Valley Christian is 7-2 against Archbishop Riordan since October of 2015 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Saturday. The Warriors will square off against the Crusaders at 1:30 p.m. The two teams are strolling into their games after big wins in their previous games.
Valley Christian is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They never let Bellarmine College Prep get on the board and left with a 64-0 victory on Friday. The Warriors have beaten the Bells the last three times they've met, but they better watch out: this was the closest the Bells has come to flipping the script.
Ekiah Mclemore
| 10/10/25 vs Bellarmine College Prep | 192 |
| 09/05/25 @ Salinas | 112 |
| 08/29/25 vs Wilcox | 85 |
| 10/03/25 @ Archbishop Mitty | 42 |
| 09/12/25 vs Patterson | 41 |
| + 1 more games |
Ekiah Mclemore had another great game (as he tends to do), rushing for 192 yards and three touchdowns on only 12 carries. He is becoming a predictor of Valley Christian's success: when he posts at least 80 rushing yards the team is 2-1 (and 1-2 when he doesn't). Troy Calupad was in the mix too, providing the Warriors with two TDs.
They were just one part of a punishing run game: Valley Christian was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 394 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've posted since the start of last season.
Another reason for the win was Valley Christian's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for 5.5 sacks. Cameron Saunders was especially locked on to Bellarmine College Prep's QB and sacked him 2.5 times. Munachi Elias got in on the action too, converting a pick into a touchdown.
Meanwhile, Archbishop Riordan hadn't done well against St. Ignatius College Preparatory recently (they were 2-7 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Saturday. The Crusaders simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat the Wildcats 54-0. That looming 54-0 mark stands out as the most commanding margin for the Crusaders yet this season.
Valley Christian better keep an eye on Adonyae Brown. He was instrumental in Archbishop Riordan's win, rushing for 171 yards and four scores while picking up 10.7 yards per carry, and also picking up 36 receiving yards. Michael Mitchell Jr. was another key player, throwing for 317 yards and a pair of touchdowns while completing 77.3% of his passes.
Archbishop Riordan's record is now 6-0. As for Valley Christian, the win got them back to even at 3-3.
The upcoming matchup will be a clash of competing strengths. Valley Christian has deployed a run-first offense that has averaged 170.8 rushing yards a game. Meanwhile, Archbishop Riordan has preferred to attack from the air: they average 300.7 passing yards per game. So which strategy will prevail on Saturday? There's only one way to find out.
Valley Christian strolled past Archbishop Riordan in their previous meeting back in October of 2024 by a score of 31-13. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Warriors since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
