Trojans, Panthers meet for annual 'King of the Hill' matchup

After containing one of the state’s top backs last week in Winnetonka’s Darrell Jobe, the Park Hill Trojans (6-1) will faceoff against Park Hill South (4-3) in the annual matchup between the two rivals to determine who will be this year’s ‘King of the Hill’. Not only will it be a battle between two district foes, it will be a battle of two very different football styles as well, with Park Hill’s power football approach going up against South’s spread offense and quick defensive strategy.
Homecoming festivities were underway last week at Park Hill as alumni and other fans joined the crowd for a large turnout. Although more fans than normal, last week will be nothing compared to this Friday’s anticipated game.

“Good to have a big crowd tonight,” coach Greg Reynolds said after Park Hill’s 35-21 victory of Winnetonka last week. “It will be double (the crowd) next week, but we’ve been there before and will be fine.”

Looking back to last week, it could have been a different game if it wasn’t for a two score swing mid-way through the third quarter. On a Winnetonka 3rd and 12 play, quarterback Nick Powell hit receiver Tyler Henley for what would have been a 76 yard touchdown play. But as Henley streaked down the sideline, Park Hill’s Corey Sterling came out of nowhere to take Henley down before reaching the goal line. The impact jarred the ball loose for De’Rion Rambo to recover the ball at the one yard line. Four plays later, Sterling, now in his role as quarterback, sent a spiral into the hands of Rambo once again as he ran untouched for an 80-yard touchdown. This put Park Hill up 28-7.
Trace Norfleet produced 109 yards on 16 carries resulting in two touchdowns behind continued quality offensive line play. After missing the previous two games, Josh Eatman came back with a renewed sense of energy as he added the Trojans final touchdown in the fourth quarter. Also back was fullback Sean Gorman. With the Trojan backfield healthy, Reynolds talked about what they bring to the field. “You’ve got one guy that’s very fast (Norfleet) and another that is slippery (Eatman),” Reynolds said. “Sean’s a good blocker and breaks people down.”
Park Hill defeated South last year 28-7 as the ‘home’ team, but this year they’ll switch sides to play as the visiting team and look at the sideline they usually hold as their own. Emotions will be running high for the game each team marks their calendars for each year.
On offense, the Panthers will look to get their pass game going with quarterback Chris Hamilton and wide receiver Austin Green. Hamilton will also be involved in the running game as a lot of the offensive schemes revolve around the quarterback’s ability to run.

“We’ll adjust to their passing game,” Park Hill linebacker Daniel Jessen said.

“We have great d-backs,” Sterling added. “I think they’re going to step it up.”

The excitement of each team’s first district game will also add to the mix. For many teams, it’s a chance for a fresh start to the season. Reynolds talked about how his kids have looked at it differently.

“We’ve made every game feel like a playoff game and the kids have taken that to heart,” Reynolds said. “We’ve used every game as a challenge to us.”

The Panthers will come in as an underdog, but with a team that came alive at this time last year to end the season 3-1 and a more experienced group of players, there’s no telling what can happen when you put the southern Platte County rivals together. One thing to be assured, the atmosphere on hand at Park Hill District Stadium on Friday will be enough to excite any sports fan.

“You don’t have to try to get us hyped, it’s already there,” Park Hill’s Sterling said.

“To beat Park Hill,” South’s Chapman Williams said earlier this year about his team’s goals.

PH, PHS softball teams both end up and down seasons with something to be proud of

To say Park Hill and Park Hill South’s softball teams seasons’ were up and down would be an understatement. Park Hill started their season with a huge victory at Oak Park, an opponent they hadn’t beaten in over a decade. But after that, they played decently before falling into a deep slump which included a nine game losing streak.

On the other side of the hill, Park Hill South started out slow with conference losses to Oak Park and Truman. Coach Josh Walker had told his team to just look ahead to districts, but after storming back, they beat Winnetonka two weeks ago on the heels of pitcher Jessica McCoy’s one-hitter to claim the school’s first conference championship in softball.

Two teams, two different seasons, but they came together this past weekend in the district semi-finals. #1 Park Hill South facing off against #4 Park Hill, who last week beat #3 St. Theresa’s to advance when Bethany Sullinger hit a walk-off solo homerun in the seventh to break a 0-0 tie.

After losing both games to South during the season, the Trojans came into the game as a slight underdog. The Trojans struck first in the bottom of the second when . South quickly struck back with a run of their own to tie it up at 1-1.

Michele Rupard hit a solo homerun in the top of the 7th to make the score 3-1. The Panthers added a run in the bottom of the 9th, leaving her at third. But Park Hill’s Kati Snodgrass struck out the next two batters to complete the upset.

“We’ve always had one player step up every game and they’re starting to believe,” Park Hill coach Stuart Sullinger said after his team’s semi-final victory. “It’s incredible to be in this situation and playing for a district title.”

“We had a great year in winning conference and setting a team record for wins,” South coach Josh Walker said on his team’s season.

Park Hill went on to play #2 Staley in the district championship, but fell short to the Falcons as the game went into extra innings and the Falcons won with a game winning walk-off homerun in the ninth inning.

Trojans, Trace to tangle with Tonka

You won’t be hearing a lot from Trace Norfleet over the next two years, but you’ll be hearing a lot about him. The soft-spoken junior running back for the Trojans won the state championship in the long-jump last spring and now he’s making noise on the football field this fall. Sharing time with senior Josh Eatman through the first four games, they served as great complements.
With Eatman out with an injury the past two weeks, Norfleet has been able to showcase what he can do. Two weeks ago against Truman, Norfleet rushed for 144 yards on 18 carries with a touchdown, and then bested his previous performance this last week against William Chrisman by gaining 169 yards on 11 carries with three touchdowns as the Trojans shutout the Bears 46-0. Keep in mind, Norfleet along with a majority of the Trojan starters only played in the first half of both games.
“Just gaining more confidence,” Norfleet said when asked what the increased carries meant.

Score aside, the game on paper may have looked closer. In the first half Chrisman held possession far longer, allowed only five first downs, and didn’t punt. This was mostly due to the Trojans’ drives resulting in long scoring plays including a Norfleet 69-yard touchdown run on the game’s second play, another Norfleet 64-yard touchdown run, and a 40-yard touchdown pass from Corey Sterling to receiver Nick Hughes. Hughes’ first touchdown catch of the season has been in the making, as him and Sterling had barely missed opportunities earlier in the season to connect on the long ball.
“It was bound to happen at some point,” Hughes said. “I think we understand each other a little more now.”

Well deserved credit should be given to the Trojan defense in their second shutout of the season. In addition to constant pressure from the defensive front, several big plays were made by LB De’Aris Flint who was involved in a pair of fumbles. DB De’Rion Rambo intercepted an early first half pass to put the Trojan offense only 20 yard away from another touchdown.
Park Hill (5-1) will come home to play Winnetonka (5-1) as a part of the school’s homecoming festivities this weekend and a chance at redemption as the Griffins edged out the Trojans 28-27 last year. Winnetonka is coming off a 21-6 victory against Truman last week. The story for the Griffins this season has been running back Darrell Jobe, who had 236 yards on 40 carries last Friday. With the amount of carries he gets, it’s no secret what the Trojan defense will be targeting this Friday.

“They’ll have a good running game and it’s always our focus to stop the run so we’ll be working really hard to do that,” Coach Greg Reynolds said. “On offense, we’re hoping to be a little more diversified with being able to run and pass.”

Park Hill Volleyball looking to pull all the parts together

Consistency. If there was one word Park Hill Volleyball coach Janell Deville could use to describe what her team needs to do to be successful, consistency would be it. As the Trojans go into the final three weeks of their season, they have seen their share of ups and downs, but are optimistic about the rest of their season.

After a victory against Raytown last week in consecutive sets (25-15, 25-7) featuring 7 kills from Alex Leggett and six digs each from Halley Knudson and Kelsey Borgardts, Deville believes her team has a lot of potential and is a lot better than their 8-10-1 record might indicate.
“We’ve got a lot of volleyball ability and experience on our team,” Deville said.

When Park Hill is playing well, their strength comes from their passing game and the attack sets that are created from it. Another area they draw success from is the excitement and ‘go-getting’ attitude they can bring to the court.
One aspect of their game the Trojans have been missing lately is the leadership and play of senior Heather Schieber, who has been troubled with an ankle injury. This has led to the opportunity for other seniors to step up who Deville has said will shape the direction of this team. They’ve also changed a few things up and moved people around, especially when it comes to underclassmen that have been expected to step in and play at a higher level.

Park Hill comes into this week in 3rd place in the conference standings with sights beginning to be set on the district tournament which starts October 26th. Although they will come in as underdogs, Deville believes anything can happen.
“Regardless of what seed we are, I think our district is wide open,” Deville said. “Some of the higher seeds can be upset by the lower seeds.”

Although only halfway through the season Deville sees some big improvements over last year, especially in regards to team cohesiveness and overall atmosphere within her program. This will play a big part for the Trojans as they head down the stretch.

Trojans keep rolling

As thrilling and emotionally draining as Park Hill’s upset victory against Liberty two weeks ago was, it wouldn’t have been surprising if the Trojans weren’t able to match the same intensity against a struggling 1-3 Truman team. Not this time. In fact, Park Hill racked up 389 total yards…. in the first half. Yes, the Trojans started against the Truman Patriots in the same place they left the Liberty Blue Jays. Park Hill methodically gained a 35-0 lead going into halftime before going on to win 41-14.
Park Hill’s backfield depth was impressive early as starting running back Josh Eatman and starting fullback Sean Gorman were unavailable to play due to injuries. Taking their place were Alex Kennedy and Trace Norfleet. There was no letdown, as both contributed with touchdowns. Norfleet who has shared duties at running back since the beginning of the season had a breakout game gaining 144 yards on 18 carries.

“I knew I had to step up,” Norfleet said of his opportunity.
The Trojans focused on a steady dose of their basic offensive package. Quarterback Corey Sterling completed seven passes on eleven attempts for 158 yards including three touchdowns, one to WR De’Rion Rambo and two more to TE Daniel Jessen, who also caught a touchdown from backup QB Nathan Wilson later in the game. As the season has progressed, Sterling has become more comfortable moving outside the pocket and recognizes this strength.

“I’m a shorter guy, so sometimes it’s harder to see when I’m in the pocket,” Sterling said. “I feel more comfortable in space and being able to see everybody.”
Truman’s only offensive opportunities against Park Hill’s first team spurred from two long kickoff returns, but both drives ended with turnovers in what has been a frustrating theme recently for the Patriots, fumbling the football. The two touchdowns came in the fourth quarter against Park Hill’s second team.

The Trojans, now 4-1 with a 1-0 conference record, go into their next conference game against William Chrisman where they will once again travel to Independence and play on the same field Chrisman and Truman share together. Chrisman will be coming off a loss to Park Hill South last week by a score of 42-0, dropping their record to 2-3 on the season. First year coach Mark Simcox is a former defensive coordinator for Park Hill so look for them to try to counter Park Hill’s power by putting up to eight defensive players in the box. On offense, a run heavy team will rely heavily on running backs Caleb Sims and Scott Cates to return from ankle injuries to carry the load for the Bears.

“It’s going to be a short game with two teams running the football,” Park Hill coach Greg Reynolds said. “It’s going to be about who gets off the ball best and if we do what we’re supposed to we’ll be alright.”

Panthers Softball Team Looks to Pivotal Week

Park Hill South at 10-9 is in the middle of a tough stretch of games this week which include matchups against Truman, Park Hill, Kearney, and Oak Park. With the district tournament next week, these last games will determine a conference champion and help build momentum going into the postseason. After early conference losses to Truman and Oak Park, Coach Josh Walker didn’t think the conference title would be very attainable, but after a stretch of wins, they’ve made their way back into the conference race. Rematches with Truman, Park Hill, and Oak Park, all conference rivals, will go a long way in deciding this year’s champion.
To start off the season the Panthers’ strength was in their defense, but lately their bats have come alive in a string of games where they have double digit run totals. Pitcher Jessica McCoy has done her part by putting together solid performances all year and has an earned run average just below two.

On the defensive side, Val Pollan has been impressive in leftfield along with third baseman Alyssa Weatherly and Mallory Land who has stepped in as a freshman at catcher to replace Maci Fisher who went down with a PCL injury. Weatherly has also been tearing it up on offense behind outfielder Bailey Peterson, who leads off for the Panthers.

“I hate to use a clique, but it’s going to come down to pitching and defense,” Walker said.
The district tournament starts up next Wednesday, October 7th with the championship game being played on Saturday morning. Park Hill South will be looking to put together the strong defense from the beginning of the year with the solid hitting performances they’ve had of late to make a run at both the conference and district titles. As Coach Walker mentioned at the beginning of the year, and still holds true today with pivotal games fast approaching, “we’re looking to make some noise.”

Encore! Park Hill upsets Liberty, hopes to continue success against Truman

How do you follow up one of the biggest wins in recent memory?

Well, for the Park Hill football team, the answer to that question is taking care of business on the road this Friday.

After upsetting Liberty last Friday night by a score of 20-11, Park Hill will travel to take on the Truman Patriots this week in their conference season opener. The Patriots (1-3) committed 11 penalties for 100 yards and fumbled at the goal line in a loss to Park Hill South last week 12-0. Last year the Trojans beat the Patriots by a score of 52-0.

Many were curious what the Trojans would do differently than normal to stop the top-ranked Liberty Blue Jays’ quick striking option offense and multiple defensive looks. The answer: nothing at all. Park Hill did what they do best, play smash mouth football.
“They’re a good ball club, really good team,” Coach Greg Reynolds said. “Nobody thought we could win.”

Park Hill scored first when Neal Sampson kicked a 36-yard field goal at the 5:54 mark in the first quarter. Liberty put together their only scoring drive of the game in the second quarter by traveling 69 yards in 3:39 completed when Liberty quarterback Kevin VanEgdom took the ball in for a 5 yard touchdown run.
The favor was returned on the next drive when the Trojan’s Sean Gorman took a handoff into the end zone. Gorman, at 6’0” and 190 pounds, finished with 81 yards rushing and has gained a reputation for his blocking and ability to drag defenders. Park Hill added a Sampson field goal as time expired in the first half to put the Trojans up 13-7.
Liberty WR Marcus Lucas, a highly touted college prospect, didn’t hurt the Trojans like he did last year. While there were several deep threats in the second half, Park Hill cornerbacks De’Rion Rambo and Nick Hughes provided quality coverage despite being sometimes outsized.

The Trojans struck the final offensive blow early in the third quarter. A 15-yard touchdown run by Trace Norfleet completed an eight play, 53-yard march to the end zone making the score 20-7. Liberty was unable to muster much offense in a second half featuring a number of penalties and dropped passes for the Jays. Even after Liberty recovered a Park Hill fumble, they turned the ball over on the next play when linebacker Jordan Wang recovered a fumbled exchange.
Trojan faithful erupted in the fourth quarter when linebacker De’Aris Flint came screaming off the edge to sack VanEgdom for a loss of 9 yards with just under ten minutes to play while Liberty continued to try to ignite a passing game. Next, it was defensive end Bryan Dale’s turn when he broke through the line for a sack and loss of 11 yards just under the five minute mark. Working the clock, the Trojans gave up a pair of safeties in the closing minutes to prevent Liberty from mounting any kind of comeback. When the clock finally reached zero, the Trojans rejoiced over their 20-11 victory.
It wasn’t the shootout fans had seen the previous week against Columbia Hickman, but the offense put together several time consuming scoring drives throughout the game to take any kind of momentum from Liberty. Then, there was the defense. In a year where they have allowed some big plays, but come back with even bigger plays, it was only the latter last Friday. The defense’s ability to contain the potentially explosive Liberty offense made all the difference.

Asked where the victory ranked in recent years Reynolds responded, “I think it ranks up there. They’re a class above us and it’s one of those games where you have to prove yourself.”

Panthers, Trojans peaking a right time

Last week at Tiffany Greens Golf Course was a chance to catch up with Park Hill and Park Hill South’s girls golf teams as they competed against each other in match play. It was the second time in a week the two teams faced each other, the first coming the previous Friday when Park Hill won by six strokes at The National. This time the Panthers were able to win the match by a margin of twenty strokes with medalist Stephanie Frailey shooting a 44.

Both coaches were happy with their teams’ progress so far. As the season continues their goal is to lower individual and team scores each time they play.

“We’ve dropped from a 454 to 424,” Park Hill South coach Larry Torgerson said of his team’s improvement from the beginning of the season.

“Sam (Brunker) has improved by 20 strokes,” Park Hill coach Tari Garner said.
With both teams improving, it will come down to two pivotal days, September 28th for the conference tournament at Paradise Point in Smithville and October 5th for the district tournament held at Liberty Hills in Liberty. Unlike many high school sports where standings develop over a season, golf championships are determined in single day tournaments. So while improving is important for teams, it’s all about playing your best golf at the right time.

“It’s whoever shows up to play, but we’ve got a great chance,” Garner said.

The Trojans have had strong play from Anna Kloeppel, Erica Crainshaw, Stephanie Atkinson, and Sam Brunker to start the season. This included an 8th place finish out of a field of 23 last week at Drumm Farm. Before their lose to South, they had yet to lose in match play. Garner is confident in her team’s ability and hopes it pays off in upcoming tournaments.

“We’ve got four players that can all shoot in the 90’s, being consistent and having it all on the same day will be big,” Garner said.

South’s Torgerson feels his team is coming along well. His top golfers include Sarah Shelton, Lindsey Gile, Stephanie Frailey, Kelly Jefferies, and Hillary Schmitz. Gile has been able to continue through a painful torn labrum in her shoulder to play for the Panthers. Last week South competed in the Sedalia Invitational, the course where the state championship tournament is played. Some of the best teams in the state were there to compete in what could be thought of as a practice round. Against the top competition, South finished 11th out of 19 teams. The top 15 scores received medals with scores all under 81. Frailey finished with a round of 88.
“We did really well at Sedalia,” Torgerson said. “There were some excellent teams down there.”

Between now and the quickly approaching conference tournament South will compete in the Notre Dame DeSion Tournament along with a match with Liberty. Park Hill will play matches against Oak Park, North Kansas City, and Winnetonka.

“They’re doing what they’re supposed to be doing, improving,” Garner said.

“We’re getting lower scores, getting better as the years goes on,” Torgerson said. “That’s the key.”

Park Hill beats Columbia Hickman, faces talented Liberty team

Liberty, at 3-0, will provide a tough test for the Park Hill Trojans (2-1) this Friday before going into conference play next week. Liberty is currently ranked as one of the top teams in the state with high expectations. Last year, Liberty bested Park Hill 38-14. The Trojan defense will have to make the difference by containing a Liberty offense that includes several different looks and strengths.

“We watched some tape of them (Liberty) in our preparation for Hickman,” head coad Greg Reynolds said. “The combinations they run with the option will put some pressure on our defense.”

Park Hill comes off a win last week against Columbia Hickman where they displayed their ability to convert turnovers into points. This led the Trojans to a 31-28 victory in their home opener.

The Trojans started the first drive from their 20-yard line. On the first play, Josh Eatman took the handoff 50-yards to the Hickman 30-yard line before Sean Gorman next went in for a 30-yard touchdown. Hickman struck back with a 3:07 66-yard drive capped off with a 2-yard touchdown run by QB Matt Herman. Other than a Herman pass being intercepted by Park Hill counterpart QB/DB Corey Sterling in the second quarter, both teams exchanged drives and missed field goal attempts before going into halftime with a tied score of 7-7.

A huge sack on fourth down by Park Hill defensive end Bryan Dale gave the Trojans the ball and with 6:45 left in the 3rd quarter Josh Eatman took a handoff to the house for a 66-yard touchdown run. Eatman finished with 18 carries for 184 yards and 2 touchdowns.

“After last week, he was disappointed in not getting as many carries,” Reynolds said. “He had a great week of practice, came out and really showed what he can do.”

Hickman responded again on the next drive with a deep Herman pass to Wesley Leftwich for a 55-yard touchdown pass. After a stalled drive and Park Hill punt, Herman took a 2nd and 3 snap looking to pass, but Park Hill LB De’Aris Flint stripped the ball from him allowing DE Steven Clark to recover for the Trojans. Eatman streaked through the Kewpie defense on the first play for a 17-yard touchdown run. Herman threw a second consecutive interception on the next drive when LB Daniel Jessen snagged his pass out of the air.

Although Hickman QB Herman had four interceptions on the night, his ability to hide the ball hurt the Trojans, especially with 9:44 in the fourth quarter when his play action pass hit Dominic Price for a 60-yard touchdown pass. The Kewpies used that momentum to stop the Trojans’ next drive and get the ball back. Using it to their advantage, they struck with 4:13 left in the game when Josh Williams ran for an 11-yard touchdown run. The point-after put Hickman up 28-21.

On the Trojans’ next drive, Adrien Esaw stepped up on 4th and 3 with a 41-yard reception from Sterling. Three plays later it was Sterling sneaking the ball in for the 1-yard touchdown to tie the score 28-28 with 2:02 to play.

Hickman began driving before Herman threw a 2nd and 10 pass, which was intercepted by De’Rion Rambo who returned it to the Hickman 24-yard line with 47 seconds left. After several shots at the end zone, Park Hill called their final timeout allowing Neal Sampson to kick the game winning field goal with 13 seconds remaining.

“We got the ball to our offense when we needed to,” Reynolds said. “Some kids made mistakes early, but came back to make big plays late in the game.”

The close win gives the Trojans some confidence as they prepare for Liberty, but Reynolds looks to it as an opportunity to get better before conference and districts start.

“We’ve got to get better and we tell our guys that the first four weeks are about getting better and ready because week 5 starts conference,” Reynolds said.

Park Hill beats Park Hill South in 2OT thriller

Who said soccer wasn’t a contact sport? It certainly was last week as Park Hill took on Park Hill South with a packed Park Hill District Stadium on hand. With half the stands peppered purple and the other red, fans were able to see what has turned into one of top soccer rivalries in the area.
An evenly balanced game throughout the first half included several opportunities for both teams, but quality saves by goalkeepers Shane VanHooser of Park Hill and Kurt Ehlers of Park Hill South kept the score 0-0 going into halftime.

“We had a lot of opportunities one on one with their goalkeeper,” said South coach Joe Toigo. “A lot of their shots came from a distance.”
No love was lost in the second half. Both teams received multiple yellow cards after small pushing matches occurred at various points. Park Hill coach Dustin Sollars talked about how very little it matters which team is better from year to year. A very successful team can come in and it’s always close no matter what.

“Throw everything out the window for Park Hill and Park Hill South, and hope you can make it through with as few cards and little blood as possible,” Sollars said.
South started off the second half aggressively, this led to Michael Combs receiving a ricocheted ball off the post and putting it in for a goal at the thirty-seven minute mark. The Panthers controlled the ball for the majority of the second half, but the Trojans added some late theatrics to the game when David Zdvorak used a free kick to assist Quenton Noble with a score with three minutes to play. Regulation ended with a score of 1-1.
Both teams came up empty in two overtime periods, which led to a series of penalty kicks to decide the match. An enthusiastic crowd was on their feet as each kick resulted in one half of the stadium erupting in enthusiasm while the other groaned. After a South miss on the fourth round of five penalty kicks, Park Hill’s Ray Lee scored what would be the game winner. VanHooser saved the day, as the public address announcer said so many times throughout the night, when he blocked Cody Mortensen’s kick from going into the goal to give the Trojans a 2-1 victory via 4-3 in penalty kicks. Trojan faithful went crazy as the players celebrated on the field, and then came to thank their loyal fans for enduring the two and a half hour match.
“I thought we played well, but lost our composure at the end,” Toigo said. “No matter if we win or lose, we’re always looking for things to work on.”

After last week’s game, both Park Hill and Park Hill South come into this week with records of 3-3. Both teams face strong schedules throughout the season, including against each other, which will allow them to face top competition between conferences games leading into district play.

For Park Hill, the game against South was their third game in three days and it could have been an easy let-down game, but the adrenaline of playing their rival gave them an extra boost.

“I think that’s one of the reasons our guys were able to step up and play tonight,” Sollars said.