Soccer Preview: Franklin vs. Tuscola
Franklin is 10-0 against Tuscola since October of 2016, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Wednesday. The Franklin Panthers will square off against the Tuscola Mountaineers at 7:15 p.m. Both come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Franklin's defense heads into the contest hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Thursday. They put the hurt on Highlands with a sharp 7-0 win. The result was nothing new for the Panthers, who have now won four matchups by three goals or more so far this season.
Their offense was hitting Highlands from everywhere, as five different players booted in a goal.
Josiah Mascorro led that balanced group of strikers and accounted for two goals all by himself.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Tuscola, who bounced back after a loss on the road last Monday. They came out on top against North Buncombe by a score of 2-0 on Wednesday. Given the Mountaineers' advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina soccer rankings (they are ranked 142nd, while the Black Hawks are ranked 336th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Tuscola's lineup was just a bit different on Wednesday as Stonewall Strickland got a bit more time on the pitch (70 vs. his season average of 44.3). Strickland made the most of the opportunity, scoring a goal. A few more games like that and he might be seeing even more time going forward.
Franklin's victory bumped their record up to 4-5. As for Tuscola, their win was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 5-4.
Franklin beat Tuscola 4-2 in their previous matchup back in October of 2023. Does Franklin have another victory up their sleeve, or will Tuscola turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
