Football Game Preview: Pender Pendragons vs. Guardian Angels Central Catholic Bluejays

The Pender Pendragons will head out on the road to challenge the Guardian Angels Central Catholic Bluejays at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.

Guardian Angels Central Catholic will be up against a hot Pender team: the squad just extended their winning streak to four. The Pendragons breezed past Homer to the tune of 49-14 on Friday. The contest was pretty much decided by the half, when the score had already reached 27-0.

Zander Welsh

Rushing Yards (Career)

09/26/25 vs Homer	89
09/05/25 vs Laurel-Concord-Coleridge	44
08/29/25 @ Plainview	29
09/13/24 vs Clarkson/Leigh	12
09/19/25 vs Tri County Northeast	11

Zander Welsh produced another solid performance throwing for 133 yards and three touchdowns, while also rushing for 89 yards and one score. Those 89 rushing yards gave him a new career-high. Reece Heineman was in the mix too, providing Pender with two TDs.

Pender didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off three passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Owen Larsen and Heineman. Larsen got in on the action too, converting a pick into a touchdown.

Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Guardian Angels Central Catholic). Everything went their way against Wakefield on Friday as they made off with a 43-20 win. The victory continues a trend for the Bluejays in their matchups with the Trojans: they've now won three in a row.

Guardian Angels Central Catholic's defense made their presence known, laying out the QB three times. Maverik Smith was especially locked on to Wakefield's QB and sacked him twice. Smith is also crushing it when it comes to total tackles: he's made at least five every time he's taken the field this season.

Pender's win bumped their record up to 4-1. As for Guardian Angels Central Catholic, their victory bumped their record up to an identical 4-1.

Friday's game might be decided on the ground. Pender has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 195.8 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Guardian Angels Central Catholic struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 206.2 rushing yards. There's a good chance Friday's matchup turns into a tough fight on the ground.

Pender couldn't quite get it done against Guardian Angels Central Catholic when the teams last played back in October of 2024 as they fell 20-12. Can the Pendragons avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.