South St. Louis County News

St. Louis Call Newspapers

South St. Louis County News

St. Louis Call Newspapers

South St. Louis County News

St. Louis Call Newspapers

Mehlville Panthers defeat Fox 34-27

Mehlville Panthers defeat Fox 34-27
Photo by Megan LeFaivre

An inspired performance by the Mehlville Senior High School varsity football team led the Panthers to their first victory of the season Friday night over the Fox Warriors.

The score was tied 24-24 going into the fourth quarter, but Mehlville scored a touchdown and a field goal to counter Fox’s field goal. The Panthers prevailed 34-27.

Panthers head coach Kent Heinemann told the Call he saw a difference in the way his team played in the contest and said his players definitely were pleased to get that first win.

Before the game, the two schools teamed up for the first “Huddle 4 Heroes.” Special shirts were sold and donations were collected to benefit the Wounded Warriors Project, which provides programs and services to help seriously injured members of the military.

Of the win, Heinemann said, “It feels good. I think the kids took the field inspired because of all the military around and they kind of got after it. In past weeks we’ve been coming out a little flat and we definitely didn’t see that last night.”

The Panthers also knew going into the game they would need to be ready to fight a tough battle against Fox, which is traditionally a very physical team to play against, according to Heinemann. They also knew they would need to tighten things up on defense.

“We knew we were going to have to stop their option game … Early on we didn’t, and we ended up stopping it toward the end of the game,” Heinemann said. “We knew we were going to have to play physical because (Fox head coach) Brent Tinker’s teams are always physical.

“So we knew that going into the game that we were going to have to bang a little bit up front and we were going to have to execute on offense.”

The offense did manage to get things rolling with quarterback Brendan Moore running two touchdowns into the end zone. Mike Mik and Joe Murphy also plotted touchdowns, while Austin Massey kicked two field goals to give the Panthers the edge over the Warriors.

With four games behind them, the Panthers have achieved some things little by little in each game and hope to continue to build on that, according to Heinemann.

“Brendan Moore is running the ball with confidence, throwing the ball with confidence,” he said. Our receivers are doing a great job to get open.

“I mean, we got a tipped ball last night, so there’s a little bit of luck involved with that. But there are also guys hustling to the ball, so they’re there for that tip. I think the kids are just kind of getting more confidence.”

The Panthers have a little bit of momentum on their side with the win. Combined with the progress they’ve made since the season’s beginning, Heinemann hopes to capitalize on that moving forward.

“It’s motivating to the kids to come out and work harder,” Heinemann said. “You generally have a better week of practice after a win. Everybody’s inspired, everybody’s a little more focused, so we are looking for that.”

The Panthers are will spend the remainder of their week getting ready for Marquette Friday on the road as they hope to take advantage of facing a team that is 0-4.

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