Helias finishes the season second in Class 5

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Helias football team was eyeing its first state championship since 2020, on Saturday afternoon. However, the undefeated Platte County Pirates brought too much firepower to Faurot Field in the Class 5 state title game, as the Crusaders fell 49-14.

Head coach Chris Hentges and company end the season as the second place team in all of Class 5, with a 12-2 overall mark on the 2024 season.

Platte County came out of the gates strong in the team's state championship win. The Pirates shut out Helias in the first half, while scoring 28, unanswered points.

After halftime, the Pirates put up another score to make it a 35-0 ball game, however, the mark of a Hentges' team is to never stop fighting. Quarterback Austin Weaver led his team on an 11-play, 87-yard drive for the first Crusader touchdown of the game, as he hit Sam Lopez with a 33-yard pass to get into the end zone.

Helias would score one more time in the third quarter, courtesy of a 63-yard touchdown run from Crusader standout CJ Howell, but it was not enough.

Pirate quarterback Rocco Marriott finished off a stellar night with one more touchdown to drive the nail further in in the fourth quarter, hitting Braiden Stevens for his second touchdown of the day to put Platte County ahead 49-14.

Marriott finished the night with 279 yards and two touchdowns through the air, while Weaver threw for 105 yards and one touchdown.