Football Preview: Bellefonte Raiders vs. Juniata Indians
Bellefonte hasn't had much luck against Juniata recently, but that could start to change on Saturday. The Bellefonte Raiders will square off against the Juniata Indians at 7:00 p.m. Both come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Bellefonte took a loss when they played away from home two weeks ago, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed last Friday. They blew past Greater Johnstown 38-18. Considering the Raiders have won four matchups by more than 19 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Liam Halterman was nothing short of spectacular: he rushed for 100 yards and three touchdowns, and also threw for 105 yards and a touchdown on only nine passes. He is becoming a predictor of Bellefonte's success: when he posts at least two rushing touchdowns the team is 6-1 (and 1-3 when he doesn't). Jackson Long got in on the action too, returning a kick for a touchdown.
Meanwhile, Juniata beat Upper Dauphin Area 21-13 two weeks ago. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Indians.
Juniata's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Javier Lopez, who rushed for 109 yards and two touchdowns on only 15 carries. The team also got some help courtesy of Jasper Shepps, who picked up 89 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Juniata didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Shepps and Connor Boreman. Juniata got some further help from Lane Peiper: he made 13 total tackles (1.0 for loss).
Juniata has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won six of their last seven games, which provided a nice bump to their 7-3 record this season. They've dominated over that stretch too, winning by an average of 31.2 points. As for Bellefonte, their record now sits at 7-4.
Bellefonte was taken down by Juniata 37-0 in their previous matchup back in November of 2023. Can Bellefonte avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
