CHANDLER – Following a late hit penalty by Hamilton in the red zone in the middle of the fourth quarter, Chandler had a first-and-goal. Senior quarterback and Oregon commit Will Mencl pulled the read option and ran it in himself for a 4-yard touchdown, silencing the overflow crowd at Hamilton and giving Chandler its first lead of the game.
“It is something I’ve always had as a player,” Mencl said of his running ability. “I’m not afraid. I am a football player. I throw it a little bit more than everybody else, so I’m not afraid to take a big hit.”
Mencl’s run proved to be the biggest hit in No. 2 Chandler’s 31-24, Class 6A win against No. 3 Chandler Hamilton on Thursday in the renewal of the one of the best rivalries in Arizona High School football, known as the Battle for Arizona Avenue.
With the win, Chandler finished the regular season 9-1 while Hamilton finished 8-2. Hamilton still leads the all-time series 17-12. The teams will find out Saturday morning where they are seeded for the Open Division state playoffs when the bracket is released.
Last season, Hamilton beat Chandler in the final regular-season game, but Mencl led the Wolves to a 30-17 Open Division semifinal playoff win in which he ran for 105 yards and three TDs.
The Wolves needed his heroics again on Thursday as Hamilton raced to a 14-0 lead.
The game opened with a long pass by Hamilton junior quarterback Jax Sculley to wide receiver Christian Riley that set up a short rushing touchdown by Sculley the very next play. Chandler got the ball back and fumbled in its own territory, setting up Hamilton in great field position on which the Huskies capitalized, with Sculley finding Riley for a 2-yard touchdown for a 14-0 lead early in the first quarter.
Chandler responded when Mencl found senior wide receiver Maxwell Sprott for a big gain. At the goal line, and after three straight rushing attempts, Chandler punched in a touchdown courtesy of running back David Douglas.
The momentum shifted further in Chandler’s favor when defensive back Brivid Laudermilk intercepted Sculley, giving the Wolves the ball back as they tied the game on a passing touchdown in the back corner of the end zone from Mencl to Daniel Martinez.
“Really our play call,” Laudermilk said when asked about the pick. “We have a great defensive coaching staff and so their play calls are what makes us get it done.”
Facing a big third-and-18 Sculley found Roman Oliver across the middle of the field and he did the rest after the catch, running it into the end zone for a 42-yard TD to put Hamilton back in front, 21-14.
Before the half, Chandler faced a third-and-long of its own, but Mencl converted with his legs to keep the drive alive and ultimately set up a field goal from senior kicker Ryan Zima to pull the Wolves within 21-17 at halftime.
Out of the half, the defenses settled in with Hamilton recording its only points of the half on a field goal.
Late in the third quarter, Chandler faced a fourth-and-2 on its own 36-yard line. The Wolves took a risk and Mencl made it pay off, breaking free up the middle for a 62-yard touchdown run that tied the game at 24-24 with 1:59 left in the period.
“I was really supposed to hit the outside,” Mencl said. “I pulled it, kind of saw something open up in the A-gap, just trying to be a playmaker in a big time moment and it ended up working out.”
After the touchdown, Chandler recovered a fumble on the ensuing kickoff, but Hamilton’s defense held strong, as Derrick Leblanc Jr. posted a sack on third down, and Mencl’s pass on fourth-and-long was intercepted by Preston DeGraffenreid.
Hamilton’s offense couldn’t generate points off of the turnover and Chandler’s defense didn’t allow a point the rest of the way.
“I just think we played with a lot more energy, ” Chandler coach Ty Wisdom said. “It wasn’t necessarily a bunch of different things we did. We tackled better. We got to the ball.”
After Mencl’s go-ahead TD, Hamilton punted the ball back to Chandler with more than five minutes left in the game, but the Wolves were able to run out the clock for their second straight win against their rivals.
“The biggest thing is that we kept coming back,” Wisdom said. “I was proud of how the defense played in the second half and responded, and then we were able to establish a running game in the second half, too, which was huge.”
Laudermilk said the win was a statement about the character of his team.
“This just shows the resilience in this brotherhood,” he said. “How we were able to come back from a deficit, and overall win the game.”
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