Two teams were on the hunt for playoff glory, but only The West Lafayette Red Devils walked away with it. In a tight match that could have gone either way, they made off with a 42-41 win over Hanover Central. 42 seems to be a good number for West Lafayette as the team scooped up a victory with the same number of points in their previous game.
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead West Lafayette to victory, but perhaps none more so than Dawson Martin, who rushed for 135 yards and three touchdowns, and also picked up 105 receiving yards. The team also got some help courtesy of Carson Kitchel, who threw for 229 yards and two touchdowns.
Hanover Central's loss on Friday came despite strong showings from Caiden Verrett and Matt Koontz. Verrett gained 229 total yards and three touchdowns, while Koontz rushed for 98 yards and two touchdowns on only ten carries. Verrett's longest rush was for an incredible 90 yards.
The win (which was West Lafayette's third in a row) raised their record to 9-3. Even more impressive is the teams they beat to make that streak: Hanover Central, Rensselaer Central, and River Forest. As for Hanover Central, their defeat ended a nine-game streak of away wins dating back to last season and brought them to 11-1.
West Lafayette will be playing at home against Knox at 8:00 p.m. on Friday. Knox is looking to tack on another W to their six-game streak on the road. Hanover Central does not have any more games scheduled as of now.
