Soccer Game Preview: North Buncombe vs. Franklin

The North Buncombe Black Hawks will take on the Franklin Panthers at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.

North Buncombe's defense heads into the matchup hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Thursday. They blew past Madison 5-0. Considering North Buncombe have won seven matches by more than two goals this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.

They hit Madison with a three-pronged attack, as the team got scores from Karmen Baker (2), Olivia Quigley (2), and Sol Gomez.

Meanwhile, with a playoff win on the line, Franklin rose to the challenge on Monday. They put the hurt on the Cougars with a sharp 9-0 victory. That nine-goal margin sets a new team best for Franklin this season.

Franklin's win was their sixth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 12-6-2. Those home victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they scored 26 goals over those six contests. As for North Buncombe, their win bumped their record up to 13-6-2.

North Buncombe beat Franklin 2-0 in their previous meeting back in March of 2024. Will the Black Hawks repeat their success, or do the Panthers have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.