The Park Hill South football team’s homecoming game took a painful turn as late-game drives went against the Panthers, resulting in a 28-27 defeat to Oak Park on Sept. 12.
Oak Park took a gamble that paid dividends by converting a two-point conversion in the final minute of the game to take the lead for the first time all night. Park Hill South still drove downfield in the final 45 seconds, but a last-second field goal attempt missed wide as the Panthers fell to defeat in their home opener.
Park Hill South junior Harrison Pryor makes a tackle against Oak Park.
It took some time before either team was able to put points on the board, Park Hill South first doing so when a trip to the red zone concluded with a 35-yard field goal from senior kicker Noah Stephens midway through the second quarter. South went up 10-0 when quarterback Tyler Briggs scrambled away from pressure before giving junior receiver Jake Hensel an opportunity to make a play, out-leaping his defender before diving across the goal line.
Oak Park finally got on the board later in the second quarter. The Northmen capitalized on missed tackles on an option play from 14 yards out, but a missed point-after attempt put the halftime score at 10-6 in favor of the Panthers.
Stephens put the Panthers up by seven points when he crushed a 52-yard field goal in the third quarter. The Northmen soon responded with a 60-yard quarterback keeper from Antonio Johnson to tie the game up at 13-13.
South reestablished its lead midway through the third after a 37-yard run to the right by sophomore running back Emmett Lopez set up the Panthers inside the 5-yard line, from which Briggs connected with Lopez, who battled through contact to get across the goal line on a passing play.
A 66-yard run from Oak Park’s Demonie Carter set up Johnson for a 10-yard touchdown as he reversed the field to his left after seeing poor options to his right, tying the game 20-20 going into the fourth quarter.
Just like they did on the previous drive, Park Hill South responded by going back ahead by a score when a steady 10-play drive carried into the fourth before Briggs found Hensel wide open for their second touchdown connection of the night, putting the Panthers up 27-20. With nearly all of the fourth quarter for Oak Park to answer, they struggled to find that response.
Eventually, Oak Park put together a late-game drive, converting on fourth-and-1 before the Northmen exploited blown coverage as Johnson found a receiver wide open for a 34-yard score, getting Oak Park within an extra
point of tying it in the final minute of regulation. Rather than taking the point-after attempt, Oak Park went for glory to take the lead on a two-point conversion try, and did so successfully as Johnson dodged several South defenders to convert the try, giving Oak Park a 28-27 advantage.
Park Hill South remained collected, piecing together their own drive in the final 45 seconds. Briggs led the way, completing a 12-yard pass, carrying the ball for a 9-yard gain before moving into field goal range with the help of a penalty and another 7-yard completion.
With 2 seconds left on the clock, a timeout from Park Hill South allowed the Panthers to send Stephens out for a 44-yard field goal attempt for the victory. After a good snap and hold, Stephens crushed the kick with plenty of distance, but didn’t have enough accuracy as it missed wide left.
The Panthers’ homecoming defeat dropped their record to 1-2, with an 0-1 tally in conference play of the Greater Kansas City Red Division. Park Hill South heads to undefeated Liberty for another conference matchup on Sept. 19 before returning to Park Hill District Football Stadium for a rivalry clash against Park Hill on Sept. 26.