North Buncombe hasn't had much luck against Asheville recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The North Buncombe Black Hawks will venture away from home to take on the Asheville Cougars at 7:00 p.m.
North Buncombe is headed into the matchup out to prove that what happened against A.C. Reynolds back in September (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. North Buncombe had to suffer through a 56-6 loss at the hands of A.C. Reynolds. The Black Hawks were in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 35-0.
Despite the loss, North Buncombe saw an underclassman step up: Kyngston Denson rushed for 119 yards and a touchdown. Denson's rushing production has been exceptional recently as that marked his fifth straight game with at least 119 rushing yards dating back to last season.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Asheville). They blew past McDowell, posting a 56-14 victory on the road. Perhaps unsurprisingly given the team's high-flying offense, the game also marked the team's biggest win of the season.
Kyheem Plummer continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 165 yards and a touchdown on only eight carries. He got the majority of those rushing yards when he took off on a run that went for an incredible 86 yards. Kayden Ray was in the mix too, providing Asheville with two touchdowns.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Asheville was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 312 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 154 rushing yards in four consecutive matches.
Asheville wouldn't let McDowell keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force two fumbles. Asheville can thank MaKyan Barton and Addison Cain for forcing both of them. Another thorn in McDowell's side was Quavo Hayes, who made seven total tackles (1.0 for loss) and defended three passes in addition to snagging an interception.
This is the second loss in a row for North Buncombe and nudges their season record down to 2-3. As for Asheville, their record now sits at 3-1.
Friday's contest might be decided in the on the ground. North Buncombe has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 289.5 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Asheville struggles in that department as they've been averaging 274.5. It's looking like Friday's game might have some serious battles in the trenches.
North Buncombe was taken down by Asheville 59-12 in their previous matchup back in October of 2023. Can North Buncombe avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
