The Westlake Academy Blacksmiths will be playing at home against the East Texas Homeschool Sports Chargers at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Westlake Academy entered their tilt with Texas Wind with three consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with four. Westlake Academy blew past Texas Wind, posting a 52-6 victory on the road. Westlake Academy's offense checked out after the first half but had enough points banked to take the game anyway.
Andrew Hoang went supernova for Westlake Academy, rushing for 100 yards and four touchdowns on only eight carries. Nicolas Sansone made the highlight reel by snagging an interception and taking it all the way to the house.
Meanwhile, even though Fort Worth THESA scored an imposing 40 points on Friday, East Texas Homeschool Sports still came out on top. East Texas Homeschool Sports blew past Fort Worth THESA 76-40 on the road. Given East Texas Homeschool Sports' advantage in MaxPreps' Texas football rankings (they are ranked 25th, while Fort Worth THESA is ranked 96th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Connor Pendergast was a one-man wrecking crew for East Texas Homeschool Sports as he rushed for 183 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 10.8 yards per carry, and also picked up 36 receiving yards. Gracyn Trimble was another key contributor, gaining 141 total yards and three touchdowns.
Westlake Academy's win was their fourth straight on the road, which bumped their overall record up to 4-3. That said, the team wasn't facing the toughest opposition over that stretch, as it included 2-7 Hill County and 2-6 Highlands (their opponents had an average overall winning percentage of 36.8% over those games). As for East Texas Homeschool Sports, their win bumped their record up to 6-1.
Keep an eye on the end zone in Friday's game as both teams haven't had much trouble getting there this season. Westlake Academy commands a daunting offense this season, having averaged 5.7 touchdowns per game. However, it's not like East Texas Homeschool Sports struggles in that department as they've been even better at 6.5 per game. With these two high-octane teams facing off on Friday, fans should be in for an exciting offensive matchup.
Westlake Academy lost to East Texas Homeschool Sports at home by a decisive 53-38 margin in their previous meeting back in November of 2022. Thankfully for Westlake Academy, Josh Dragoo (who rushed for 184 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 8.4 yards per carry) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
