Parsons dominates Neodesha

NEODESHA — Playing on a Thursday night on the road, the Parsons Vikings laid waste to the Neodesha Bluestreaks, 38-13, in district play.

Thursday served as Makai Baugh’s arrival party. The Vikings’ senior caught four balls for 71 yards, had an interception, two pass breakups, a forced fumble and returned the game’s opening kickoff for a touchdown.

“I told him when he came off the field that it was one of the best all-around performances from a high school kid that I’ve coached,” Schibi said. “It was all phases of the game. Offensively, we’re trying to get more creative and he made some plays to spark us. I’m extremely proud of him. He’s going to be successful not just on the football field, but in life.”

The Vikings’ offense, which was blanked a week ago by Frontenac, amassed 375 yards of total offense. Trey Logan threw for 133 yards while Chandler Hentzen ran for 101. Da’karyi Jones added 92 yards on the ground.

“I thought we played pretty well on that side of the ball,” Schibi said. “We generated first downs, ate up the clock and sparked a few big plays. We ran the ball well. Our receivers made some plays. Overall, we were way more efficient. We’re still beating ourselves with some penalties. We’ve really got to clean that up.”

Parsons’ defense kept pressure on the Bluestreaks’ quarterback all night, racking up 10 sacks. Brelin Summers, doing his best impression of Kansas City Chiefs great Derrick Thomas — he even wears No. 58 — tallied four sacks.

“Our defensive line is pretty darn good and they’re so fast,” Schibi said. “Neodesha runs routes that are longer to develop. With our line that gets off the ball fast, this was the type of game where they’d be successful. They did an outstanding job. That wasn’t an easy offense to stop.”

Parsons improved 2-4 overall and 2-1 in district play. “When you work hard every day in practice and don’t see success on Friday nights, it’s hard,” Schibi said. “It’s our job as coaches to get the guys to understand the importance of district play. We have a chance to get a top-8 seed and a home playoff game. We’re trying to have some fun. If our kids can play loose and compete every single play, that’s all we can play for.”

Up next

Parsons returns home to face Class 4A Atchison (5-1) in a non-district game in Week 7. The Vikings then hit the road to face Columbus, a game where the winner will likely be given a home playoff game game while the loser will have to start on the road, in Week 8.

“We’re going to approach the Atchison game like we approach every week and we’ll try to win a game,” Schibi said. “I understand it. But we’re going to play our guys and compete every single play. That’s the only way I know how to approach the game.”