In defense-heavy game, 2 pick-sixes help Olathe North halt Mill Valley win streak at 14
Friday night’s battle of unbeatens between Olathe North and Mill Valley certainly lived up to its billing.
In a game that was dominated by the defenses, the Eagles came up with two pick-sixes to account for the only points of the second half en route to a 20-16 win at Mill Valley.
That outcome snapped a 14-game Mill Valley winning streak.
The Eagles will try to finish off their perfect regular season at 7 p.m. next Friday against Lawrence Free State at the Olathe District Activity Center.
“In practice, we have what’s called Turnover Tuesday. They snuff those opportunities out,” Olathe North coach Chris McCartney said. “They’re learning. They’re good students, I guess.”
The Eagles trailed the Jaguars 16-7 at halftime, and that score held through the third quarter. But Olathe North defensive tackle Devan Lowe ignited the Eagles’ defense with the first of his team’s four second-half interceptions. While the Eagles couldn’t turn Lowe’s pick into points, they did on the following two interceptions — in a hurry.
With 7:20 to play, Nathan Gunderson deflected a pass by Hayden Jay that eventually wound up in the hands of Josh Parrish. The Olathe North defensive back did the rest by taking it to the house.
“I need to thank Nate Gunderson for tipping that. It wasn’t just me. It was Nate, too,” Parrish said. “After he tipped it, I saw it and was like, ‘This is mine. Let’s return this.’ And then I did.”
Confidence continued to build play by play for the Olathe North defense. Less than 90 seconds later, it was Alex Gunderson’s turn for the house call. Gunderson broke up a crossing route before running 40 yards for his pick-six.
“I saw the QB’s eyes. Someone tipped it and I wasn’t sure exactly who,” Gunderson said. “It ended up in my hands and I started running.”
Still, the Eagles’ defense had some work to do. Olathe North had the Jaguars on their heels again by forcing them into a third and 11 at the Mill Valley 42-yard line with under four minutes to play. That’s when Andy Watts got behind the Olathe North defense and hauled in a 32-yard strike from Jay to give the Jaguars some life.
The Jaguars got down to the Olathe North 15-yard line, but the drive came to an abrupt halt when Jason Parrish secured an interception in the end zone.
“The secondary is amazing,” Alex Gunderson said. “Josh Parrish and Jason Parrish are two of the best players in the state. They’re unbelievable. All props go to the secondary and defensive line. They were unbelievable tonight.”
The Jaguars’ defense had an impressive showing of its own and forced the Eagles into a three-and-out to give Mill Valley one last chance. However, Mill Valley turned it over on downs with six seconds left to close out the game.
“We had great leadership from the coaching staff. They never once were down,” Olathe North’s Alex Gunderson said. “They were like, ‘Here’s how we’re going to fix it. This is what we’re going to do.’ We’re going to come out and kick some butt. That’s what we’re going to do. The coaching staff can’t get enough props. They were unbelievable tonight.”
Mill Valley built a 10-0 lead in the first quarter by scoring on its first two drives. The Jaguars ate up five minutes of clock on their opening drive and capped it off with a 1-yard touchdown run by Jay.
After forcing Olathe North to go three-and-out on its first drive, the Jaguars were quickly knocking on the door again after a Holden Zigmant 39-yard punt return to the Olathe North 30. The Olathe North defense buckled down, though, and held the Jaguars to a 23-yard field goal by Kenton Laughman.
The Olathe North offense got rolling in the second quarter with TJ Porter doing much of the heavy lifting. Porter punched it in from a yard out with 4:13 to go in the first half.
But the momentum instantly swung back in Mill Valley’s favor right after Porter’s touchdown run. Mikey Bergeron returned the ensuing kickoff 77 yards to give the Jaguars the ball at the Olathe North 18-yard line. Tristan Baker found paydirt two plays later on a 5-yard run to extend the Mill Valley lead to 16-7. But in a game that was loaded with big special teams plays, the extra point was blocked.
The Eagles had an opportunity to make it a one-score game before the end of the half, but Jason Scoma’s 21-yard field-goal attempt went off the post with 20 seconds remaining.
Scoma — Olathe North’s quarterback, placekicker and punter — redeemed himself for missing the short field goal in the first half by booming a 69-yard punt with 52 seconds left in the game. That pinned the Jaguars on their own 10-yard line.
The Olathe North defense did the rest to send the Eagles to 7-0.
“He’s just a really good athlete. He’s a competitive guy,” McCartney said of Scoma. “When he makes mistakes, he gets mad at himself. He did a great job of punting that ball down there. He’s a tough kid.”
The Jaguars will try to bounce back at 7 p.m. Thursday in their regular-season finale against Shawnee Mission East at SM North.
