The Chadron Cardinals will challenge the Ashland-Greenwood Bluejays at 3:00 p.m. on Friday.
Chadron is headed into Friday's game hungry for a win as their strong season has now been derailed by two straight defeats. They came up short against Sidney on Friday, falling 38-14. The Cardinals were down 32-7 at the end of the third quarter, which was just too much to recover from.
Trae Owsley put forth a good effort for the losing side as he picked up 66 receiving yards and a pair of TDs.
Meanwhile, Ashland-Greenwood had already won six in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 37.5 points) and they went ahead and made it seven on Friday. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat the Cougars 46-14. With the Bluejays ahead 33-7 at the half, the matchup was all but over already.
Chadron better keep an eye on Derek Tonjes. He was instrumental in Ashland-Greenwood's win, throwing for 331 yards and four touchdowns while completing 76.9% of his passes. Tonjes is on a roll when it comes to passing touchdowns, as he's now passed for three or more in each of the last six games he's played. Another player making a difference was Cael Smith, who rushed for 151 yards while picking up 8.4 yards per carry.
Ashland-Greenwood's record now sits at 8-1. As for Chadron, their loss was their first in the district, dropping their district record down to 3-1 and their overall record down to 6-3.
Friday's contest might be decided on the ground. Chadron has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 195.9 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Ashland-Greenwood struggles in that department as they've been averaging 202.9 rushing yards. There's a good chance Friday's game turns into a tough fight on the ground.
Chadron was dealt a bruising 53-14 defeat at the hands of Ashland-Greenwood when the teams last played back in October of 2023. That matchup was all but decided by halftime, at which point the Cardinals were down 39-0.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
