The FZN varsity football team continued their winning ways last Friday as the Panthers defeated Parkway Central 48 – 7. The team now stands at 3 – 0 on the season. Against the Colts, the Panthers pounced early and often, scoring on each of their three possessions to race to a 21 – 0 lead. Tyler Oakes scored each of the Panthers first two touchdowns, the first on an electrifying 65 yard run and the second on a 25 yard pass from Panther QB Cairo Payne. Oakes carried the ball just twice on Friday, scoring on each carry, the aforementioned 65 yard run and a 16-yard romp in the 3rd quarter. Standout Izaiah Hartrup continued his fine season scoring on a 25 yard pass from Payne and a 9-yard touchdown run. For the night, Hartrup carried the ball 4 times for 49 yards and caught 3 balls for 42 yards. Cairo Payne had a near perfect night passing the ball, going 8 of 9 for 113 yards and two touchdowns. Payne also ran for 48 yards on 4 carries. Cameron Stoehner added a touchdown run in the 4th quarter to round-out the Panther scoring.
The Panther defense secured their most dominate performance of the young season, as they limited the Colts to just 83 yards of total offense on the night. Incredibly, the Panthers recorded eight sacks on the night! Parker Monnig stood-out with 4 sacks to go along with a fumble recovery for a touchdown. Chris Futrell recorded 8 tackles and Collin Pierce, who also recorded a sack, had 9 tackles to lead all Panther defenders. Jeremiah Dickerson aided the defensive effort with his first interception of the season.
This Friday the Panthers open their conference (GAC Central) season as they travel to Liberty (Wentzville) to play the Eagles. The Eagles currently stand at 2 – 1 on the season. Kick-off is scheduled for 7:00 pm.