math teachers.

“I’ve just kind of followed in his footsteps. I came down on a whim to visit one year and got an interview for an opening at Park Hill and we ended up in the same building,” Tim said.

Tim became an assistant under his older brother and they began putting together their idea of an ideal tennis program. Especially on the boy’s side, they knew there just weren’t enough kids on the team.

“First was numbers; we ended the season with 11 guys that year. So we started doing camps in the summer and tennis in middle schools with intramurals which got kids excited. If you have enthusiasm, kids see it and they want to share it,” Ryan said.

With that vision in mind, they became two of local tennis’ biggest advocates. From those 11 players they grew their boys program to 16, then 21, and currently have over 40 players. Success on the court has taken care of itself as the boys have gone 119-48 over the past twelve years under Ryan. Tim’s also seen success as the girls head coach over the past five years with both winning multiple conference and district titles.

“This is our eighth year coaching as a tandem. Ryan started out as both head boys and girls coach. Five years ago he stepped aside as girls coach and allowed me to take over,” Tim said.

Ryan and Tim were big supporters of starting the Brandon McPherson Tournament six years ago as a way to remember their former player. Three years later, Tim started the Block Party as a way to encourage kids to get involved in the game of tennis with food, prizes, and games.

“Tim has done a great job with this. It really helps because people are excited to come to a free event and you’ve got little kids running around who might think ‘I want to play tennis for Park Hill one day,” Ryan said.

As far as their thoughts on coaching together, the two brothers say they’re having a blast.

“Since we know each other so well, it’s almost as if we can read each other when we’re coaching the kids and one of us can pick up what the other left off,” Ryan said.

It’s easy for them to talk about their favorite part of coaching.

“I think the greatest thing for me as a coach is seeing a kid as a freshman or even as a seventh grader in my math class, as they grow into a man or woman, improve each and every season and watching them achieve their goals,” Tim said.

“We have great kids, great values. I think we have one of the highest team GPA’s at Park Hill, if not the highest. We’re building character, integrity, more than a tennis player, but someone who can be successful in society,” Ryan replied.

One thing you’ll hear for sure when talking with either Kalis is their thankfulness for your interest and support of their kids.

Spring Roundup: May 3 - May 7

Park Hill Baseball
Park Hill Baseball clinched a conference championship this past week as they won four out of their five games. The most recent was a convincing win to close out the week against second place Truman 15-5. The Trojans, 8-0 in conference, now hold a two game lead in the conference standings going in this week’s last round of games.

Earlier in the week they defeated Oak Park 4-1 on the heels of pitcher Clay Smith who only allowed one run and a first inning resulting in three runs lead by Nick Hughes’ two stolen bases, RBI’s from both James Vega and Alex Otto, J.D. Weyer’s double, and a bases loaded walk by Alex Kennedy which brought in another run. Against Raytown South, the Trojans dropped a close one by a score of 5-4 despite a strong pitching performance from Luke Burnidge. A double-header against William Chrisman later in the week led to two more victories as Vega pitched a complete game in game one with Adam Vanderpool’s two-run home run sealing the win, 4-1. In game two, the Trojans won 6-4 behind Nathan Shores who not only pitched, but contributed on offense with a double.

Park Hill is now 13-5 overall with scheduled matchups with Staley and a meeting with rival Park Hill South for this Thursday as they head into district playing starting this Saturday. Facing a tough district field, the Trojans would have to run up against Kearney and Liberty, two teams who have dealt Park Hill losses during the regular season. Now officially available at deadline, the Trojans are expected to be a two or three seed.

Park Hill Boys Golf
After last week’s district tournament, Victor Soderholm remains Park Hill’s sole competitor to move on to the state golf tournament in Sedalia at the Sedalia Country Club on May 17th. His 79 was good enough to qualify for the tournament after an 84 was established as the cut off.

Park Hill Girls Soccer
The Park Hill girls weren’t able to avenge their early season lose to Park Hill South last week, as they fell below the .500 mark to 7-8 in a 3-0 lose. They’ll play two away games this week against North Kansas City and William Chrisman before district play begins next week.

Park Hill Boys Tennis
The Park Hill Boys tennis team defeated Truman at the beginning of last week to clinch another conference championship. They concluded their regular season on Friday with a win against visiting Barstow to improve to a 10-3 record on the season. At the Brandon McPherson Tournament some of the best teams in the region including Rockhurst, Park Hill South, and Blue Springs South were on hand. Park Hill took third in both doubles flights along with fifth and sixth place singles finishes to conclude the day in second place overall behind defending state champ Rockhurst.

“It was a good showing from our guys,” coach Ryan Kalis said.

They’ll head into the district tournament this week with three-time state qualifier Same Barth and junior Michael Jones as their singles players. Mike Merchant and Brian Hillix have been playing well together so they’ll par up in the doubles bracket along with Brian Willis and Austin Caldwell. Their district will feature some tough competition from the likes of Liberty and Park Hill South, but the Trojans have high expectations for the team as well as their top individuals.

Park Hill Girls Track
For a second consecutive year, the Park Hill Girls Track team fell short of a conference championship to rival Park Hill South. The Trojans’ 129 team points was just 21 points behind the first place finish of the Panthers.

Helena Hudson once again placed first in the 100 hurdles with a time of 17.48, followed up by a second place finish in the long jump. The 4x100 relay team of Angie Reagan, Aneisa Jamerson, Rodisha Willard, and Hudson also took first along with Kyleesha Weston’s first place discus finish. Jordan Cox in the shot put placed second.

One main difference for Park Hill came in the 300 hurdles when Park Hill South took first, second, and third accounting for a 24 point addition to their team score. Coach Tari Garner looked to districts to be held this coming weekend at Park Hill District Stadium.

“It’s going to be tough, but we’re looking to get many of our girls to the sectional meet,” Garner said. “Sectionals is probably the biggest hurdle among the two in getting to state because the competition is so hard.”

Park Hill Boys Track
The Park Hill Boys Track team brought home a conference championship last week at Staley High. With strong performances across the board, Park Hill’s 194 team points was 88 points ahead of second place finisher Park Hill South.

Nick Smith continued his dominate run as he took home first place last week. It continues an outstanding season for Smith who set the school record in the shot put earlier this year. Adrien Esaw won his second 300 hurdles in as many weeks with a time of 41.69. Park Hill’s relays performed, but the 4x200 and 4x800 relay teams were the only to place first, as the 4x400 and 4x100 teams led for a majority of their races before Park Hill South came back to barely end in the final stretch. Cain Winebrenner continued his success with another 4:40 mile, good enough for first place. De’Rion Rambo (100 meter sprints), James Leach (800 meter sprints) Jack Pearl (discus), and Luke Bossert (pole vault) also brought home conference titles.

With the close second place finishes in the relays and the absence of state champion long jumper Trace Norfleet due to an injury which caused him to miss the season, it’s easy to see how Park Hill could have run even further away with the conference meet.

“Trace decided with his doctor it wasn’t a very good idea to return,” coach Mark Gourley said. “Not good overall for us, but other guys stepped up and picked it up.”

The district meet will be held this Saturday at Park Hill and the Trojans will be looking to earn another title in front of the home crowd.

Boys sweep first, Girls runner-up at Conference meet

Last week’s Park Hill Invitational was the last opportunity for the Trojan track teams to prepare themselves for this week’s all important Conference meet at Staley. While the boys took first place against a tough field of competition, both teams have reason to be optimistic down the final stretch.

Near the top of the leader board in almost every event, the boys racked up 185 points compared to Fort Osage’s second place total of 126 team points. The Trojans were led once again by Nick Smith in the shot put and discus. Smith has provided a high level of consistency for Park Hill throughout the season. Other areas of strength for the boys are the 4x400 and 4x200 relay teams which edged out North Kansas City in both races along with other hurdle and long-distance events including Adrien Esaw in the 110 meter hurdles (1st), Dondrell Hardiman in the 300 meter hurdles (1st), and Nathan Kohler (1st), Fernando Garcia (2nd), and Cain Winebrenner’s (1st) performances in the 800 and 1600 meter runs.

The quality outcome against teams with athletes like those of Fort Osage and Raytown sets Coach Mark Gourley’s boys team up for what they hope will be a conference championship this Thursday in the second and final day of the conference meet. Their ability to not necessarily win every event, but score high in a wide range of those events will be an advantage that could pay off for the Trojan boys.

On the girls side, after placing fourth in the PH Invitational Coach Tari Garner doesn’t think she’s seen the best out of her team yet, but sees a lot of potential. Junior Helena Hudson has been a consistently high performer. She placed first in the 100 meter hurdles last week and joined the 4x100 relay team of Rodnisha Willard, Angie Reagan, and Anesia Jamerson which finished third. Also finishing third were Nikki Collwell in the discus and Stephanie Atkinson in the pole vault. Jordan Cox and Kyleesha Weston also continue to excel in the throw events.

Although the girls haven’t been finishing first in as many events as they’d like, Garner has promoted the overall team as motivation at the individual level.

“We consistently talk about the fact that each individual has to give their best performance… it doesn’t have to be about winning the event but improving and placing in the highest possible spot to achieve team success,” Garner said.

Distance hasn’t been their strength, but recent performances from freshmen Chelsea Lewis and Shari Grayson have provided quality additions to this year’s team. One thing Garner isn’t denying is the improvement she’s seen across the board as the season has gone on despite injuries that have affected overall team results.

“We will continue to improve and perform our best,” Garner said. “The Conference Championship is our next goal and we plan to qualify at least three events to the State Championship Meet.”

Spring Roundup: April 26-30

Park Hill Baseball
The Trojans improved to 9-4 on the season last week with wins against St. Joe Central, Winnetonka, and Grain Valley before their two remaining games in the Kearney Tournament were rained out. On Thursday against Grain Valley, Adam Vanderpool hit a three run homer in his third of the week. James Vega, Vanderpool, and Alex Otto all contributed doubles good for two runs each. Pitchers Nathan Shores, Marcus Cross, and Otto were able to piece together a close 9-8 victory. Earlier in the week, Park Hill beat St. Joe Central 4-2 behind Clay Smith’s seven strong innings on the mound and the two home runs accounting for three runs from Vanderpool. It was followed by another victory against Winnetonka by a score of 15-3. With a 5-0 record in conference, the Trojans will play Platte County Wednesday and Truman on Friday.

Park Hill Girls Soccer
Lady Trojans soccer is hoping to rebound after a rough week where they lost to both Truman and Platte County, but between were able to edge out a 2-1 victory against Winnetonka on goals from Sydney Hultz and Holly Maier. Park Hill’s Emma Gossett continued her scoring spree against the Pirates, but her one goal would be the only against Platte County as Kelsey Knox’s four goals was too much to overcome in the 4-1 loss. It was a similar story earlier in the week, when Heather Scheiber’s assist to Gossett accounting for the only goal in a 2-1 loss to Truman. They’ll return this week with home games against Oak Park and Kearney. The Trojans are now 7-7.

Park Hill Boys Golf
After a third place finish in the Conference Tournament last Monday, the boys golf team followed it up with a first place finish at Drumm Farm in a triangular match against William Chrisman and North Kansas City with a team score of 342. Almost 20 strokes separated the first and second place team, William Chrisman scored a 361. Victor Soderholm medaled with his score of 78.

Park Hill Boys Tennis
A busy week for Park Hill Boys Tennis leads into an opportunity to add another Suburban Conference Championship to their resume. This past weekend they participated in the Suburban North Tournament with Park Hill South, Platte County, and other Northland schools. Performing solidly against almost the entire field, they weren’t able to top their rivals from Park Hill South as they finished second to the Panthers overall, falling short three points with their 47 compared to PHS’s 50. In the B flight of the singles tournament, Michael Jones took second after being defeated 10-5 by PHS’s Zach Royle. In the A flight doubles bracket, Sam Barth and Mike Merchant also took second after losing to Liberty 10-6. Brian Willis and Austin Caldwell took first place in the B flight doubles bracket after defeating Liberty’s other doubles duo 10-8. Earlier in the week, they took a tough loss when they traveled to Columbia Rockbridge 8-1, but Brian Hillix won a big match when he defeated a two-time state champion in Rockbridge’s Jimmy Hunter 6-4, 6-1. A win against Truman this week will clinch the conference championship. The Trojans are also looking forward to the 5th Annual Brandon McPherson Doubles Classic held at the Plaza Tennis Center this Wednesday afternoon.