The Garden Spot Spartans will face off against the Solanco Golden Mules at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both teams are coming into the contest red-hot, with Garden Spot sitting on three straight victories and Solanco on eight.
If Solanco heads into halftime all tied up, they better play a good second half: that's when Garden Spot took over last week. The Spartans took down Manheim Central 31-14 on Friday.
Gabe Martin
| 09/19/25 @ Fleetwood | 140 |
| 10/03/25 @ Conrad Weiser | 131 |
| 10/10/25 @ Bristol | 130 |
| 10/17/25 vs Manheim Central | 116 |
| 09/26/25 vs Warwick | 47 |
| + 4 more games |
Garden Spot had a senior duo take command as Gabe Martin rushed for 116 yards while picking up 7.3 yards per carry and Andrew Pemberton gained 112 total yards and two touchdowns. Martin is becoming a predictor of the Spartans' success: when he posts at least 80 rushing yards the team is undefeated (and 1-4 when he doesn't).
Garden Spot's run defense was locked in: Manheim Central could only muster 3.1 yards per carry. The Spartans' ground attack was stronger, having averaged 5.2.
Meanwhile, everything came up roses for Solanco against Fleetwood on Friday as the team secured a 49-13 win. The Golden Mules might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won eight matchups by 28 points or more this season.
Solanco's win came from a few key players Garden Spot will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Kris Burgos-Wise, who rushed for 102 yards and a pair of TDs. He got the majority of those rushing yards when he took off on a run that went for an incredible 66 yards. Another player making a difference was Chase Sensenig, who rushed for 45 yards and one touchdown.
Special teams was a major factor in the game for Solanco, racking up 13 points in total. The biggest highlight from special teams (and perhaps the team as a whole) came courtesy of Eric (Cook) Koch, who ran a punt back for a touchdown.
Solanco's victory bumped their record up to 8-1. As for Garden Spot, they now have a winning record of 5-4.
Friday's game might be decided on the ground. Garden Spot has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 163.9 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Solanco struggles in that department as they've been averaging 320.8 rushing yards. There's a good chance Friday's contest turns into a tough fight on the ground.
Garden Spot couldn't quite get it done against Solanco in their previous meeting back in October of 2024 as they fell 35-27. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of the Golden Mules' Johnny Garcia, who rushed for 182 yards and four scores. Now that the Spartans know the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? There's only one way to find out.
