Victory Christian 46, Chandler 35
Victory Christian came up with two massive fourth-conversions in the fourth quarter and ended Chandler’s season in the state quarterfinals, 46-35.
The first came with 8:42 left in the game and VC ahead 3428 but facing fourthand-20 at the Chandler 31. Crusader quarterback Ayden Hamilton hit Teyton Chandler for a 23-yard pass to the 8-yard line. The next play, the Crusaders were in the end zone and extended their lead to 40-28.
Later, Chandler gotten back within five point and had Victory facing a fourth-andgoal from the 5-yard line.
Hamilton scrambled to his right, then back across the field to Chandler, who had gotten clear in the end zone.
The touchdown made it 46-35 with just over a minute to go in the game and essentially sealed the game.
“We were close,” said Chandler coach Jack Gray. “We needed a few other things to go our way.”
The Lions ended their season with a 9-4 record and their first appearance in the quarterfinals in more than a decade.
They started off the season strong, hit a flat spot in the middle and then came back to take second in the district and get home field the first round of the playoffs.
“Looking back at the season, we started off hot and then had bumps in the road,” Gray said. “One thing about these guys is, they were willing to fix things and not just go with the flow.
“They responded well to the losses and came back to play some of the best football we’ve played all year. They are guys who are willing to adapt and overcome. I hope that’s the seniors take away.
“This has to be one of the top seasons in Chandler history. Obviously, we wanted to go further, but these guys being here tonight have accomplished a lot.”
Chandler opened the scoring after taking possession on Victory’s 41 following a bad snap on a punt.
Casmen Hill ran the ball to the four and Alec Jackson sneaked over from a half-yard out for the score with 4:01 gone in the period.
At that point, Victory took control of the game, scoring four straight touchdowns and going up 28-7 on a touchdown pass with four seconds left in the half.
The Lions rewrote the script after halftime and got back within a touchdown by the end of the third period.
Hill ran for a fouryard touchdown, Brayden Nation hauled in a 43-yard touchdown pass and Jackson ran for a 28-yarder.
Mixed in was a touchdown for Victory, which put the score at 34-28 and set up the fourth-quarter, fourthdown plays .
“We had a few mental busts that just killed us,” Gray said. “A lot of miscues.
“Our offensive issues in the first half were mental mistakes. We did come out offensively and start running the ball on them.
“The second half was how we thought the first half would be like.
“They came out and ran some new stuff at us and it had us playing slow.
“We were playing slow and hesitant, but we had a good mentality in the second half.”