Lincoln College Prep is undefeated and has cruised in four of its five wins to start the season. Pembroke Hill, 3-2, is coming off a dominating win over University Academy. On Friday, at Pembroke, the Raiders will attempt to put a permanent stain on the Blue Tigers' perfect record.
In what has become one of the better small school rivalries in the Kansas City area in recent years, the Blue Tigers and Raiders will clash in this week's Dipasquale-Moore Law Metro Matchup of the Week.
The Blue Tigers have outscored their opponents 238-47 this season. Lincoln bounced Van Horn last week 41-13. The win came after one of the program's biggest regular season victories in school history. Down 20-0 to Missouri Class 3 power Cardinal Ritter of St. Louis, the Blue Tigers fought back to claim a 28-20 stunner in Week 4.
"It was a great experience for our team," Lincoln Prep head coach William Lowe said. "We spoke about staying united as a team and not looking at the scoreboard and just playing as hard as we could one play at a time. At halftime we knew we were okay. We had taken their best shot."
And what was the message that inspired 28 unanswered points?
"We just reiterated to keep playing as hard as we could and good things would happen," Lowe said. "We worked hard on special teams all week and were able to block a punt while also executing a fake punt of our own. Conditioning also definitely played a part in the second half as it was hot. I was extremely proud of our team and our kids to fight back and score 28 unanswered points to knock off a great team like Cardinal Ritter."
Lincoln expects another challenge at Pembroke.
"We try to keep our focus on a week to week basis and this week’s focus is Pembroke Hill, " Lowe said. "We really enjoy the grass field and the atmosphere at Pembroke. It’s a good place for a high school football game and we are looking forward to it."
Pembroke has defeated East, Schlagle and University Academy this season. They were handled by St. Pius X to open the season and were manhandled by Richmond in a Week 4 loss.
The Raiders are led by a trio of brothers and a defensive end/tight end that has drawn interest and offers from Division I schools. Brothers Quinton, Devin and Darin Conley are standouts on both sides of the ball. Quinton and Devin are wide receivers and defensive backs. Darin Conley is a 6-foot-3, 210-pound junior defensive end. He is flanked by Miles Marshall, a force at defensive end and hybrid tight end.
The teams are 2-2 against each other since 2017. Something will give Friday night.
“It has become somewhat of a rivalry," Lowe said. "They got us for a couple of years and now we have been able to get them for the past couple of years, so it's been fun."