Football Preview: Beaufort Academy Eagles vs. Bethesda Academy Blazers
Two dominant backs in Nych Underwood and Assir Best are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Beaufort Academy Eagles will face off against the Bethesda Academy Blazers at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Both come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Beaufort Academy took a loss when they played away from home last Friday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Friday. They enjoyed a cozy 39-20 win over Colleton Prep Academy. The Eagles' offense stepped up their game for this one, as that was the most points they've scored all season.
Beaufort Academy's success was spearheaded by the efforts of Underwood, who rushed for 241 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 11.5 yards per carry, and Dietrich Shuford, who rushed for 102 yards and a touchdown on only 11 carries. Underwood's rushing production has been exceptional recently as that marked his sixth straight game with at least 136 rushing yards. Nic Shuford did his part to keep the secondary busy, picking up 86 receiving yards.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Beaufort Academy was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 354 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 213 rushing yards in six consecutive games.
Beaufort Academy's defense made their presence known, laying out the QB five times. Nathan Chavarria Byrne was especially locked on to Colleton Prep Academy's QB and sacked him three times.
Meanwhile, Bethesda Academy came tearing into Friday's match with three straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 20.7 points) and they left with even more momentum. Their defense stepped up to hand the Saints a 2-0 shutout. The two-point effort marked the Blazers' lowest-scoring contest of the season, but in the end it didn't matter.
Beaufort Academy pushed their record up to 5-2 with the victory, which was their fifth straight at home dating back to last season. As for Bethesda Academy, their win bumped their record up to 4-2.
Beaufort Academy came up short against Bethesda Academy when the teams last played back in October of 2023, falling 34-28. Thankfully for Beaufort Academy, Triston Randall (who threw for 147 yards and two touchdowns, and also punched in a touchdown on the ground) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
