The Hickory Red Tornadoes will square off against the Bandys Trojans at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Hickory knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 31 points or more in their past eight contests -- so hopefully Bandys likes a good challenge.
Hickory is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of North Carolina's top teams: East Lincoln, who was ranked 20th at the time (Hickory was ranked 17th). The Red Tornadoes sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 31-28 win over the Mustangs last Friday. The Red Tornadoes haven't had any issues with the Mustangs recently, as the game was their third consecutive victory against them.
Ronan Nieland
| 10/17/25 @ East Lincoln | 214 |
| 09/12/25 @ Newton-Conover | 101 |
| 10/10/25 @ West Iredell | 88 |
| 08/29/25 vs Alexander Central | 59 |
| 09/19/25 vs Foard | 41 |
Hickory's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Ronan Nieland, who picked up 214 receiving yards and four scores. Those 214 receiving yards gave Nieland a new career-high. Maddox McRee was another key signal caller, throwing for 342 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 15.5 yards per attempt.
Meanwhile, Bandys gave up the first points on Friday, but they didn't let that get them down. They managed a 36-32 win over West Iredell.
Bandys now has a winning record of 5-4. As for Hickory, their victory bumped their record up to 8-1.
Hickory won a game that couldn't have been any closer when the teams last played back in September of 2018, slipping by Bandys 28-27. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was the Trojans' Lake Hojnacki, who rushed for 139 yards and a pair of TDs on only 11 carries. Now that he won't be playing on Friday, will it be easier for the Red Tornadoes to walk away with another win? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
