With a rare Missouri-Kansas battle, both Staley and Mill Valley wanted to test themselves against some of the city’s best.

Staley outlasted the Jaguars, 28-21 in a back-and-forth game featuring many standouts. One of them was Staley’s Julian Ross, who carried the ball 27 times for 158 yards.

“Our whole O-line took care of it and did great things and put me in a great position,” Ross said. “I did what I could do, and they did the work.”

Ross also showed off his arm early, with a halfback pass for a touchdown to Roderick Criss. Still, Ross’ running ability was the deciding factor.

“He finished his runs awfully hard tonight,” Staley coach Fred Bouchard said. “At the end of each run he was delivering.”

Instead of replying with their potent rushing attack, Mill Valley, which suffered its first loss in five games, took to the air most of the night with Logan Koch working the ball down the field. He found Luke Krull, a 6-foot-7 target, for two touchdowns.

The combination of Krull and Christian Jegen catching passes kept Mill Valley within striking distance. Jegen ended up with a game-high 129 yards, one touchdown and a couple of diving catches near the sideline.

“He makes a lot of plays that other players have trouble doing,” Mill Valley coach Joel Applebee said.

Staley, though, was too much. Joe Eller, Staley’s fullback, scampered for two touchdowns as the offensive line controlled the the tempo.

Staley, 6-1, was in control, thanks to Eller and Ross. The backfield combined for more than 260 yards rushing.

“Whenever your guys are running well, you have to give those guys up front a lot of credit,” Bouchard said.

Staley hopes to build on the momentum.

“It brings a big boost, moving forward,” Ross said. “We know what we can do. We just have to show everyone else. Now we’re just ready to take it one week at a time.”