It probably is fitting that a defensive play sealed Mallard Creek’s fourth straight win over Chambers Friday — and a Meck Power 6 conference championship.

All throughout the Mavericks’ XX-XX win, two things stopped Chambers — penalties and a very stingy Mallard Creek defense.

The Mavericks (8-2) handed Chambers (9-1) its first loss of the season by simply shutting down one of the state’s most prolific offenses and one of its best players, Chambers QB Jamouri Nichols, a semifinalist for Mr. NC Football, the state’s player of the year award.

Chambers came into the game averaging 42 points per game.

The Cougars couldn’t score, however, until getting a 69-yard punt return from Kam Moore to tie the game at 7 in the third quarter. Other than that, Cougars rarely challenged on offense. And when they did, Mallard Creek was there with a big play.

The biggest game in the fourth quarter.

Chambers was driving, down 10-7, when Nichols bobbled the snap and Mallard Creek junior linebacker Isaiah Johnson — who had burst through the offensive line and was in position to disrupt the play — recovered the ball at the Mavericks 45.

Mallard Creek got the ball back with 5:55 to play. The Mavericks played power football after that, challenging the conference’s stingiest defense with a series of running plays.

The drive ended, with 2:36 left, with an 8-yard touchdown run from quarterback Cailen Napier, giving Mallard Creek a 10-point lead.

Game summary

Chambers 0 0 7

Mallard Creek 0 7 3

SECOND QUARTER

MC: Chase Roberts 1 run (Samuel Nannini kick)

THIRD QUARTER

C: Kam Moore 69 punt return (Wes Palacios kick)

MC: FG Nannini 29

FOURTH QUARTER

MC: Cailen Napier 8 run (Nannini kick)

This story was originally published October 30, 2026 at 9:43 PM with the headline "Mallard Creek stops Chambers with defense, wins conference championship."