Park Hill posts second half comeback victory

A 24-14 come-from-behind victory against Truman (0-4) last week was a great way to build momentum into this Friday’s homecoming game against Ruskin (0-4). The win evened the Trojans’ record to 2-2 on the year and gives them added confidence as they next face a Ruskin team who was deeply bruised by a 70-6 loss to Park Hill South last week. Making the trip to Park Hill District Stadium for the second week in a row, the Eagles are a team known for their speed and big play ability, but will see themselves at a disadvantage in regards to Park Hill’s size and athleticism.

While every team would prefer to be described as a second-half team if they had the option, the Trojans have certainly lived up to it in their two wins so far this year, both of which have resulted from comebacks staged in the game’s final minutes. Park Hill would have no other choice last Friday against Truman as they found themselves in a 14-0 hole at halftime after committing three turnovers in the first half.

Park Hill sophomore Kenyatte Harris gave the Trojans a spark late in the third quarter when he took a handoff 41 yards for a touchdown, leaving them with only a 14-7 deficit. For Harris, it would be a breakout game, racking up 159 yards on 15 carries by the end of the night. A Mitch Tittone 11-yard touchdown run and extra point would eventually tie the game 14-14 in the fourth quarter.

After a strong defensive stand, the Trojans received the ball back and took full advantage of their opportunity to convert their comeback victory. An 11 play,  55 yard drive led to a 26-yard go-ahead field goal from Tittone to give Park Hill their first lead of the game, up 17-14 with less than two minutes to play. On the ensuing possession, in need of another defensive stop, Park Hill’s John Balsamo put the game out of reach when he intercepted Truman quarterback Alex Ryan’s pass and returned it for a touchdown, sealing a 24-14 victory for the Trojans.

Panthers roll in homecoming blowout

Following an impressive 70-6 homecoming victory over Ruskin last week, Park Hill South (2-2) will travel to Grandview (2-2) to face a team the Panthers don’t know a lot about, but know they have historically been a team that finds itself on different sides of high scoring games with an offense that has the potential to tally up yardage if not defended seriously. With the Bulldogs playing on newly installed turf, Park Hill South coach Mark Simcox believes they’ll be ready for the Panthers, but that the focus must still remain internal.

“We haven’t seen them (Grandview) much, except a few plays. We’re playing at their place, so they’re going to be excited,” Simcox said. “We’re going to worry about us, which is what we try to do all the time.”

The Panthers will be looking to get the offensive productive they got last week against Ruskin which featured a version of the balanced pass and run game they have been hoping would come together for a lethal combination all season. While they would score 42 points in the second quarter, Simcox said the team came out a little timid in its first couple drives, something the Panthers have been working on to improve.

“We still came out and played tight in the beginning, but after a couple series we started playing like we have in practice, which we hadn’t been doing,” Simcox said.

That’s about the only critique you could offer at first glance of their Week 4 performance though as the Panthers would put points on the board first when Myles Hammonds took a three-yard handoff into the endzone to put the Panthers up 7-0 late in the first quarter. Ruskin’s Kaymon Lunn took the ensuing kickoff the length of the field for a touchdown. The Eagles missed the extra point, leaving Park Hill South up 7-6 and indicating the game ahead might be an offensive shootout. That would be true only for the Panthers from that point forward as quarterback Carson Reid hit receiver Craig Scott on the opening drive of the second quarter for a short four-yard touchdown pass to put the Panthers up 14-6 and off to the races. It would be the first of six scoring drives that would result in touchdowns for Park Hill South.

A combination of special teams and defensive turnovers going the Panthers’ way put them in ideal field possession to capitalize and eventually extend that lead to 49-6 before halftime. Simcox says in order for their strengths to be utilized, offensive rhythm has to be consistent.

“Our offense is a lot about rhythm,” Simcox said. “Trying to get the proper mix (of run and pass) where one compliments the other, but we’re getting closer to that. We’re throwing when they don’t necessarily expect us to throw it and we’re running when they don’t think we’re going to run it. So it’s getting a little more balanced.”

By the time it was all said and done the 70-6 final score made it evident the goal of balanced rhythm had been accomplished as a number of Panthers would get in on the action at some point or another. Quarterbacks Shaefer Schuetz and Carson Reid would combine for five touchdown passes for 110 yards. Receiver Craig Scott pulled in three receptions for 42 yards, all of which for touchdowns while running back Myles Hammonds ran the ball 15 times for 113 yards and two touchdowns. Ronnie Bertelsmeyer and Derrick Cook would record touchdown receptions in the second half while Zac Ricketts and Kyle Reardon would add touchdown carries as well.

With such a wide-margined win under their belts, Simcox made clear it would only be beneficial if it contributes towards the long-term and makes them better for the second half of their season.

“If we did what we’re supposed to, then it’s something we can build on and move forward with,” Simcox said.

PH South students, community share magical night

It can sometimes be difficult to find tangible examples which provide euphoric happiness over the positive qualities of the human spirit. As Park Hill South celebrated Homecoming last week, the student body made the crowning of their queen one of those rare moments.

There was no debate needed. Hands down, the loudest roar of cheers from the crowd at last Friday’s game wasn’t for any one of 10 Panther touchdowns, although there was plenty to celebrate in the team’s 70-6 blowout victory over Ruskin.

When Park Hill South senior Allyssa Brubeck’s name was said over the loud speaker at Park Hill District Stadium announcing that she had been voted the school’s Homecoming Queen, the almost instantaneous reaction from the crowd left no doubt the overwhelming sense of excitement the news brought. Mixed in with the screams and yells were tears and hugs, which extended well after the announcement was made, bringing realization to any outsider that the new Homecoming Queen was viewed as a unique combination of adored, respected and deserving — the kind of qualities Hollywood movies never reward, but ought to.

Brubeck, who is a special needs student at Park Hill South, was diagnosed with Down syndrome at birth and underwent heart surgery at the age of two. Nevertheless, she has been a favorite of the Panthers cheerleading team going on four years now and can often be found on the sidelines of Park Hill South sporting events doing what all cheerleaders do: shake pom-poms, yell out chants and sport a big smile. The difference between Brubeck and her fellow teammates, though, is that rarely does a team find such a high level of drive and inspiration from one person.

“The team really comes together with her and accepts her,” parent-guardian Michael Small said. “She can’t do stunts or cartwheels or anything of that nature, but hopefully she’s an inspiration, not only to her squad of cheerleaders, but to other youth throughout this school.

Despite the difficult obstacles she has faced, coach and teacher Christy Davis says Brubeck has used her time to the fullest at Park Hill South and earned her crown.

“She doesn’t see herself as different, she’s always felt like she’s a part of the regular population,” Davis said. “She’s been involved in every activity she could have been involved in since she was a freshman and everyone knows her, so her peers voted her Homecoming Queen."

Before last week, Allyssa and her mom were planning on being out of town for the weekend, but the whole family was ecstatic when she came home from school with the note explaining she’d been named a queen candidate. When his daughter was announced, Small was short on words.

“What is there to say? It really says it for itself; the student body has come forth and voted her queen,” Small said. “This is exciting (for us); it’s exciting for individuals with developmental disabilities. It really goes back to the student body at Park Hill South who nominated her and voted for her.”

While certainly a reflection on Brubeck, it also serves as an indictment on the student body as a whole.

“I’m really proud of her. She is an outstanding young lady and she’s been a joy to have in class,” teacher Sarah McDaniels said holding back tears. “I think it’s outstanding that the Park Hill South students have embraced our students the way they have and made them as much as a part of this school as anyone else. Park Hill South has always been very supportive.”

The pomp and circumstance of Homecoming as well as the superior feeling that comes after beating your opponent by such a convincing margin will eventually fade. Weeks and months will pass, but hopefully what mother Cindy Small would later describe as a ‘magical night’ is something Park Hill South will be able to hold onto for years to come.

Park Hill South spikers stay hot, Park Hill growing

Last week’s matchup between Park Hill and Park Hill South, which left the Panthers with a lopsided 25-15, 25-13 victory, was one featuring two teams in very different positions after three weeks of play.

On one hand, Park Hill South, who won the Lee’s Summit North Invitational over the weekend, has one of its most experienced and talented teams in recent memory and is currently off to an almost flawless start to their season; one which might have them on course to be one of the state’s final four teams at the end of October. A closely contested loss last week to Lee’s Summit West is the only blemish on the Panthers record, which also includes a national tournament victory in Orlando, Fla. over Labor Day weekend, where they won every set they played.

“That’s kind of how we’ve been playing,” Park Hill South coach Debbie Fay said. “We’ve got some pretty good talent. There isn’t anyone kid who is our go-to. We’ve got seven kids that play and they have pretty dominant roles and they do them right every night.”

With high expectations coming into the season, Fay says her Park Hill South squad has met them all.

“My expectations with all the kids have been right on, they’re living up to them,” Fay said. “There isn’t one kid that jumps out or is taking control more. Ashton (Anderson) is doing a real good job of running the offense and giving them opportunities. If anything can improve it is just return a real aggressive ball more efficiently, but that just takes practice. It’s hard to do because there aren’t a lot of opportunities to face that."

On the other hand, Park Hill is trying to put the pieces together as a team that has pushed through the struggles of being a young squad in previous years and fulfill the potential of its players. Park Hill coach Lindsey Hood says it is just a matter of the players growing into their positions.

“We just have to get stronger,” Hood said after the loss. “We’re still lagging in offense where we don’t have the go-to hitters that can put the ball down. We have good ball control and can find holes in the court, but we’re lacking that go-to person right now.”

The Trojans rebounded over the weekend with quality performances at the Lee’s Summit North tournament by beating Grain Valley, Columbia Hickman, and Staley after a slow start to win the consolation bracket. Park Hill is looking to use that momentum towards the rest of the season and see that good-to-great transition to take place, which they believe will happen.

“They were excited, focused and I could not have asked for more out of them,” Hood said of their tournament performance. “They showed team work and got the task at hand done.”

What Park Hill South faces, and even to a broader extent Park Hill, is an increasingly competitive Kansas City volleyball scene, which could leave even the best of teams at home when it comes to playing in the state playoffs. Part of that is a positive indictment of the quality of play in the area while the other is a state playoff format which has seen little change from its original format.

“There are probably four or fives teams good enough to make the Final Four, but the problem is only one gets to (from Kansas City). Every year there are more and more good teams, so it keeps getting harder and harder to get out of the Kansas City area. It’s just the level of play has grown that much. We may be just as good as some of the Park Hill South teams of the past that made the Final Four, but so are the other schools,” Fay said. “In every other sport besides volleyball, they’re taking more teams to the playoffs or adding classes, but the format is the same now as it was 30 years ago when I first started.”

Park Hill hosts St. Joe Central Thursday while Park Hill South hosts Truman. The two teams next play each other on October 9^th.

Fall Roundup: Sept. 10-17

Park Hill South Boys Cross Country
…took third place in the Platte County Invitational last week with 129 points. Tucker Melles led the Panthers with his fourth place time of 17:00. Gus Whitman (7^th), Keyan Lunders (14^th), Lendon Calhoun (47^th), Jacob Bowlin (57^th), Eli Williams (58^th), Matt Robbins (59^th), Isaac Frieden (61^st), Tristan McCoy (66^th), Chase Whorton (73^rd), Keaton Murray (80^th) followed and rounded out the Panthers field. They compete at Grandview Thursday.

Park Hill South Girls Cross Country
… placed fifth as a team at last week’s Platte County Invitational. Madeline Homoly led the Panthers with her 15^th place time of 20:55. Following her were teammates Erica Guzman (24^th), Lizzy Jurries (28^th), Audrey Rothers (38^th), Charlie McFarlane (42^nd), DeDe O’Toole (55^th), Sophie Hardin (65^th), Olivia Ortiz (71^st), and Hanna Walsh (72^nd). They compete at Grandview Thursday.

Park Hill South Girls Golf
… placed sixth out of 19 teams in the Sedalia Tournament last Monday. Lindsey Gile medaled and led the Panthers in scoring. They followed that up later in the week by beating Lee’s Summit West and Liberty. Gile medaled once again with a 5+ score of 32. The Panthers have one more tune-up against Liberty, Liberty North, and Ray-Pec this week before competing in the conference tournament Monday morning.

Park Hill South Boys Swimming 
…defeated Lee’s Summit North and Kearney in a double dual last Tuesday. Chase Riekhof recorded a state qualifying time in the 200 freestyle.

Park Hill South Boys Soccer

…added two wins to their season total last week before losing a tough double overtime match to Liberty Thursday. Jordan Lindsey, Dylan Kintner, Brian Kissee, Daniel Herrejon, and Brody Bouillon all contributed goals in the Panthers’ 5-0 victory over St. Joe Central to begin the week. The next night Bouillon would serve it up to his teammate Dillon Anderson for a corner kick assist to lift Park Hill South over Staley 1-0. Mark DeJesus and Heath Turner shared both of the week’s shutouts.

While the Panthers, now at 6-2-0 on the year, weren’t able to prevail in their overtime match with Liberty, they feel the previously two goals they had called back were unfortunate and left the team with an unsettling feeling. Nonetheless, Park Hill South looks to a tough week ahead as they play four games in five days with Park Hill Wednesday, Ruskin Thursday, Olathe East on Saturday, and Lee’s Summit West next Monday.

Park Hill Boys Swimming

…took second place in the Park Hill Invitational over the weekend with a team score of 280 points. Although it was a distance second to Rockhurst’s impression 395.5 team points, the Trojans saw several quality performances including first place finishes in the 200 medley relay and Barry Chang’s performances in the 100 yard butterfly and 200 individual medley. Matt Wager (200 freestyle, 500 freestyle) and Vince Tutorino (100 butterfly) took second place while third place finishers including Joe Johnson (diving), Kyle Allen (200 individual medley), Jered Wager (500 freestyle), and the 200 and 400 free relays.

Earlier in the week, Park Hill defeated Liberty North and Lee’s Summit in a dual meet, but fell to the host-school, Liberty. The Trojans will compete in the Splash Out Cancer Invite in Springfield this weekend.

Park Hill Boys Cross Country

…finished seventh out of nine teams at the Blue Springs South Invitational at Lake Jacomo last weekend. Cainen Utt placed tenth with a time of 17:22 and led the Trojans. Nate Thomas (28^th), Cain Winebrenner (39^th), Riley Fahrenholtz (49^th), Hanok Tekle (50^th), James Adams (53^rd), and Graham England (56^th) rounded out the rest of the field for Park Hill.

Park Hill Girls Cross Country

…Mercedes Robinson led the Lady Trojans at the Platte County Invitational last week with her 14^th place time of 20:52. Kim Rau (23^rd), Brooke Bischof (53^rd), Gianna Tutorino (56^th), Paige Carey (60th), Madeline Mudd (73^rd), and Kaela Bacck (81^st) also competed for Park Hill.

Park Hill Softball

…continued a rough patch in their season over the weekend as they extended their current losing streak to nine games after an eighth place finish in the Platte County Invitational. The Lady Trojans’ losses in their four games were all within one or two runs including Liberty North 5-4, St. Joe Lafayette 5-3, Staley 6-5, and Oak Park 7-5. Keylee Burks and Audrea Allen led Park Hill in offense with five hits apiece in the tournament.

Coach Stuart Sullinger says while the current losing streak is not something the team is satisfied with, they remain optimistic.

“Times are tough right now, but the girls are starting to learn how to play together as a team,” Sullinger said. “I think we will turn the corner shortly.”

Park Hill plays Lee’s Summit West Wednesday before traveling to Columbia for the Kewpie Classic over the weekend.

Park Hill Boys Soccer

…improved to 7-1 on the year last week with wins over Ruskin 13-0 and St. Joe Central 9-0. The Trojans take on conference and across-district rival Park Hill South Wednesday night, which will be a matchup featuring two of the areas top teams so far early in the season.

 Park Hill South Girls Tennis
...improved to 4-1 on the year with an 8-1 victory over Fort Osage. Emily Jackson led the Panthers with an 8-3 victory in the top singles matchup. Emily and Shay Jackson also took the victory in the doubles matchup as well 8-2. Park Hill South finished seventh in the St. Joe Central Tournament to end the week.

They host Ruskin Thursday afternoon before playing in the Northland Invitational over the weekend.

 Park Hill Girls Golf
...won their second tournament of the year Monday and raised money for a good cause while in the process as they raised nearly $4,500 for cancer research on their way to a first place finish with a team score of 372 at the Oak Park Tournament. Adrianna Elliott won her first career varsity tournament with a score of 77 while Bailey Warlen came in third with a score of 86. Other Trojans who participated included Sydney Paulak (98), Jaque Yang (111), and Chloe Daily (127).

Park Hill competes in the conference tournament next Monday and will come into the competition as a strong contender to win the title.