Soccer Game Preview: Crystal Springs Uplands vs. Menlo School

The Crystal Springs Uplands Gryphons will challenge the Menlo School Knights at 3:30 p.m. on Friday. Both teams are coming into the matchup red-hot, with Crystal Springs Uplands sitting on four straight victories and Menlo School on seven.

Crystal Springs Uplands' defense heads into the contest hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Thursday. They were the clear victor by a 3-0 margin over Harker. Considering the Gryphons have won six games by more than two goals this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.

Meanwhile, Menlo School won against Sacred Heart Prep on Friday with two goals and they decided to stick to that goal total again on Tuesday. Menlo School sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 2-1 win over Notre Dame. Given the Knights' advantage in MaxPreps' California soccer rankings (they are ranked 154th, while the Regents are ranked 526th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Menlo School pushed their record up to 9-3 with the victory, which was their fifth straight on the road. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they scored 16 goals over those five matches. As for Crystal Springs Uplands, their win bumped their record up to 7-2.

Crystal Springs Uplands came up short against Menlo School in their previous matchup back in April of 2021, falling 3-1. Can Crystal Springs Uplands avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.