The Pender Patriots will be playing in front of their home fans against the Northeastern Eagles at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Pender is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Friday. Their defense stepped up to hand Hertford County a 60-0 shutout. That looming 60-0 mark stands out as the most commanding margin for the Patriots yet this season.
ZyQuan Murphy
| 11/14/25 vs Hertford County | 197 |
| 10/31/25 vs Heide Trask | 89 |
| 10/24/25 vs East Duplin | 55 |
| 10/17/25 @ South Lenoir | 112 |
| 10/10/25 @ Southwest Onslow | 120 |
| + 6 more games |
ZyQuan Murphy continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 197 yards and four TDs on only 15 carries. With that strong performance, he is now averaging an impressive 103.3 rushing yards per game. Zeke Williams was another key rusher, rushing for 135 yards and one score.
They were just one part of a punishing run game: Pender was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 451 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 296 rushing yards every time they've taken the field this season.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Northeastern). They took their matchup on Friday with ease, bagging a 56-21 victory over South Columbus. The score at the end of the third wound up being the final score as the Eagles just coasted through the last quarter.
Pender better focus on containing Da'Mari Mcneill and Zak Ishman as the pair were huge in Northeastern's win. Mcneill gained 216 total yards and two touchdowns, while Ishman threw for 322 yards and four touchdowns while completing 81.8% of his passes. What's more, Mcneill posted two rushing touchdowns, the most he's had since back in September of 2024. 104 of Ishman's passing yards were hauled in by Uzziah Harney, who also brought in a receiving touchdown.
Special teams played a big role in the game for Northeastern, adding 14 points to the final score. The biggest highlight from special teams (and perhaps the team as a whole) came courtesy of Harney, who ran a kickoff back for a touchdown.
Northeastern is on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five games. That's provided a nice bump to their 8-3 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 13.4 points on average over those games. As for Pender, their record is now 10-1.
We should be in store for an exciting game as Pender and Northeastern have no problem gaining yardage. The Patriots have been on an offensive roll this season, having averaged 480.2 total yards per game. However, it's not like Northeastern struggles in that department as they've been averaging 368.9 total yards. With a pair of commanding offenses duking it out, the defenses are going to have their work cut out for them. Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.
