The Hibriten Panthers will challenge the Watauga Pioneers at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: both posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.
Last Friday, Hibriten came up short against Ashe County and fell 46-38.
Hibriten might have lost, but man, Avin Crawford was a machine: he rushed for 102 yards and two touchdowns on only 13 carries. Crawford has become a key player for Hibriten: the team is 2-1 when he posts at least two rushing touchdowns, but 0-3 otherwise. Speaking of playmakers, who could forget Landon Baker, who went all the way with a kickoff return for a touchdown.
Even though they lost, Hibriten was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 263 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 178 rushing yards in five consecutive matches.
Meanwhile, Watauga put another one in the bag on Friday to keep their perfect season alive. They really took it to Alexander Central for the full four quarters, racking up a 49-21 victory on the road. Considering the Pioneers have won four games by more than 25 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Watauga didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Maddox Greene and Dillon Zaragoza. The dominant performance also gave Greene a new career-high in rushing yards.
Hibriten has been struggling recently as they've lost three of their last four contests, which put a noticeable dent in their 2-4 record this season. As for Watauga, they pushed their record up to 6-0 with the win, which was their eighth straight on the road dating back to last season.
Friday's matchup might be decided in the on the ground. Hibriten has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 189 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Watauga struggles in that department as they've been averaging 284.5. It's looking like Friday's match might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Hibriten might still be hurting after the 41-21 defeat they got from Watauga in their previous matchup back in October of 2023. That game was all but decided by halftime, at which point Hibriten was down 27-7.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
