Soccer Game Preview: Martin vs. Palmview

The Martin Tigers will venture away from home to face off against the Palmview Lobos at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Both come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Martin took a loss when they played away from home last Tuesday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Friday. They never let Roma get on the board and left with a 4-0 victory. Given the Tigers' advantage in MaxPreps' Texas soccer rankings (they are ranked 312th, while the Gladiators are ranked 659th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Meanwhile, Palmview came tearing into Tuesday's game with three straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 2 goals), and they left with even more momentum. They came out on top against the Gladiators by a score of 2-0. That's two games straight that the Lobos have won by exactly two goals.

Martin is on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 13-7-3 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they scored 17 goals over those four matchups. The win got Palmview back to even at 8-8-3.

Martin skirted past Palmview 2-1 in their previous matchup back in February. The rematch might be a little tougher for Martin since the squad won't have the home-pitch advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.