The Martinsville Bluestreaks will head out on the road to face off against the South Fork/Edinburg/Morrisonville Ponies at 1:00 p.m. on Friday. Martinsville has given up an average of 30.5 points per game this season, but Friday's game will give them a chance to turn things around.
Martinsville is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Illinois' top teams: Oblong, who was ranked 11th at the time (Martinsville was ranked 19th). The Bluestreaks were outmatched by the Panthers and fell 50-14. The Bluestreaks were already down big by the end of the third quarter and they stayed that way after failing to score in the fourth.
Martinsville might have lost, but man, Gabe Griffin was a machine: he rushed for 83 yards and two TDs.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask South Fork/Edinburg/Morrisonville). They really took it to Hutsonville/Palestine for the full four quarters, racking up a 68-38 win. The Ponies' victory was nothing new given the team hasn't lost yet this season.
Martinsville better keep an eye on George Bailey. He was instrumental in South Fork/Edinburg/Morrisonville's win, rushing for 275 yards and four scores on only ten carries. Bailey is crushing it when it comes to rushing touchdowns: he's punched in at least two every time he's taken the field this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Brodey Vanhooser, who threw for 149 yards and three touchdowns on only nine passes.
They were just one part of a punishing run game: South Fork/Edinburg/Morrisonville was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 491 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 171 rushing yards every time they've taken the field this season.
On the defensive side of the ball, a lot of the credit has to go to South Fork/Edinburg/Morrisonville's defensive line and their three sacks. The team can thank three different players for their defensive prowess: Carter Elder, Jhude Walker, and Brody Pop, who each picked up one sack apiece.
This is the second loss in a row for Martinsville and nudges their season record down to 3-5. Those defeats can't be blamed on the team's offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 27.0 points over those games. As for South Fork/Edinburg/Morrisonville, their win bumped their record up to 8-0.
Everything came up roses for Martinsville against South Fork/Edinburg/Morrisonville when the teams last played back in September of 2024, as the team secured a 38-0 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Bluestreaks since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
