New Palestine is 9-0 against Delta since October of 2014, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Friday. The New Palestine Dragons will head out on the road to face off against the Delta Eagles at 7:30 p.m. New Palestine is coming into the match hot, having won their last six games.
Last Friday, New Palestine was fully in charge, breezing past New Castle 35-7 on the road. Given New Palestine's advantage in MaxPreps' Indiana football rankings (they are ranked 21st, while New Castle is ranked 158th), the result wasn't exactly an upset.
Grayson Thomas continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 210 yards and five touchdowns. Thomas is on a roll when it comes to rushing yards, as he's now rushed for 100 or more in the last seven games he's played. Gavin Neal and his 93 yards on the ground were also a key factor in New Palestine's win.
The team's defense also helped out by holding New Castle to a paltry 164 yards. A big part of that defensive dominance came down to New Palestine's ability to keep the quarterback under pressure: the team laid him out five times before it was all said and done. The heavy lifting was done by Caden Jacobia and Garrett Ranes who racked up four sacks between them.
Meanwhile, Delta lost to Greenfield-Central on the road by a decisive 28-9 margin on Friday. That means Delta has now suffered back-to-back defeats.
New Palestine's win lifted them to 6-2 while Delta's loss dropped them down to 5-3.
Friday's game might be decided on the ground as these two are both standouts in the run game. New Palestine has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 255.2 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Delta struggles in that department as they've been averaging 163.2 per game. It's looking like Friday's contest might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Everything came up roses for New Palestine against Delta when the teams last played back in October of 2022 as the squad secured a 47-7 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for New Palestine since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
