It had been 686 days since the LIberty North Eagles had run onto the field in front of a capacity crowd.
Between a limited crowd in 2020 and a game cancellation in Week 3, Liberty North was likely the last team in Missouri to have a home game this season.
It was worth the wait.
The Eagles were dominant as they rolled over Park Hill, 42-3.
It was a dominant Liberty North defense that stole the show on homecoming, which included homecoming king and defensive back Myles Sigers.
On the opening possession Eric Henkel stepped in front of Park HIll quarterback Kendrick Bell’s pass which set the stage for a 12-yard run from Cayden Arzola and a 7-0 lead.
“I saw the QB running out and scrambling so I had to find a man,” Henkel said. “ I saw 12 standing in the middle of the field trying to get open and the quarterback looking at him. I jumped the route and ran the other way.”
Park HIll responded by marching down the field, but the drive stalled at the Eagle 1, and the Trojans had to settle for a field goal.
Park Hill was held to just 116 yards of total offense including 22 rushing yards on 16 attempts.
“We think that no one in the state can run the ball on us and we continue to prove that every week,’ Henkel said. “We came out there and put four in the box on the goal line and said run the ball, see what happens.”
Liberty North responded with a four-yard run by Freddie Lavan to take a 14-3 lead and kickstart a 28-point second quarter for the Eagles.
“It was almost like Blue Springs,” LIberty North head coach Greg Jones said. “We had back-to-back turnovers and then the defense had a big stand then boom we jumped and went. It was the same thing tonight. We had a huge stand and then boom there we went again.”
Offensively, the Eagles were impressive as well, racking up 369 yards of total offense and scoring over 40 points for the fourth-straight week.
Quarterback Sam Van Dyne completed 10 of 13 passes for 169 yards and two touchdowns.
