The Hutchinson Salthawks will square off against the Maize South Mavericks at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Maize South took a loss in their last contest and will be looking to turn the tables on Hutchinson, who comes in off a win.
While Hutchinson's victory against Newton wasn't quite the blowout it was the last time the pair played, they still came out on top. The Salthawks pulled ahead with a 15-14 photo finish over the Railroaders on Friday. The win almost wasn't to be: the Salthawks were down 14-0 in the second quarter.
Hutchinson got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was Robert Hunter out in front who rushed for 73 yards and one score, and also threw for 93 yards and one TD. Another back making a difference was Karmelo Green, who rushed for 103 yards on only 11 carries.
Meanwhile, Maize South played a tough game on Friday in which they were outscored in every quarter. They had to suffer through a 70-28 loss at the hands of Derby. The Mavericks have struggled against the Panthers recently, as the game was their sixth consecutive lost matchup.
Hutchinson will have to keep a close watch on Reign Illian and Braxton Liby, a pair of players who had a big impact on Maize South's prior game. Illian threw for 474 yards and four touchdowns, while Liby picked up 154 receiving yards and three TDs. Maize South is 3-1 when Illian posts 250 or more passing yards, but 1-2 otherwise. Pauly Reece was another key pass catcher, picking up 112 receiving yards and one score.
Maize South's defeat dropped their record down to 4-3. As for Hutchinson, they have been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four matchups. That's provided a nice bump to their 5-2 record this season.
Everything went Hutchinson's way against Maize South when the teams last played back in October of 2024, as Hutchinson made off with a 42-20 win. Will the Salthawks repeat their success, or do the Mavericks have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
