The Westminster Academy Lions will take on the Florida Christian Patriots at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Each of these teams will be battling to keep a five-game winning streak alive.
On Friday, Westminster Academy strolled past Indian Rocks Christian with points to spare, taking the game 21-7.
Westminster Academy's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Cortland Brownfield, who threw for 376 yards and two TDs while completing 78.8% of his passes, and also rushed for 38 yards. The Lions' leading receiver Robert Donald was Brownfield's top target yet again, picking up 138 receiving yards and a pair of touchdowns.
On the other side of the ball, a lot of the credit has to go to Westminster Academy's defense and their three sacks. The team can thank three different players for their defensive prowess: Chase Thorburn, Jack Scott, and Dylan Celada, who each picked up one sack apiece. Trey Hollandsworth was another major factor on D, making 22 total tackles (2.0 for loss).
Meanwhile, Florida Christian sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 29-26 win over ABF Academy on Friday.
Florida Christian found their leader in sophomore Cordell Gibson, who rushed for 102 yards and three scores on only 14 carries. Gibson's rushing production has been exceptional recently as that marked his fourth straight game with at least 102 rushing yards. Speaking of playmakers, who could forget Evan Flowers, who went all the way with a kickoff return for a touchdown.
Westminster Academy's victory bumped their record up to 6-1. As for Florida Christian, their win bumped their record up to 6-1-1.
The upcoming contest will be a clash of competing strengths. Westminster Academy has relied on air attacks this season and has averaged 292 passing yards per game. Florida Christian, on the other hand, has relied on a stout run game: they average 153.1 rushing yards per game. So which strategy will prevail on Friday? There's only one way to find out.
Everything came up roses for Westminster Academy against Florida Christian in their previous meeting back in October of 2015, as the team secured a 40-12 victory. Will the Lions repeat their success, or do the Patriots have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
