The Taylorville Tornadoes will take on the Mattoon Greenwave at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Taylorville will be strutting in after a win while Mattoon will be coming in after a loss.
Taylorville is returning home triumphant after the team finally put their road woes behind them against Effingham on Friday. The Tornadoes came out on top against the Hearts by a score of 28-21. The score was all tied up 7-7 at the break, but the Tornadoes were the better team in the second half.
Taylorville's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Isaac Repscher, who threw for 204 yards and two TDs, and also rushed for 66 yards. The Tornadoes' leading receiver Wyatt Younker was Repscher's top target yet again, picking up 141 receiving yards and one score.
Meanwhile, Mattoon suffered their closest defeat since September 6, 2024 on Friday. They fell just short of Charleston by a score of 37-35. Even if the Greenwave couldn't come away with the win, the high-scoring effort was a great turnaround for their offense, which had struggled int the games prior.
Despite the loss, Mattoon saw an underclassman step up: sophomore Brayden Hackett threw for 298 yards and a pair of touchdowns, and also rushed for 54 yards and a pair of TDs.
Mattoon's defeat dropped their record down to 1-4. As for Taylorville, their victory bumped their record up to 2-3.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Friday's contest: Taylorville has been on an offensive roll this season, having averaged 448.4 total yards per game. It's a different story for Mattoon, though, as they've been averaging only 226.8 total yards. Will Taylorville be able to march up the field at their leisure again, or will the Greenwave flip the script?
Taylorville strolled past Mattoon in their previous meeting back in October of 2024 by a score of 21-7. Will the Tornadoes repeat their success, or do the Greenwave have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
