Paraclete has been away from home for two games now, but on Friday they'll finally make their return. They will host the St. Paul Swordsmen at 7:00 p.m. Paraclete is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 29 points per game this season.
Last Friday, Paraclete came up short against St. Francis and fell 39-30. The defeat continues a trend for the Spirits in their matchups with the Golden Knights: they've now lost three in a row.
Despite the loss, Paraclete had strong showings from Joseph Mesa, who threw for 331 yards and three touchdowns while completing 81.8% of his passes, and Eric Green, who gained 196 total yards and two touchdowns. Green also put in work on the defensive side of the ball, making 11 total tackles and defending two passes. Adrian Jones was Mesa's top target, picking up 93 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask St. Paul). They blew past Bishop Alemany, posting a 31-2 win at home. Winning may never get old, but the Swordsmen sure are getting used to it with their third in a row.
St. Paul found their leader in underclassman Marley Luatua, who rushed for 131 yards and two touchdowns on only 13 carries. Luatua's rushing production has been exceptional recently as that marked his fourth straight game with at least 102 rushing yards. St. Paul also got a significant boost from Jace Levario, who ran away from the competition to the tune of 81 yards.
St. Paul was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 241 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 200 rushing yards in four consecutive matches.
Paraclete's defeat dropped their record down to 4-4. As for St. Paul, their victory bumped their record up to 5-3.
The upcoming matchup will be a clash of competing strengths. Paraclete has relied on air attacks this season and has averaged 341.2 passing yards per game. St. Paul, on the other hand, has relied on a stout run game: they average 195 rushing yards per game. So which strategy will prevail on Friday? There's only one way to find out.
Paraclete came up short against St. Paul in their previous meeting back in October of 2023, falling 40-28. Thankfully for Paraclete, Christian Melendez (who rushed for 183 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 9.6 yards per carry) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
