Football Preview: Grove City Greyhounds vs. New Albany Eagles
Grove City is 0-4 against New Albany since September of 2020 but things could change on Friday. The Grove City Greyhounds will venture away from home to take on the New Albany Eagles at 7:00 p.m. Grove City knows how to get points on the board -- the squad has finished with 31 points or more in their past five matchups -- so hopefully New Albany likes a good challenge.
Last Friday, Grove City made easy work of Hilliard Darby and carried off a 42-16 victory. Given the Greyhounds' advantage in MaxPreps' Ohio football rankings (they are ranked 46th, while the Panthers are ranked 241st), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Grove City's success was spearheaded by the efforts of 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. A healthy portion of that aerial production (92 yards to be exact) went to Owen Steele, who also brought in a receiving touchdown.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for New Albany, who bounced back after a loss on the road two weeks ago. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 17-14 win over Hilliard Bradley on Friday. The victory was some much needed relief for the Eagles as it spelled an end to their five-game losing streak dating back to last season.
New Albany was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 325 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've posted was before the start of last season.
Grove City's win was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 5-0. As for New Albany, their victory (their first of the season) made their record 1-4.
Friday's contest might be decided in the on the ground. Grove City has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 171 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like New Albany struggles in that department as they've been averaging 227.4. It's looking like Friday's game might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Grove City and New Albany were almost perfectly matched up in their previous meeting back in September of 2023, but Grove City suffered an agonizing 25-24 defeat. Thankfully for Grove City, Joseph Owusu-Ansah (who rushed for 121 yards and three touchdowns) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
