After 1st round upset, Platte County’s up-and-down season ends with loss in district semis

Considering the bracket, Platte County earned the desired rematch but just couldn’t spring an upset to extend the season.

No. 1-seeded East (Kansas City) were dominant in a 5-1 victory over the Pirates in the first of Monday’s two Class 3 District 8 semifinals at Pirate Stadium. The Bears won both matchups between the two teams, opening the season for each with a 2-0 shutout before scoring the first five goals of the rematch that sent them to Wednesday’s final where the pursuit of defending last year’s state title ended with a loss to Van Horn.

Platte County finished the season with a 10-14 record but advanced out of the first round with a dramatic win in a penalty kick shootout Saturday against rival and fourth-seeded Smithville.

“We told them anything past last week was going to be earned,” Platte County coach Ashlyn Brantley said. “Any game we go through will be tough. Smithville we had to work to the very end to get here, and they did. These guys, they came out strong (against East). I think in the second half they came out even better than they did in the first and were able to put a little more pressure on them and not just sit back.

“You could tell they wanted it, but East was just the better team today.”

East (18-4-1) put up 15 shots on goal and started the pressure almost immediately after kickoff. Bears senior forward Esube Byoke completed a hat trick early in the second half, and junior midfielder Juan Vergara Bustamante added two more goals to put the Bears up 5-0 in the 76th minute.

Just more than a minute later, Platte County senior defender Bresner Garcia scored the first and ultimately only goal of his career in spectacular fashion. He collected a loose ball and took a couple of touches before firing a shot from 38 yards out into the top right corner of the night, leaving East freshman reserve goalkeeper Amimu Shabani no chance to make a save after he came on as a late substitute with the result essentially decided.

“Oh yeah. We’ve gotta give all props to Bres on that goal — upper 90 from however far out,” Brantley said. “That was an awesome shot, and yeah, not how we want our season to end, but he just proved that even throughout the season when we’ve been struggling with some consistency or been in these tough games or games where we’ve been behind, they don’t quit. They keep playing until the end and put forth the effort we’re asking them to give to us.”

Platte County senior goalkeeper Paul Havemeier made 10 saves and cut out numerous other crosses and long balls in an impressive showing.

East took five shots mostly from distance in the first 5 minutes of regulation with Havemeier diving to his right to make a punch away the last in the barrage to keep the match scoreless. However, less than a minute later, Byoke took a shot to the low right corner that sent by his sprawl and provided a 1-0 lead in the sixth minute.

In the 18th minute, Byoke rifled a left-footed shot from long range into the upper left corner for a 2-0 lead that ended up holding until the second half thanks to Havemeier’s intervention. He made spot starts as an undersized sophomore in place of injured Jordy Hedrick and subbed into a season-ending district semifinal loss to Pembroke Hill after Hedrick drew a second-half red card.

The experience served Havemeier well in two full seasons as the No. 1 goalkeeper for Platte County.

“He earned his nickname Paul the Wall. He’s taken those shots all game and all season, and he stepped up just like we knew he would,” Brantley said. “We have all the confidence in him being in our goal, and we’re going to miss him in there.”

Early in the second half, Platte County created the best opportunity to that point in the 46th minute when sophomore midfielder Ryan Waldman attempted to latch onto a long aerial pass with a one-time shot from the edge of the 18-yard box and appeared to potentially draw a foul. However, the referee dismissed the Pirates’ protests and concluded he made contact with the ball at the same time as an East defender and awarded the Bears a goal kick.

East then added to the lead in the 56th minute when a free kick from junior Donat Ekengya found Byoke unmarked at the back post for a header. Bustamante also received an open shot in the middle of the box to put the Bears up 4-0 in the 63rd minute, and he took a speculative shot in the 76th minute with a wet ball due to intermittent spells of rain skidding past Havemeier in a frustrating scenario after such a solid performance.

Platte County dropped to 0-3 against East over the past two seasons, having also lost to the Bears in last year’s Class 3 District 8 title game.

Having reached the state title game each of the past two seasons, East plays fast-paced, often using swift counters to create easy goal-scoring opportunities. Platte County forced the Bears mostly into shots from outside the box but, but they were mostly on target and consistently tested Havemeier.

“Yeah, a little different, but I’d like to say we were putting a little more pressure on them so they couldn’t play those long balls and take us on closer in our box,” Brantley said. “But they had perfect touches all over the field and placement of players will always be there, but they’re a whole team we have to adjust to each time we play them.”

Platte County’s playoff drought now dates to 2019 when the Pirates reached the Class 3 state title game in the program’s best-ever season. They have reached the district championship game just once since then — last year’s 5-0 loss to East.

However, Platte County won 20, 16 and 15 games prior to this season, but only returned two starters this year: Havemeier and junior midfielder Cameron Habel, who developed into this year’s most consistent goalscorer after two years as more of a peripheral contributor behind strong senior classes. The Pirates struggled to field a consistent lineup for various reasons this year, but senior central defender Aidan Murray anchored the back line in front of Havemeier, mostly alongside junior Wally Baldwin and Garcia — a starter more of the time on a wing.

In addition, Platte County senior Quinn Traas contributed to a defensive rotation that also included freshman Kai James-Gallimore, while senior Hasan Alturkmani eventually worked into a starting role, especially in wake of a foot injury to fellow senior forward/winger Tug Thornton that cost him he majority of the middle of the season before returning for the stretch run.

The six seniors helped Platte County navigate ups and downs, never losing or winning more than three in a row before encountering a district that featured four teams with 15 or more wins. The field also included Kearney (7-10), which ended up with the No. 6 seed — a spot behind Platte County despite winning the only matchup between the two teams this season.

“We’re a young team, and there’s a lot of new players playing together this year and us figuring out how we’re going to work together,” Brantley said. Our seniors, gosh, we’re going to miss them on and off the field, but I do think they stepped up and took those leadership roles and helped guide these players. Hopefully, what I told them is they’ve got some shoes to fill. We’re going to have to step up.”

Platte County 1, Smithville 1 (7-6 PKs)

The Pirates lost a one-goal lead halfway through the second half but then survived eight rounds of penalty kicks in the shootout Saturday afternoon at Smithville High School to avenge a previous loss.

Entering the postseason off of shutout losses in Suburban Conference White Division play to Fort Osage (1-0) and Grain Valley (2-0), Platte County kept the season alive with perhaps the best win of the season. The Pirates took a 1-0 lead in the 19th minute on an own goal after a Smithville player deflected a corner kick from sophomore midfielder Waldman into his own net.

On the play, Platte County junior midfielder Ian Mathews attempted a difficult mid-air back heel that appeared to temporarily block the vision of Smithville’s defenders.

However, Smithville (15-7) leveled midway through the second half while holding an advantage in shots on goal of 10-5. Platte County settled in, and the score remained tied at 1-1 at the end of regulation and after each 15-minute half of potentially sudden death overtime. That set up the shootout scenario.

Platte County held a 2-1 lead after the first two rounds after Habel and junior midfielder Abe Norman both converted from the spot, and Smithville missed the second. However, the Warriors leveled after three rounds.

From there, Platte County made the next five through sophomore forward Camden Noller, Alturkmani, Thornton, freshman midfielder Josiah O’Rourke and finally Murray’s clincher. Havemeier finished with nine saves before recording the win in the shootout.