Preview: Sunrise Mountain Mustangs vs. Millennium Tigers
The Sunrise Mountain Mustangs will look to defend their home field on Friday against the Millennium Tigers at 7:00 p.m. The matchup should be an exciting one, as these teams are ranked near one another in Arizona (Sunrise Mountain is ranked 40th, while Millennium is ranked 35th).
Sunrise Mountain fought the good fight in their overtime game against Cactus on Friday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Cobras by a score of 48-45. This was one game where the offenses had no trouble playing at a high level.
Despite their defeat, Sunrise Mountain saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Logan Russell, who picked up 60 receiving yards and two touchdowns, and also threw for 80 yards and a touchdown while completing 100% of his passes, was perhaps the best of all. The team also got some help courtesy of Vanden Dugger, who threw for 280 yards and five touchdowns.
Even if they lost, Sunrise Mountain's defensive line still kept up the pressure with four sacks. Cactus' QB won't forget Kaden Spencer anytime soon given Spencer sacked him four times.
Meanwhile, Millennium's game on Thursday was all tied up 3-3 at the half, but luckily for them it didn't stay that way. They strolled past Verrado with points to spare, taking the game 24-10. That's two games straight that Millennium has won by exactly 14 points.
Titus Johnson was the offensive standout of the match as he threw for 115 yards and two touchdowns while completing 72.7% of his passes, and also punched in a touchdown on the ground.
This is the second loss in a row for Sunrise Mountain and nudges their season record down to 3-5. Admittedly, the team was facing some tough opposition over that stretch, including 7-1 Desert Edge (their opponents had an average overall winning percentage of 75% over those games). As for Millennium, the victory makes it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 5-3.
Sunrise Mountain was dealt a bruising 45-7 defeat at the hands of Millennium when the teams last played back in November of 2022. Will Sunrise Mountain have more luck at home instead of on the road?
