Football Game Preview: North Royalton Bears vs. Stow-Munroe Falls Bulldogs

Bears

Points

10/03/25 vs Solon	36
09/26/25 vs Nordonia	48
09/19/25 @ Brecksville-Broadview Heights	15
09/12/25 vs Wadsworth	8
09/05/25 vs North Ridgeville	6
+ 2 more games

North Royalton hasn't had much luck against Stow-Munroe Falls recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Bears will venture away from home to take on the Bulldogs at 7:00 p.m. North Royalton is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 26.4 points per game this season.

North Royalton is headed into the game after thoroughly thrashing Solon: they outscored them in every quarter. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that the Bears blew the Comets out of the water with a 41-7 final score. The Bears pushed the score to 35-7 by the end of the third, a deficit the Comets had little chance of recovering from.

North Royalton's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Bryce Defendorf led the charge by rushing for 138 yards and two TDs while picking up 7.3 yards per carry. Rory Hannah also helped out as he racked up 127 rushing yards.

They were just one part of a punishing run game: North Royalton was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 291 rushing yards. That's a new trend for them: they were averaging 97 rushing yards per game earlier this season, but in their last five matchups they've averaged 220.3.

Meanwhile, Stow-Munroe Falls came up short against Brecksville-Broadview Heights on Friday, falling 33-13. The Bulldogs have struggled against the Bees recently, as the game was their fourth consecutive lost matchup.

The win made it two in a row for North Royalton and bumps their season record up to 3-4. Those victories came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 44.5 points over those games. As for Stow-Munroe Falls, their loss dropped their record down to 2-5.

Everything came up roses for North Royalton against Stow-Munroe Falls in their previous meeting back in October of 2024, as the team secured a 35-0 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Bears since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.