Football Preview: Hamilton Southeastern Royals vs. Zionsville Eagles
Hamilton Southeastern is 9-1 against Zionsville since September of 2014, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Friday. The Hamilton Southeastern Royals will host the Zionsville Eagles at 7:00 p.m.
Hamilton Southeastern is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Indiana's top teams: Westfield, who was ranked second in their home state at the time (Hamilton Southeastern was ranked ninth). Hamilton Southeastern took a 21-14 hit to the loss column at the hands of Westfield on Friday. The loss was just more heartbreak for the Royals, who fell 30-28 when the teams last met back in September of 2023.
Despite the defeat, Hamilton Southeastern had strong showings from Kendrick Pennybaker, who picked up 110 receiving yards and a touchdown, and Chandler Weston, who threw for 128 yards and a touchdown. Pennybaker showed off some serious burst, cutting upfield on a catch for 52 yards.
Meanwhile, Zionsville won against Franklin Central two weeks ago with 35 points and they decided to stick to that point total again on Friday. Zionsville came out on top against Noblesville by a score of 35-28. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Eagles.
Sam Manna was his usual excellent self, rushing for 140 yards and two touchdowns. With that strong performance, he is now averaging an impressive 107.5 rushing yards per game. Nolan Teising got in on the action too, returning a kick for a touchdown.
Zionsville's defense was in the mix too, especially the secondary: they snagged two passes before it was all said and done. The picks came courtesy of Brady Jung and Max Phenicie. Zionsville got some further help from Hank Phenicie: he forced a fumble and made 16 total tackles.
Hamilton Southeastern's loss dropped their record down to 3-2. As for Zionsville, they pushed their record up to 3-2 with the victory, which was their third straight at home.
Hamilton Southeastern was able to grind out a solid win over Zionsville in their previous matchup back in September of 2023, winning 34-24. Will Hamilton Southeastern repeat their success, or does Zionsville have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
