Preview: Traverse City Central Trojans vs. Traverse City West Titans
Traverse City Central has enjoyed a two-game homestand but will soon have to dust off their road jerseys. They will face off against The Traverse City West Titans at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The matchup should be an exciting one, as these teams are ranked near one another in Michigan (Traverse City Central is ranked 145th, while Traverse City West is ranked 158th).
Last Friday, Traverse City Central was able to grind out a solid victory over Bay City Western, taking the game 27-14. Traverse City Central pushed the score to 21-0 by the end of the third, a deficit Bay City Western cut but never quite recovered from.
Meanwhile, Traverse City West got themselves on the board against Central on Thursday, but Central never followed suit. They claimed a resounding 35-0 victory over the Wolves on the road. The victory was just what Traverse City West needed coming off of a 42-22 loss in their prior matchup.
Traverse City West can attribute much of their success to Adeyo Ilemobade, who rushed for 103 yards and two touchdowns on only eight carries. Owen Hendrix and his 82 yards on the ground were also a key factor in Traverse City West's victory.
Their wins bumped Traverse City Central to 4-4 and Traverse City West to 3-5.
Traverse City Central barely slipped by Traverse City West in their previous matchup back in October of 2022, winning 14-13. The rematch might be a little tougher for Traverse City Central since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
