Hamilton storms back with backup QB to defeat rival Chandler in Battle of Arizona Ave

Game of the year.

That is the only way to describe Hamilton's 21-point comeback in their 55-41 win over #4 Chandler on Friday night.

Throughout the game with the two rivals separated by 5 miles down Arizona Avenue, there was no love lost, starting with Chandler chirping at Hamilton for trying to run out of their tunnel.

It could be argued that Hamilton "poked the bear" to start the game. The game went Chandler's way almost immediately in the first quarter.

In the opening drive, Hamilton had the ball, and it looked as though they would put up six points right away. 

Their senior running back, Jacob Brown, ran for a 56-yard run and wound up near the goal line.

Things went south, though, as senior defensive back Jacob Najor snagged a touchdown-saving interception for Chandler and likely would have had a 100-yard pick six if it weren't for '28 QB Jax Sculley making the TD-saving tackle. 

A few plays later, Chandler struck first in the contest.

The Wolves got on the board when their junior quarterback Will Mencl found junior athlete Jai Jones on a deep bomb that went 69 yards for a touchdown. 

Everything kept going well for Chandler as their defense forced a three-and-out and their offense once again got down the field.

They added to their lead in the first quarter when Mencl kept it himself and scampered into the endzone for a 5-yard touchdown.

Hamilton had some life at the beginning of the second quarter as they were able to get down the field and put up their first points on the board.

The drive was capped off by sophomore quarterback Jax Sculley rushing for a 1-yard touchdown. 

Chandler made sure to stop Hamilton's momentum, though, as they once again found the end zone.

It was once again Mencl throwing a touchdown pass, this time to senior wide receiver Skyler Ormita for a 22-yard touchdown. 

Near the end of the second quarter, Hamilton chipped away at the lead as sophomore kicker Preston Olson hit a 24-yard field goal.

Once again, Chandler responded to Hamilton putting up points with points of their own as Mencl found his big target in senior tight end Davian Laudermilk for a 62-yard touchdown. 

Down 27-10, things couldn’t have seemed to get worse for Hamilton until tragedy struck.

On one of the last plays of the first half, their star quarterback Sculley (who tore his ACL last season) went down with an apparent knee injury on a short 3rd down scramble and was carted off the field in tears before coming back out in the 3rd quarter on crutches.

We aren't going to speculate on the seriousness of the injury, but it did not look good at all and you could feel the energy sucked out of both sides of the stadium.

After the injury, Olson hit his second field goal of the game, this time from 24 yards.

At halftime, Chandler was leading 27-13.

Starting the rest of the game for Hamilton at quarterback was senior Daniel Vaita.

Things seemed rough for him at first, as early in the third quarter, he threw a pick-six to Chandler’s senior defensive back Kamari Crawford. 

Hamilton now trailed 34-13, their star quarterback was injured, and while most teams may have rolled over and given up, Hamilton didn’t. 

Huskies head coach Travis Dixon told his team during halftime to stick together.

“I told them to stick together, continue working as one,” Dixon said. “We believed in our guys, we believed in our coaching staff.” 

That belief helped lead them to one of the largest comebacks of the season. 

Out of nowhere, Hamilton scored 21 unanswered points. 

The biggest play of the game so far for the Huskies came in the middle of the third quarter when Vaita connected with sophomore wide receiver Roye Oliver III for a 47-yard touchdown. 

Then late in the third quarter, Hamilton added eight more points as their senior running back, Jacob Brown, rushed into the end zone for a 4-yard touchdown. They then went for a 2-point conversion, and Vaita rushed it in himself to convert it. 

After trailing by 21 points, which was by far the most they had trailed this season, Hamilton knew they were better than how they started the game. 

“We know what kind of team we are; we knew that ultimately we were the better team,” Brown said regarding his team's slow start. “Being able to come back shows the grit we have as a team.” 

It only continued to get better for Hamilton as their senior defensive back Niko Jandreau snagged an interception to give the Huskies the ball back with all the momentum on their side. 

Getting the ball in field goal range once again, Hamilton tied the game at 34 after Olson hit a 21-yard field goal. 

Chandler regained some life after letting Hamilton tie the game back up, though, as they reclaimed their lead. 

Having their best drive of the second half, they marched down the field and got deep into Hamilton territory. 

It was Mencl again, using his legs to find the end zone, this time for 13 yards. 

The Huskies responded with a touchdown as they scored in less than two minutes. 

In what was one of the best, if not the best, plays of the game, Vaita connected with Oliver III for their second touchdown connection. Oliver III managed to stay in bounds and score the 2-yard touchdown. 

Even though they scored the touchdown, the PAT was no good. 

The score was 41-40, and Chandler led with five minutes to go. 

Coming up big again was the Huskies' defense as they forced Chandler to punt the ball away and give the offense a chance to take the lead. 

The offense did just that as Hamilton's junior running back, Skyler Cole, scored an 18-yard touchdown. 

Chandler had another chance to go down the field and tie the game back up, but it was cut short due to Hamilton's defense forcing a turnover on downs. 

The game was ultimately sealed as Brown scored a 1-yard touchdown and helped complete in what was one of the best games in recent memory. 

In what was something they make movies out of, Hamilton completed a huge comeback and was led in the second half by their backup quarterback. Vaita stepped in and knew he had a job to do and that the job is not finished. 

“My mindset was next man up,” Vaita said. “All the guys around me, it really just helped build my confidence. We've got to get ready for the playoffs, we've got to go win the championship.” 

Hamilton finished their regular season 10-0, although Dixon says the real season starts tonight.

“We’ve got to finish the job, jobs not done,” Dixon said. “We’re now just starting the work.”

Next up: Hamilton and Chandler await their likely final 1 and 4 respective seedings for the Open Division.