Football Preview: Martin County Gators vs. Tarboro Vikings
Two dominant backs in Jah Sheppard and Kamerin Mcdowell-Moore are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Martin County Gators will be playing at home against the Tarboro Vikings at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Tarboro is hoping to do what Washington County couldn't on Friday: put an end to Martin County's winning streak, which now stands at six games. Martin County took their game on the road with ease, bagging a 72-8 victory over Washington County. The Gators' offense stepped up their game for this one, as that was the most points they've scored all season.
Martin County can attribute much of their success to Sheppard, who rushed for 148 yards and two touchdowns on only 12 carries, and Pete Moore, who threw for 147 yards and three touchdowns while completing 72.7% of his passes. Sheppard's rushing production has been exceptional recently as that marked his third straight game with at least 148 rushing yards. The team also got some help courtesy of Anthony Killiebrew, who picked up 78 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Martin County wouldn't let Washington County keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force two fumbles. Martin County can thank Gabe James and Michael Lee Jr for forcing both of them. Another thorn in Washington County's side was Chris Bell, who made three total tackles (2.0 for loss) and snagged two interceptions.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Martin County was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 226 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 185 rushing yards in six consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, Tarboro and Perquimans met for a duel on Friday where Tarboro came out on top. Tarboro blew past Perquimans 62-22 on the road. Given the Vikings' advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina football rankings (they are ranked 82nd, while the Pirates are ranked 264th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Mason Satterfield continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 74 yards and three touchdowns on only five carries. Mcdowell-Moore was another key back, rushing for 73 yards and a touchdown on only five carries.
Tarboro didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Kip Biggs and Cole Craddock.
Martin County's win was their fourth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 6-1. As for Tarboro, the victory made it two in a row for them and also bumps their season record up to 6-1.
Martin County was dealt a bruising 46-6 defeat at the hands of Tarboro when the teams last played back in October of 2023. Thankfully for Martin County, Omarion Lewis (who rushed for 27 yards and three touchdowns, and also threw for 58 yards and a touchdown) 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
