Preview: Heritage Eagles vs. Palmer Ridge Bears
The Heritage Eagles will head out on the road to face off against the Palmer Ridge Bears at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the pair posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.
Two teams were on the hunt for playoff glory, but only Heritage walked away with it. They walked away with a 31-18 victory over Golden on Saturday.
Heritage can attribute much of their success to Kurt Rossner, who threw for 170 yards and a touchdown while completing 100% of his passes, and Jett Balika, who rushed for 79 yards and three touchdowns.
Heritage's defense stepped up as well, laying out the QB four times. Leading the way was Nick Long and his two sacks.
Meanwhile, Palmer Ridge put another one in the bag on Friday to keep their perfect season alive. They blew past Denver South, posting a 42-6 victory at home. The result was nothing new for Palmer Ridge, who have now won ten contests by 22 points or more so far this season.
Palmer Ridge got their win on the backs of several key players, but it was James "jimmer" Weir out in front who picked up 131 receiving yards and three touchdowns. Weir was no stranger to the big play, lighting up the secondary with a catch that went for 64 yards. Gabe Klein and his 130 yards on the ground were also a key factor in Palmer Ridge's win.
Heritage pushed their record up to 7-4 with that win, which was their fourth straight at home. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 39.0 points per game. As for Palmer Ridge, their win bumped their record up to 11-0.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Friday's matchup: Heritage has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 206.8 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Palmer Ridge struggles in that department as they've been even better at 223.5 per game. It's looking like Friday's matchup might have some serious battles in the trenches. Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other football content.
Heritage was dealt a bruising 47-14 defeat at the hands of Palmer Ridge in their previous meeting back in October of 2021. Can Heritage avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
