Hunter Hipple is a n ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Gilbert Christian for AZPreps365.

Cole Sundt admitted he had a chip on his shoulder.

It looked more like a boulder in Gilbert Christian's 35-14 victory over Scottsdale Christian Friday.

"I was mentally focused,'' the senior running back said.  "I came out here with a chip on my shoulder.  [We were] ready to show them we weren't the same team we were the past three years, and that it's the start of a new era."

The Knights ran for 459 yards, attempting just three passes.

"Our guys did a really good job tonight," head coach Danny Norris said.  "We knew if we ran Chop effectively it would open up other things for us.  The middle was wide open all night. Our offensive line did a good job of taking care of the first level and then getting to the second level."

Gilbert Christian's early scores all came via the big play.  Three long rushes of 62, 91 and 68 yards helped the Knights jump on top in the first half. Sundt accounted for two of them.

"He hit it, and he went," Norris said.

Sundt praised his offensive line for the two runs.

"It was great blocking by the line.It's not hard to run up a wide open hole."

Despite the big plays, Gilbert Christian found little middle ground early.  The Eagles routinely stuffed the Knights at the line of scrimmage.

"I trust in my double-wing at all times," Norris said.  "This offense works. I'm very consistent. I will run the same play over and over again because I know it will work.  I know it will go. These young men work too hard."

Weston Zierer, who averaged 187 yardson the ground coming into Friday's contest, had a 91-yard rush of his own, which put the Knights up 14-0.

Gilbert Christian's big plays weren't totally unmatched, though. SCA quarterback Ben Tobin carved up the Knights' defense for a good chunk of the night, thanks to his lengthy frame and speed.

He had the Eagles' only touchdown of the game taking a direct snap 73 yards early in the second quarter before leaving in the third with a leg injury.

"As a defense, you always have to account for that level of athleticism," defensive coordinator Andy Montano said. "He's a heck of an athlete. We knew we would have to account for that whether it came to the blitzes or our coverage."

 

He added: "We've been growing and improving on our ability to get to the ball. All 11 hats are there. With very few exceptions, we had 8,9,10 of our players surrounding the ball carrier."

The historic win for the Knights can't be understated., 

"It was huge," Sundt said. "We've never beat Scottsdale before, so this was a big W."