Football Preview: Rio Rancho Rams vs. Piedra Vista Panthers
The Rio Rancho Rams have the luxury of staying home for another week and will welcome the Piedra Vista Panthers at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Rio Rancho is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 31 points per game this season.
Rio Rancho's defense heads into the matchup hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Friday. They blew past Cibola, posting a 28-0 victory at home. Considering the Rams have won three contests by more than 27 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
A big part of Rio Rancho's win came down to the chemistry between Micah Takahashi and his top target Jace Pitt. Takahashi threw for 171 yards and two touchdowns while Pitt picked up 155 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Meanwhile, Piedra Vista faced Volcano Vista in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Friday. Piedra Vista had to suffer through a 48-7 loss at the hands of Volcano Vista. The Panthers just can't catch a break and have now endured five defeats in a row.
Rio Rancho's victory bumped their record up to 4-2. As for Piedra Vista, their loss dropped their record down to 1-5.
Friday's match might be decided in the on the ground. Rio Rancho has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 175.3 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Piedra Vista struggles in that department as they've been averaging 211.7. It's looking like Friday's game might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Everything came up roses for Rio Rancho against Piedra Vista in their previous matchup back in November of 2017, as the team secured a 59-14 win. Will Rio Rancho repeat their success, or does Piedra Vista have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
