Justin Arnold and Peyton Sanders have been best friends since elementary school and the pair seem to be able to communicate without uttering a word.

“We can read each other’s mind, it feels like, without even saying something to each other,” Arnold said. 

The connection comes in handy on the football field, where Arnold - a quarterback - and Sanders - a wide receiver - have relied on their nonverbal communication to provide Chaska with a potent passing game.

The pair put their connection on display Wednesday night as Sanders caught two touchdown passes from Arnold, helping the Hawks claim a share of the Metro West Conference championship and cruise to a 34-14 victory over Robbinsdale Cooper in the regular-season finale.

The duo didn’t find the end zone until the fourth quarter, but the touchdowns proved timely as Chaska clung to a 21-14 lead heading into the final 12 minutes of the game.

Arnold capped one Hawks’ drive with a 6-yard touchdown pass to Sanders, who ended another drive when he hauled in a 25-yard touchdown reception from his quarterback.

The Arnold-to-Sanders’ hook up has been helped the Hawks finish 6-2 overall.

Arnold entered the game completing 58 percent of his passes (58-for-110) and has 808 yards and 12 touchdowns, while Sanders is tied for the team lead in receptions with 17 and has a team-high 250 yards to go with three touchdowns.

“We’ve been best friends since third grade, so it’s a really good connection and we know each other very well, so it’s good to have him at quarterback,” Sanders said. 

Chaska is glad to have Arnold at quarterback. He finished the night with two more touchdowns. The first came on a 74-yard run and the second was a 16-yard pass to junior wide receiver Sean Engel, helping the Hawks extend their lead in the first half.

Cooper’s dual-threat quarterback Phil Howard had his team in the game early, scoring on a 2-yard run in the first quarter to narrow Chaska’s lead to 7-6 after a failed two-point conversion. The Hawks’ defense, however, kept Howard and Cooper’s offense out of the end zone the rest of the game to preserve the victory and secure a share of the league title.

Chaska coach Bryan Dahl said containing Howard was a challenge.

“He made a lot of plays with his feet and throwing the football, but we knew that they were dangerous and they’d make some plays and we let them loose a few times when we shouldn’t have,” Dahl said.    

Chaska tied Chanhassen for the Metro West title in the last year Minnesota high school football teams will follow the traditional league model. Teams begin playing in districts (groups of 12 to 18 schools with similar enrollments) next year.

Dahl isn’t disappointed the Hawks have to share the crown with their rival.

“We’re happy to win (some) of it,” Dahl said. “We’ll take it and we’re excited to be conference champs.”

Chaska is also excited about playing well at the end of the regular season, which could carry over and help the Hawks make a long postseason run. 

“If we keep playing the way we’re playing right now, we can go pretty far,” Arnold said.   

Chaska quarterback Justin Arnold threw three touchdowns and ran for another as Chaska clinched a share of the Metro West Conference championship with a 34-14 victory over Robbinsdale Cooper Wednesday night at Cooper High School.

Chaska running back Garett Glieden opened the Hawks’ scoring with 64-yard touchdown on the second play from scrimmage in the second quarter.

Cooper (5-3, 4-3) responded with a 2-yard touchdown run by quarterback Phil Howard, but failed to convert on the two-point try and trailed 7-6 at the end of the first quarter.

Chaska (6-2, 5-1) took a 21-6 lead after scoring on back-to-back possession in the second quarter. Arnold capped one drive with 74-yard touchdown run and another with a 16-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Sean Engel.

Derrick Williams cut Cooper’s deficit to 21-14 with 76-yard kickoff return for a touchdown as time expired in the first half. The Hawks successfully converted the two-point try.

Arnold sealed the victory in the second half, throwing two touchdowns to wide receiver Peyton Sanders. The first was a 6-yard pass and the second went for 25 yards.

Chaska shares the league championship with Chanhassen. The Storm defeated Bloomington Jefferson 24-7 on Wednesday night.

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