Football Preview: New Albany Eagles vs. Grove City Greyhounds
New Albany has gone 4-0 against Grove City recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Friday. The New Albany Eagles will be playing in front of their home fans against the Grove City Greyhounds at 7:00 p.m. The two teams might be coming in a bit winded given these two teams combined for 916 yards in their previous games.
Having struggled with five losses in a row dating back to last season, New Albany finally turned things around against Hilliard Bradley on Friday. They came out on top in a nail-biter against the Jaguars , sneaking past 17-14.
The critical scores for New Albany came from Grant Nelson and Will Olah. New Albany also relied on Jack Morgan, who's 47-yard boot wound up being the difference in the game.
New Albany was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 325 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've managed all season.
Meanwhile, Grove City put another one in the bag on Friday to keep their perfect season alive. Everything went their way against Hilliard Darby as Grove City made off with a 42-16 victory. The result was nothing new for the Greyhounds, who have now won four contests by 20 points or more so far this season.
Grove City can attribute much of their success to Ayden Mckinstry, who gained 156 total yards and four touchdowns, and Carson Welsh, who threw for 368 yards and three touchdowns while completing 75% of his passes. Mckinstry's rushing production has been exceptional recently as that marked his fifth straight game with at least 109 rushing yards dating back to last season. Owen Steele was Welsh's top target, picking up 92 receiving yards and a touchdown.
New Albany's first win this season bumped their record up to 1-4. As for Grove City, their victory was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 5-0.
Friday's match might be decided in the on the ground. New Albany has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 227.4 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Grove City struggles in that department as they've been averaging 177.8. It's looking like Friday's game might have some serious battles in the trenches.
New Albany barely slipped by Grove City when the teams last played back in September of 2023, winning 25-24. Will New Albany repeat their success, or does Grove City have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
