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McDavid caught a 42-yard touchdown pass and intercepted a pass, helping the Parkway North Vikings score a hard-fought 19-14 victory over the Parkway West Longhorns on Friday night in a Suburban Conference Green Pool contest.

Junior quarterback Kenyon Bolden threw two touchdown passes for the Vikings.

“When the ball is in the air, Jordan McDavid will come down with it,� McDavid said. “I’m like, 'Gimme it.' I did what I needed to do. This was a big win for us.�

Vikings coach Karl Odenwald is a big fan of McDavid’s athletic ability.

“You know, Jordan McDavid is as good as anybody we’ve seen on the field this year,� Odenwald said. “He breaks up plays on the defensive end of things. He’s a great deep threat on the offense. We can use him in the run game.

“He’s a heck of a player having a heck of a season.�

Records

Parkway West (6-1 overall, 3-1 league) fell from the ranks of the unbeaten. West last began a season at 6-0 in 2008.

“This game had two top 10 football teams going at it,� Longhorns coach Jeff Duncan said. “We battled it. Parkway North is a great football team, and we knew we would have to give our best effort to win. I’m super proud of my kids’ effort. We just came up a little bit short.�

Parkway North improved to 6-1 overall with its sixth consecutive victory and 4-0 in the league.

The last time the Vikings went 6-1 to start a season came in 2010. Parkway North was 5-1 and defeated the Longhorns that year to move to 6-1.

“We beat a really good football team tonight,� Odenwald said. “It’s great to get a hard-fought win against a great football team.�

Quick strike

The Vikings took the opening kickoff and needed four plays to reach the end zone.

Bolden hit McDavid on a slant pattern for a 42-yard touchdown pass. The extra point by senior Liam Nord gave the Vikings a 7-0 lead with 9:58 showing.

“We started out hot,� Odenwald said. “Scoring on that first drive was big. Bolden has a strong arm. He’s making some big time throws for us.�

Fumble into field goal

Parkway West senior receiver Leyton Usry fumbled after making a nice catch on the Longhorns’ second play of the game.

Junior Tyree McKinney recovered the ball at the Parkway West 43.

The Vikings drove to the 5 but settled for a 26-yard field goal by Nord for a 10-0 lead with 5:28 left in the first quarter.

West answers

The Longhorns got back in the game by marching 73 yards in seven plays with a penalty for a touchdown.

“We got in a hole there down 10-0, but we came right back and scored,� Duncan said. “That showed me something. I wasn’t surprised.�

Usry caught a 28-yard pass from senior quarterback Brett Ottensmeyer for the touchdown. The extra point by junior Connor McClure cut the Vikings' lead to 10-7 with 3:21 remaining in the first quarter.

Ball hawk

Parkway West senior Colin Piel intercepted two passes.

His first one came with 2:06 left in the first quarter.

He snared his second pick with 23 seconds left in the first half as the Vikings were driving into Longhorns territory.

“He’s a young man that we talk about all the time,� Duncan said about Piel. “We trust he’s always in the right position which is why he got the two interceptions.�

Missed field goal

After a punt, the Longhorns took control at their own 22.

Parkway West drove to Vikings 11 before stalling.

A 29-yard field goal attempt by McClure was blocked with 1:18 remaining in the first half.

“We missed a good chance to tie it there,� Duncan said. “But there was a lot of football left to be played.�

If at first you don't succeed

Vikings junior Alex Harvey scored on a 28-yard end around, but it was called back because of a holding penalty.

Harvey was not to be denied.

Two plays later, he slipped behind the Longhorns coverage and caught a bullet from Bolden at the 17 and raced to the end zone untouched for a score with 9:47 left in third quarter. The extra point attempt was blocked, giving the Vikings a 16-7 lead.

Another field goal

The Vikings went for it on fourth down from their own 38 and failed to convert.

The Longhorns advanced to the North 13 and lost the ball on downs after an incomplete pass.

A 53-yard run off tackle by senior Antoine Gunn moved the Vikings to the Parkway West 15. A diving shoestring tackle by Piel saved a touchdown.

“I wish I could have gotten in there,� Gunn said. “I tripped there a little bit at the end. I just try to execute when my number gets called.�

Duncan praised Piel’s effort to make the tackle.

“He dove and tackled him to save the touchdown,� Duncan said. “He gave us a chance to win the football game. That’s the type of kids that we have.�

However, Parkway North had to settle for Nord’s second field goal, this one from 28 yards with 8 seconds showing in the third quarter.

The Vikings carried a 19-7 advantage into the fourth quarter.

Late score

Ottensmeyer threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to Longhorns sophomore Max Jones with 5:17 to play, cutting the Vikings lead to 19-14.

Last chance drive

The Vikings attempted a 42-yard field goal with 2:37 to play, but Nord’s kick was blocked.

“He made one from 48 yards in practice, so we were confident,� Odenwald said. “We have a lot of confidence in him. He’s a great tool to have in your bag.�

The Longhorns took over at their own 25. However, the Vikings stood firm and forced Parkway West to lose the ball on downs.

“When you play a great football team, you want to give yourself a chance to win in the fourth quarter,� Duncan said. “We got the blocked field goal. We had the chance to win at the end, and we just came up short.�

The Vikings were ready for that last drive, McDavid said.

“We were excited there,� McDavid said. “We had faith in ourselves. We know we have a good defense and we showed it.�

Odenwald agreed.

“Our defense has been the strength of our team all year,� Odenwald said. “They’ve really stepped up and answered the bell every time we needed them to. We felt confident our defense would rise to the challenge there.�

Coin toss

Parkway West won the toss and elected to defer its choice until the second half.

Game day captains

Parkway West: Ottensmeyer, senior Max Hurley, senior Ja’Mont Brooks.

Parkway North: McDavid, senior Benton Mohrmann, senior Tyler Baur.

Series history

With the win, the Vikings lead the rivalry 18-3 since 2004 including the last four in a row.

Up next

Parkway North: 7 p.m. Friday at Fox.

Parkway West: 7 p.m. Friday at Pattonville.