The Middletown North Lions will square off against the Manalapan Braves at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Both come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Middletown North is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Friday. They came out on top against Middletown South by a score of 28-19.
Matthew Belenko produced another solid performance rushing for 172 yards and a pair of touchdowns while picking up 8.6 yards per carry. His longest rush was for an incredible 75 yards. Kade Little got in on the action as well, converting a pick into a touchdown.
Middletown North didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The team can thank two different players for their defensive prowess: Mj Parulis and Little, who each picked up one interception apiece. Middletown North got some further help from Parulis: he picked up two sacks, made ten total tackles, and defended two passes in addition to snagging an interception.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Manalapan). They blew past Hamilton 40-0 on Friday. The final result isn't all that surprising considering the Braves' considerable advantage in MaxPreps' New Jersey football rankings (they are ranked 43rd, while the Hornets are ranked 202nd).
The victory made it two in a row for Manalapan and bumps their season record up to 7-3. The wins came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 38.5 points over those games. As for Middletown North, the victory got them back to even at 4-4.
Middletown North came up short against Manalapan when the teams last played back in September of 2022, falling 14-3. Can the Lions avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
