Football Recap: Lincoln's Win on Friday Extends Winning Streak to Nine

Lincoln extended their postseason success on Friday against Newbury Park. They came out on top against the Newbury Park Panthers by a score of 34-27. Lincoln's win was all the more impressive since the Panthers were averaging only 11.53 points allowed on the season.

Akili Smith Jr. had an outrageously good game as he threw for 267 yards and three touchdowns, and also rushed for 89 yards and one touchdown on only eight carries. That's the most passing yards he has posted since back in August. Courtney Miller-Thompson did his part to keep the secondary busy, picking up 85 receiving yards.

Another reason for the win was Lincoln's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for seven sacks. The heavy lifting was done by Prince Tavizon and Niko Ta'A, who racked up five sacks between them. Tavizon is also on a roll when it comes to total tackles, as he's now made six or more in the last four games he's played. Lincoln got some further help from Donald Reed III: he picked up a sack and made eight total tackles (2.0 for loss).

Newbury Park's loss came despite a true team effort from the offense, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Shane Rosenthal, who picked up 153 receiving yards and one touchdown. Brady Smigiel was another key player, throwing for 211 yards and three touchdowns.

Hornets

Previous Games

12/06/24 vs Newbury Park	34-27
11/23/24 vs Cathedral Catholic	31-13
11/15/24 vs Mission Hills	13-7
11/01/24 vs Madison	56-0
10/25/24 @ St. Augustine	63-0
+ 4 more games

The victory was the ninth in a row for Lincoln, bringing their record for this year to 11-2. Those victories came thanks to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 9.7 points per game. As for Newbury Park, the defeat snapped their winning streak at 14 games and leaves them with a 14-1 record.

Lincoln wasted no time getting back out on the field and has already played their next matchup, a 28-26 win against Pittsburg on the 13th. Newbury Park does not have any more games scheduled as of now.