Even after blitzing out to a 20-point lead in the first quarter against Olathe West on Friday, Mill Valley coach Joel Applebee knew that the game was far from over. Applebee was right, as the Owls battled back to make it a one-possession game at the half.
One of the reasons Applebee knew Olathe West wouldn’t fold easily was the man coaching on the other sideline, former Mill Valley assistant TJ O’Neill. O’Neill’s squad seemed to have an answer whenever the Jaguars went for a knockout blow, but Mill Valley pulled away in the fourth for a 47-32 victory.
“They’re not only a quality opponent; they’re a great team,” Applebee said of Olathe West. “Coach O’Neill, what he’s done with that program, they’re going to do great things. I have no doubt. They have great players, and they play very hard. We knew they were going to respond. We kept telling our kids they were going to respond. We had to keep responding, and I feel like we did all night long.”
Fresh off their first loss of the season against Free State, the Jaguars were firing on all cylinders in the first quarter with three Hayden Jay touchdown passes. Jay connected three times with Kendrick Jones on the Jaguars’ opening drive. Jones corralled the last pass for a 16-yard touchdown catch to put Mill Valley on the board.
Jones and Napoli have been cornerstone of the Mill Valley offense for three years now, but Friday night proved that the Jaguars have a few more weapons that teams should be concerned about. Wideout Sean Allerheiligen, who transferred into Mill Valley this year from Minnesota, is one of those threats. He hauled in a 31-yard touchdown catch, and then caught another deep ball for a 48-yard touchdown catch nine seconds later after the Jaguars had a successful onside kick. Suddenly, the Jaguars had a 20-0 lead less than eight minutes into the game.
“Hayden threw a great football. He made it a lot easier on me,” Allerheiligen said. “The offensive line also blocked great to give me time to get open. It was really just great execution all the way around by the offense.”
But, as Applebee acknowledged, the Owls weren’t going to go quietly. The dynamic duo of quarterback Mason McGavran and running back Anthony Favrow each found pay dirt in the second quarter. McGavran scampered in from nine yards out, and Favrow rumbled in on a 10-yard run. Lewie McMullen drilled a 37-yard field goal between those touchdown drives to help the Owls make it a one-score game at half at 26-18.
“I was proud of our guys. They battled the whole game,” O’Neill said. “In these games when you’re playing programs like Mill Valley, you just can’t make mistakes like we did. You sure can’t get in the deficit like that early in the game.”
It remained an eight-point game until the 4:31 mark of the third quarter, when Reice Kennedy broke free for a 68-yard touchdown run. Kennedy also scored on a 31-yard run in the second quarter and finished with 28 carries for 215 yards and the two touchdowns.
“If it wasn’t for my offensive line, I wouldn’t be able to make any of those plays,” Kennedy said. “I have to put it all on them. Sean (Allerheiligen) and Nap (Jared Napoli) also make great blocks. We’ve got dogs out there, so it’s really nice.”
McGavran made it happen all night long with his legs, too, though. Less than three minutes after Kennedy scored his second touchdown, McGavran did the same when he broke to the outside for a 22-yard score. The junior quarterback rushed for 110 yards and the two scores on 18 carries and completed 13 of 21 passes for 196 yards and a touchdown.
It appeared that McGavran might be getting the ball back with a chance to tie the game late in the third quarter with Mill Valley facing a third and long, but another one of Jay’s favorite targets came through with a big-time catch when the Jaguars needed it. Aidan Jacobs beat two defenders over the top before bringing in a 56-yard touchdown catch to make it 40-25, Jaguars.
The touchdown pass from Jay was his fourth of the night. He completed 13 of 20 passes for 295 yards to go along with the four touchdowns. Jay fed the Jaguars’ other bruising back, Tristan Baker, late in the fourth to help put the Owls away. Baker’s touchdown run with 4:43 left extended Mill Valley’s lead to 47-25.
The Owls had one last answer, as McGavran threw a 29-yard touchdown toss to Tanner Zimmerman with 2:37 to play, but it was too little, too late for Olathe West.
The Owls (4-2) will try to bounce back against Olathe South at 7 p.m. Friday at the College Boulevard Activity Center. The Jaguars (5-1) will look to keep rolling against Olathe East at 7 p.m. Thursday at CBAC.
