The Aquinas Monarchs will venture away from home to take on the Yutan Chieftains on Friday. Aquinas comes in still looking for their first win of the season.
Aquinas is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They took a 46-40 hit to the loss column at the hands of North Bend Central on Friday.
The loss doesn't tell the whole story though, as several players had good games. One of the most active was Elijah Moulton, who rushed for 76 yards and one TD on only nine carries, and also picked up 43 receiving yards and one score. Landon Pohl got in on the action as well, returning a kick for a touchdown.
Aquinas didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. Jarin Thege picked up that interception and then proceeded to rub salt in the wound by taking it back the other way for a touchdown. He got in on the action too, converting a pick into a touchdown.
Meanwhile, Yutan made easy work of Arlington on Friday and carried off a 28-8 win. The Chieftains might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won four matchups by 20 points or more this season.
Yutan's win came from a few key players Aquinas will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Kaleb Fenner, who rushed for 103 yards and one touchdown.
Yutan didn't let much get past them through the air: they limited Arlington to a completion percentage of just 38.9%. That dominant aerial defense primarily came from two players: Kale Hoffer and Jaxon Wood, who each logged one passes deflected. Yutan wasn't nearly as limited: they posted one of 66.7%.
Yutan is on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 5-2 record this season. The victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 35.6 points over those games. As for Aquinas, their loss dropped their record down to 0-7.
Friday's game might be decided on the ground. Aquinas has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 152 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Yutan struggles in that department as they've been averaging 230.9 rushing yards. There's a good chance Friday's matchup turns into a tough fight on the ground.
Aquinas didn't have too much breathing room in their contest against Yutan in their previous meeting back in October of 2024, but they still walked away with a 12-7 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Monarchs since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
