Football Preview: Statesville Greyhounds vs. Lake Norman Wildcats
Statesville is preparing for their first conference matchup of the season on Friday. After each having a week off, they and the Lake Norman Wildcats will shake off the cobwebs and hit the field against one another at 7:00 p.m. Statesville is currently enjoying a perfect season and no doubt wants to keep things rolling.
If Lake Norman heads into halftime all tied up, they better play a good second half: that's when Statesville took over last week. The Greyhounds simply couldn't be stopped last Friday as they easily beat West Stokes 35-7. Considering the Greyhounds have won three games by more than 19 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Statesville's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Jaikoda Harrington led the charge by rushing for 87 yards and two scores on only seven carries, while also throwing for 54 yards and one touchdown. Blake Terry was another key back, rushing for 77 yards and one TD on only seven carries.
Special teams also deserves some recognition, posting 11 points in total. The biggest highlight from special teams (and perhaps the team as a whole) came courtesy of Chance Taylor, who ran a kickoff back for a touchdown.
Meanwhile, Lake Norman didn't have quite enough to beat Reagan last Friday and fell 24-21. The Wildcats have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Despite the loss, Lake Norman saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Kaden Craft threw for 197 yards and a pair of touchdowns while completing 76% of his passes, and also punched in one score on the ground. Allen Jones handled things on the ground, rushing for 88 yards.
Statesville's win bumped their record up to 5-0. As for Lake Norman, their defeat dropped their record down to 3-2.
Statesville beat Lake Norman 28-21 when the teams last played back in August of 2024. Do the Greyhounds have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Wildcats turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
