Football Preview: Manchester Township Hawks vs. West Deptford Eagles
Manchester Township has been on the road for three straight, but on Friday they'll finally head home. It'll be Battle of the Birds when Hawks faces off against the West Deptford Eagles at 6:00 p.m. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
If Manchester Township beats West Deptford with 42 points on Friday, it's going to be the squad's new lucky number: they've won their past two matchups with that exact score. Manchester Township simply couldn't be stopped on Friday as they easily beat Monmouth Regional 42-12. The Hawks' offense checked out after the first half but had enough points banked to take the game anyway.
Aidan Lunn continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, throwing for 117 yards and two touchdowns, while also rushing for 86 yards.incredibly, Lunn got all that yardage with just one huge run Another player making a difference was Malik Pharmes, who rushed for 48 yards and two touchdowns.
Manchester Township didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Marquis Goins Jr and Pharmes.
Meanwhile, after only 12 points in their last match, West Deptford made sure to put some points up on the board against Overbrook on Friday. West Deptford blew past Overbrook 35-12. With the Eagles ahead 29-6 at the half, the game was all but over already.
West Deptford's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Michael Joseph, who picked up 59 receiving yards and two touchdowns. Joseph is becoming a predictor of West Deptford's success: when he posts at least two receiving touchdowns the team is 3-1 (and 2-3 when he doesn't). The team also got some help courtesy of Zamir Davis, who rushed for 95 yards on only seven carries.
West Deptford was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 380 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 160 rushing yards in nine consecutive contests.
Manchester Township's victory was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 7-2. As for West Deptford, they now have a winning record of 5-4.
Friday's matchup might be decided in the on the ground. Manchester Township has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 159.2 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like West Deptford struggles in that department as they've been averaging 273.2. It's looking like Friday's match might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Manchester Township didn't have too much breathing room in their game against West Deptford in their previous meeting back in August, but they still walked away with a 26-21 win. Does Manchester Township have another victory up their sleeve, or will West Deptford turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
