Two dominant signal callers in Joseph Janney and Enoch Niblett are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Henley Hornets will be playing at home against the Marshfield Pirates at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Marshfield will be up against a hot Henley team: the squad just extended their winning streak to three. The Hornets blew past Ashland 42-13 on Friday. With the Hornets ahead 27-7 at the half, the game was all but over already.
Jeremiah Brunick had another great game (as he tends to do), rushing for 188 yards and three touchdowns on only 14 carries. His longest rush was for an impressive 59 yards, which helps to explain his lofty yards per carry total. Another rusher making a difference was Trapper Cundall, who rushed for 80 yards and one score on only nine carries.
They were just one part of a punishing run game: Henley was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 314 rushing yards. They are a perfect 3-0 when they've run for more than 200 yards.
Meanwhile, Marshfield blew past Hidden Valley, posting a 37-8 victory. The 37-point effort marked the Pirates' lowest-scoring contest of the season, but in the end it didn't matter.
One reason for the win was Marshfield's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for five sacks. Kaleb Fox refused to say out of the backfield, picking up 1.5 sacks all by himself. Marshfield got some further help from Dakota Brophy: he picked up a sack, forced one fumble, and made seven total tackles (1.5 for loss).
Henley's win bumped their record up to 4-2. As for Marshfield, their victory bumped their record up to 7-0.
Friday's matchup might be decided on the ground. Henley has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 234.7 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Marshfield struggles in that department as they've been averaging 235 rushing yards. There's a good chance Friday's game turns into a tough fight on the ground.
Everything came up roses for Henley against Marshfield when the teams last played back in October of 2024, as the team secured a 49-21 win. Will the Hornets repeat their success, or do the Pirates have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
