Mill Valley seniors stand tall, defeat Aquinas to reach third straight state-title game

Junior Mill Valley quarterback Hayden Jay threw for three touchdowns and a group of Jaguars seniors also played prominent roles in helping the two-time defending state champions beat St. Thomas Aquinas 35-19 in Friday night’s Kansas Class 5A sub-state game.

Mill Valley’s home victory secured the Jaguars’ return to the state championship game

It was the third straight year that Mill Valley (11-1) and Aquinas (7-5) played for a berth in the grand finale. That this win came in the final home game for the Jaguars’ seniors only added to their satisfaction.

“This rivalry is just huge,” senior Mill Valley receiver Aidan Jacobs said. “We’ve played them almost every year for the past nine years, and I think this rivalry just means everything for us.

“It’s just one of our game-goals that we have, just to beat Aquinas. And this year we accomplished that, which I’m really proud of.”

Mill Valley will face Maize on Saturday, Nov. 27 for the Kansas Class 5A championship at Pittsburg State University. Kickoff is 1 p.m. Maize defeated Kapaun Mount Carmel 22-21 Friday.

Friday night’s game started with six scoreless drives, seemingly setting up a finish closer to Mill Valley’s 34-31 decision in 2019 than its 42-7 victory last fall.

But things opened up a bit when Saints quarterback Maxxwell Ford fumbled in the backfield. The ball settled on the Saints’ 45-yard line, where Mill Valley defensive lineman Cody Moore picked it up and ran it back for a touchdown.

“That was huge. That just got us started,” Mill Valley coach Joel Applebee said. “That’s what we needed at that time, because we were stalling out.”

Forcing a Saints turnover on downs, Mill Valley took over with good field position. After a couple short gains, Jay rolled out and hit Jacobs down the middle for 23 yards, then lobbed a pass to senior receiver Jared Napoli for a 36-yard touchdown.

Napoli and Jacobs combined for 195 yards and three touchdowns for the Jags.

“We just have a rhythm — we just have a connection,” Jacobs said. “We’ve had this since the beginning of the year, and with this connection, we just played our games and it usually translates.”

The Saints didn’t go down without a fight. Ford and running backs Gianna Rizzi and Sean Carroll helped get it back to a one-point game, 14-13, early in the second half.

The teams traded blows for the rest of the third quarter, each scoring two touchdowns and combining for 301 yards. Ford threw for a touchdown, Sean Carroll scored twice and Rizzi ran for 92 yards on 12 carries.

But Mill Valley sophomore Max Roh’s 8-yard run in the final period completed the scoring for Mill Valley and set up next weekend’s championship final against Maize at Pitt State.

“We’re going to enjoy the week,” Applebee said. “It’s part of this week — never take it for granted — so we’re going to enjoy it, but at the same time, too, we’re going to keep improving.”

This story was originally published November 19, 2021 at 10:36 PM.