Chinstraps were tightened and mouthpieces were in place as the sixth-grade Hurricanes and Chops exchanged bone-crushing hits Sunday at Youth Sports Inc.

Behind a tenacious defense and overwhelming ground game, the league-leading Hurricanes defeated the Chops by a deceiving score of 31-6.

“My hats off to those guys. I’m really proud of the way the Chops continued to fight and the way the coaches handle the kids,” Hurricane head coach Bret Toelkes said.

The Chops defense was the story of the game, holding the potent Hurricane offense to 12 points in the first half. Danshe West was a force, handing out several punishing hits and using his size to slow the Hurricanes ground attack.

With West stuffing the rush, it was Derby Miller of the Chops who roamed the secondary. Miller used his speed and open-field tackling to blanket the Hurricane passing game.

The Chops got on the scoreboard after a mishandled punt turned into a foot race downfield. Seventy yards and a couple of quality blocks later, the Chops pulled within six points of the Hurricanes early in the third quarter.

However, the Hurricanes quickly turned to their ground game to secure the victory.

The three-headed attack of Jason Tetuan, Caleb Bowen and Jermel Fleming wore down the Chop defense late in the third, and the Hurricanes slowly pulled away.

The Chops and Canes set up in the trenches as the Hurricanes attempt a one-yard touchdown run Sunday at Youth Sports Inc.

Fleming used his sheer size to tire the Chops front line, and Tetuan and Bowen cut through the exhausted defense for a couple of late touchdown runs.

Bowen snapped the Hurricanes’ scoring draught with a 45-yard touchdown run to increase the Hurricanes’ lead to 19-6. Minutes later it was Tetuan who plunged in for a one-yard touchdown dive.

The Hurricanes received key defensive contributions from Jamisone Montes De Oca and Nick Pellet. The two delivered several bone-jarring hits, which picked up the Hurricanes’ second-half intensity.

“We didn’t really play as well as we could of, that’s why it was nice when we got some energy from Jamisone and Nick,” Toelkes said.