Preview: Highland Hawks vs. Chandler Wolves
Highland is 0-5 against Chandler since October of 2014 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on November 17th. After each having a week off, the pair will shake off the cobwebs and square off against one another at 7:00 p.m. on November 17th. Highland is coming into the contest hot, having won their last five games.
Highland owes their defense a big pat on the back after their performance on Friday. They walked away with a 12-0 win over Desert Ridge. Given Highland's advantage in MaxPreps' Arizona football rankings (they are ranked fifth, while Desert Ridge is ranked 32nd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Highland's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Kalen Fisher, who threw for 215 yards and two touchdowns on only 16 passes. Highland also got help from Greg Toler jr who showed off his sure hands for 94 receiving yards.
Meanwhile, Chandler stacked a seventh blowout onto their ever-increasing hoard on Friday. They took their match at home with ease, bagging a 49-13 win over Hamilton. With Chandler ahead 35-6 at the half, the matchup was all but over already.
Chandler's win was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was CaLil Valentine, who rushed for 147 yards and three touchdowns. Valentine was no stranger to the big play, turning on the jets for a run that went for 51 yards. Carter Ochoa did his part for the team as well, scoring a TD off of 76 receiving yards.
The team's defense also helped out by holding Hamilton to a paltry 249 yards. A big part of that defensive dominance came down to Chandler's ability to keep the quarterback under pressure: the team laid him out three times before it was all said and done. Leading the way was Jeremiah Young and his two sacks.
Highland is on a roll lately: they've won six of their last seven games, which provided a nice bump to their 8-2 record this season. As for Chandler, the win makes it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 8-2.
Highland couldn't quite finish off Chandler in their previous meeting back in September and fell 24-22. Can Highland avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
