Eagles can’t keep up with Pirates offense in 54-23 loss

by Michael Smith, Grain Valley News
 
 
The Grain Valley football team had a tough task in front of it Friday.
 
The Eagles took on Suburban White Conference rival and the defending Class 5 state champion Platte County Pirates on the road.
 
They were tasked with slowing down a Pirate offense that came off a 56-point performance in Week 1 against William Chrisman. Not only that, it returned nine of its 11 starters on offense from last year’s championship team, including two players who committed to NCAA Division I football programs.
 
One of those was senior quarterback Rocco Marriott, who committed to James Madison University. He gave the Eagles’ defense fits, completing 19 of 26 passes for 379 yards and four scores. He also added 125 yards and a touchdown on 9 carries on the ground in a 54-23 rout of Grain Valley at Platte County High School.
 
“We expected to perform better,” Allie said. “We didn’t play well enough. They have a lot of speed and their quarterback is really good.”
 
To make matters even tougher for the Eagles, junior running back Sjoeren Aumua appeared to suffer a knee injury in the third period and was held out for the rest of the game and had an ice pack on it.
 
Starting linebacker Lucas Jurgensmeyer also was tended to by trainers as he lay on the ground and appeared to hurt his ankle. He limped to the sideline with some trainers and was on crutches after the contest.
 
“Sjoeren has had a little bit of a knee tweak going on and he tweaked it there,” Allie said. “Hopefully, he’s OK. Lucas’ injury may be a tad bit more serious, but you never know.”
 
Outside of a drive that resulted in a lost fumble from senior running back Adam Gisler in the second period and a missed field goal early in the fourth, the Pirates first-string offense got a touchdown on every drive.
 
The first two came on a 30-yard scoring pass from Marriott to senior wide receiver Braiden Stevens and an 8-yard TD run from Marriott.
 
Grain Valley seemed to get some momentum at the 1:09 mark in the first period when junior Terrell King returned a kick 95 yards for a score, which was his second kick return TD of the season, making it 14-7.
 
‘He’s shifty and fast,” Allie said of King. “He finds that seam and he hit it.”
 
That momentum didn’t last long as Platte County immediately responded with a 99-yard return for a score from senior Ty Christopher on the ensuing kickoff to put his team up by 14 points.
 
That touchdown was the start of 26 consecutive points, which was capped by a 2-yard TD pass from Marriott to senior tight end Brooks Hall.
 
Grain Valley junior running back ended the half by scoring on a 69-yard return on a pooch kick as he found some room to run on the left side of the field, making it 40-14 at halftime.
 
Platte County put the game away for good in the second half with two more touchdowns, including a 17-yard TD pass off play action as Marriott hit a wide open Hall, putting their team up 54-14.
 
They added nine points in the fourth quarter on a safety following a bad snap by Platte County’s junior varsity offense and a 4-yard touchdown run from sophomore Dawson Head.
 
The Platte County defense held Grain Valley to 143 total yards and sacked quarterback Chase Neer four times and backup Cohen Morris once. Aumua led Grain Valley with 103 yards rushing on 14 carries.