Walton and Cherokee met for a duel on Friday where Walton came out on top. The Walton Raiders walked away with a 28-21 win over the Cherokee Warriors. That result was just more of the same for these two, as the Raiders also won the last time the pair played back in October of 2023.
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Walton to victory, but perhaps none more so than Kaeden Gilstrap, who rushed for 165 yards and a touchdown on only 11 carries. Gilstrap's longest rush was for an impressive 65 yards, which helps to explain his lofty yards per carry total. Another back making a difference was Lucas Farrington, who rushed for 145 yards and two touchdowns on only 11 carries.
Walton wouldn't let Cherokee keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force three fumbles. It was truly a group effort as Buie Crawford, Mj Burnett, and Ethan Stannard picked up one apiece. Stannard is also on a roll when it comes to total tackles, as he's now made five or more in the last 12 games he's played dating back to last season. Another thorn in Cherokee's side was Jake Thorner, who picked up a sack, made 16 total tackles (2.0 for loss), and defended a pass in addition to snagging an interception.
Walton was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 369 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've posted since the start of last season.
Despite the loss, Cherokee saw an underclassman step up: Brandon Hamilton rushed for 85 yards and two touchdowns on only six carries. Those 85 rushing yards set a new season-high mark for Hamilton. The team also got some help courtesy of Tanner Savasir, who threw for 252 yards and a touchdown.
Walton's victory was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 5-3. As for Cherokee, their defeat ended a four-game streak of wins at home dating back to last season and dropped them to 4-4.
Both teams are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Walton will welcome Etowah at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Walton is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 27.9 points per game this season. As for Cherokee, they will face off against North Cobb at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. North Cobb will roll in looking for their eighth straight win, something Cherokee surely won't give up without a fight.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
