Football Recap: Verrado Vipers vs. Cactus Cobras
If Verrado was riding high fresh off their 62-7 takedown of Marcos de Niza last Thursday, their most recent game may have dampened their spirits a bit. The Verrado Vipers fell 50-41 to the Cactus Cobras on Thursday. The loss continues a trend for the Vipers in their matchups with the Cobras: they've now lost three in a row.
Jack Isidore and Chase Gieszler certainly did their best on Thursday to avoid the loss. Isidore gained 218 total yards and two touchdowns, while Gieszler threw for 303 yards and three touchdowns on only 17 passes. The dominant performance also gave Isidore a new career-high in rushing yards. Verrado also got help from Deriece Brown, who showed off his sure hands for 137 receiving yards.
Even though they lost, Verrado was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 220 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 167 rushing yards in six consecutive matches.
Verrado wouldn't let Cactus keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force three fumbles. It was truly a group effort as Jordan Peters, Richard Hinckley, and Brown picked up one apiece. With that strong performance, Hinckley is now averaging an impressive 5.2 total tackles per game.
Antonio Casias looked great while leading his team to the win, throwing for 317 yards on 26 of 37 attempts, while also rushing for 83 yards on only nine carries. Tayejion Player was another key player, rushing for 115 yards.
The defeat snapped Verrado's winning streak at five games and leaves them with a 5-2 record. As for Cactus, they are on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 5-2 record this season.
Both squads are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Verrado will welcome Millennium at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Verrado knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 31 points or more in their past six contests -- so hopefully Millennium likes a good challenge. As for Cactus, they will face off against Sunrise Mountain at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The timing is sure in Cactus' favor as the squad sits on three straight wins at home while Sunrise Mountain has been banged up by three consecutive losses on the road.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
