Football Preview: Asheville Cougars vs. Lake Norman Wildcats
The Asheville Cougars are headed away from home for the first time to face off against the Lake Norman Wildcats at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Lake Norman took a loss in their last contest and will be looking to turn the tables on Asheville, who comes in off a win.
Asheville is headed out to face Lake Norman after opening their season at home and giving their fans just what they were looking for. Asheville simply couldn't be stopped last Friday as they easily beat Tuscola 42-6 at home. Given the Cougars' advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina football rankings (they are ranked 94th, while the Mountaineers are ranked 213th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Josh Ellis had an outrageously good game as he rushed for 195 yards and three touchdowns on only nine carries, and also caught a touchdown. His longest rush was for an incredible 78 yards. Meek Slydell was another key player, throwing for 68 yards and two touchdowns.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Asheville was moving up and down the field and finished the game with 470 total yards. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Tuscola only gained 202.
Asheville wouldn't let Tuscola keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force two fumbles. Asheville can thank Kareem Williams and Hayes Hillier for forcing both of them. Hillier's also deserves a shoutout for his performance on D, picking up a sack, forcing a fumble, and making seven total tackles (1.0 for loss).
Meanwhile, Lake Norman came up short against Statesville on Monday and fell 28-21.
Haines Robitzer put forth a good effort for the losing side as he threw for 256 yards and a touchdown, and also punched in a rushing score. Lake Norman also got help from Noah Jacobsen, who showed off his sure hands for 90 receiving yards.
Asheville was dealt a bruising 34-7 defeat at the hands of Lake Norman in their previous meeting back in September of 2023. Can Asheville avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
