Week 2 Preview: York & Lancaster Counties

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This weekend kicks off major Power 5 college football, but Friday night will provide some intriguing matchups on the high school gridiron involving York and Lancaster County teams that will give them a measuring stick of where they are so far as we've got some Charlotte area schools going up against local teams.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Some teams are rolling as non-region play heats up and other teams could use a win to build their confidence. Here's what you need to know:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Nation Ford (0-2) at No. 8 4A Catawba Ridge (2-0)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='91150' first='Carson' last='Black'] </strong>has the arm to get it to his receivers, but his receivers will need to catch the football, if they're going to have any chance against an active Catawba Ridge defense of <strong>Brody Teismale </strong>and <strong>Ira Mister.</strong> Expect the Falcons to lean heavily on <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='154863' first='Jeremiah' last='Hailstock'] </strong>and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1142874' first='Ben' last='Wakefield'] </strong>at tight end in the pass game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For Catawba Ridge, they cracked this week's statewide media Top 10 and you can expect them to run the ball heavily with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='262619' first='Tyler' last='Jones']. </strong>It will be interesting to see if <strong>Tyler Fikis </strong>will take the majority of the snaps or if <strong>Nate Thomas will have</strong> a chance to see some action as the game progresses, like we saw in the season opener against Fort Mill.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Mallard Creek (1-1) at No. 1 4A South Pointe (2-0)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>South Pointe has won so far in 2022 with an aggressive defense, led by <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='91357' first='DJ' last='Barksdale II'] </strong>and <strong>A.J. Miller, </strong>who has been wreaking havoc for opposing offenses. For the Stallions' offense, everything starts with quarterback <strong>Malachi Marshall, </strong><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2022/08/week-one-game-balls-york-county-musings-from-around-the-state/">who threw for 150+ yards</a> in only two halves of football. Can Marshall continue to gel with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='202769' first='Khyre' last='Rawlinson'] </strong>and <strong>Demari Kendrick </strong>this week?</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mallard Creek has been a power since <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2022/07/team-preview-mallard-creek-mavericks/">the second year of the school's existence</a> and Friday should be a good test for them. The timing and accuracy of quarterback <strong>Justin Wheeler </strong>will be key on Friday evening. <strong>Jaidan Lee</strong> and <strong>Tshokote Shosola </strong>are two guys you'll want to keep your eye on as speedsters on the outside. Linebacker <strong>Michael Short </strong>is an ECU commit who will provide a challenge for the Stallion offense.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Clover (0-1) at No. 3 5A Hillcrest (1-0)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>While Clover fell in last week's opener against Northwestern, it built their confidence to let them know they can compete in a challenging non-region schedule, and it continues on the road with a tough trip down I-85 to the Upstate. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='202766' first='Joe' last='Boyd'] </strong>is the straw that stirs the drink for the Blue Eagles, along with <strong>Dion Brown </strong>at receiver. Keep an eye on <strong>Cooper Zoehner </strong>on the defensive line.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='262574' first='Bennett' last='Judy'] </strong>threw for a <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2022/08/what-we-saw-judy-mcfadden-lead-hillcrest-past-greer/">school record 456 yards in a rout over Greer last Friday night</a>. His counterpart, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='267431' first='Avery' last='McFadden'] </strong>was essentially a cheat code with 241 yards and 3 touchdowns. That'll be tough to defend. <strong>Richard Hollingsworth </strong>will be a guy to watch on the defensive line.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>No. 10 4A Indian Land (2-0) at Palisades (Charlotte, NC) (1-1)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We asked Indian Land coach Adam Hastings after <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2022/08/what-we-saw-stinsons-three-tds-lead-indian-land-past-timberland/">last week's game against Timberland</a> about <strong>Myles Stinson </strong>and his impact on both sides of the ball and you can expect that to continue on Friday. <strong>Jaxen Schiedt </strong>was a guy that we noticed is an effective game manager and won't put his team in danger.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Palisades is a newer school in the Charlotte area that is trying to continue to grow in the young season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Rock Hill (0-2) at Lancaster (1-1)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Things have gotten off to a rough start for the Bearcats as they were shut out in a shortened game against South Pointe due to the wet bulb humidity rule. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='139293' first='Matthew' last='Wilson'] </strong>showed his ability to make plays on the run in the read option game. The question is who will step up around him at receiver? And can&nbsp; they make enough plays on defense?</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Lancaster took a tough loss to Irmo last week where penalties proved costly. Whichever team can cut down on the mistakes will likely come out as the winner.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>York (1-0) at Union County (1-0)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Cougars made quick work of Nation Ford to kick off the 2022 season thanks to a <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2022/08/week-one-game-balls-york-county-musings-from-around-the-state/">healthy dose of the run game.</a> We expect <strong>Javarus Gutherie </strong>and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='208367' first='Ayden' last='Davis'] </strong>to play a huge role in that again this week. The defense was opportunistic as they forced five turnovers in the contest as well. That's a recipe that will win you a lot of games.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>They'll have to take it on the road and win against a tough Union County team, who defeated Newberry 30-14 last week.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Brookland-Cayce (1-1) at No. 2 4A Northwestern (2-0)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Brookland-Cayce bounced back from a tough opening loss to Byrnes last week in their defeat of Airport, 31-20. Cayce features one of the top quarterbacks in our PRZ Rankings, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='199432' first='Tanner' last='Staton']. [player_tooltip player_id='91137' first='Naahzeikial' last='Mays'] </strong>will line up at running back and wide receiver and they'll need to be in sync against the Trojans.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='241044' first='Finley' last='Polk'] </strong>has impressed in his first two starts and has managed the game well. Expect more <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='265222' first='Turbo' last='Richard'] </strong>in the run game, who made a game changing play against Clover to seal the game. This will also be a good test for the Trojans defense, particularly on the defensive line with a guy like <strong>Jeremiah McDowell.</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>BYE WEEK:</strong> Fort Mill</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->