No. 12 Blue Springs South 30, No. 16 Blue Springs 20

Just when Blue Springs spooked its rival, Blue Springs South put the nail in the coffin.

The Jaguars, ranked No. 12 in the 810 Varsity Top 25, fended off rival No. 16 Blue Springs for a 30-20 win on Friday night. Blue Springs South, 6-2 overall, held a 23-3 lead early in the second half, but saw the Wildcats draw to 23-20 to open the fourth quarter after a James Fike one-yard touchdown plunge with 11:33 left.

But South calmly answered in the final eight minutes, as quarterback Ayden Wilhelm fired a 34-yard pass to junior Wyatt Denney to the Wildcat 29. Two plays later, Wilhelm threaded a 30-yard strike between two BSHS defenders to Gary Hill for a score with 5:56 left, and an eventual 30-20 lead.

Blue Springs South turned two first-half turnovers into touchdowns en route to a 16-3 halftime lead. Locked in a 3-3 tie late in the second quarter, Blue Springs fired a pass into Blue Springs South territory but the Jags' Blayne Marshall picked off the pass at the 35, then returned across the field 51 yards to the Wildcat 14 with 4:02 left in the half. Two plays later, junior Darius Morgan scored his 15th touchdown of the year on a scamper from 10 yards out, and a 10-3 lead.

Another Wildcat turnover set up a long Jaguars drive at the end of the half, capped by an Ayden Wilhelm 8-yard touchdown pass. With 51 ticks left until intermission, Wilhelm lobbed a pass to the back left corner for a 16-3 halftime margin.

Blue Springs South (6-2) opened the second half with another big score, this time from KJ Hawkins. The senior tailback took an inside handoff on 2nd-and-nine at the 35, bounced outside to the left, juked a Wildcat and sprinted down the left sideline for a 35-yard score and a 23-3 margin.

Blue Springs South will play at Lee's Summit West next Friday night, while Blue Springs entertains Liberty North.