Football Preview: Linden Lions vs. Big Valley Christian Lions
The Linden Lions will head out on the road to square off against the Big Valley Christian Lions at 7:15 p.m. on Friday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the two teams posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.
Linden took a loss when they played away from home on September 6th, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed two weeks ago. They took their contest at home with ease, bagging a 42-7 win over Center. Given the Lions' advantage in MaxPreps' California football rankings (they are ranked 314th, while the Cougars are ranked 833rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Matthew Schallberger was his usual excellent self, throwing for 345 yards and four touchdowns while completing 71.4% of his passes. Braden Busalacchi was Schallberger's top target, picking up 117 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Big Valley Christian). They breezed by River Islands on the road to the tune of 52-8 on Friday. The Lions pushed the score to 38-8 by the end of the third, a deficit the Riptide had little chance of recovering from.
Big Valley Christian found their leader in underclassman Travis Lema, who threw for 179 yards and four touchdowns on only 13 passes. Those four passing touchdowns set a new season-high mark for Lema.
Linden's victory bumped their record up to 3-1. As for Big Valley Christian, the win made it two in a row for them and also bumps their season record up to 3-1.
Here's a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Friday's match: Linden has been excellent in the air this season, having averaged 311.2 passing yards per game. It's a different story for Big Valley Christian, though, as they've been averaging only 123. How will they fare against such a dominant passing game?
Everything came up roses for Linden against Big Valley Christian in their previous matchup back in March of 2021, as the team secured a 34-6 victory. Does Linden have another victory up their sleeve, or will Big Valley Christian turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
