The Grand Junction Tigers will head out on the road to face off against the Ponderosa Mustangs at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. One thing working in Grand Junction's favor is that they have posted at least 31 points in their last six matchups.
Grand Junction is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Sunday. They breezed by Longmont to the tune of 59-29. The result was nothing new for the Tigers, who have now won eight matches by 20 points or more so far this season.
It was another big night for Will Applegate, who threw for 264 yards and three touchdowns while completing 83.3% of his passes, and also rushed for 71 yards and two touchdowns on only six carries. He also put in work on the defensive side of the ball, making four total tackles and defending a pass. Mason Anderson also helped out with an impressive 133 receiving yards.
Grand Junction was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 244 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 178 rushing yards in seven consecutive contests.
Grand Junction didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Kolton Music and Izaak Martinez. Music is also on a roll when it comes to total tackles, as he's now made five or more in the last four games he's played.
Meanwhile, Ponderosa waltzed into their game two weeks ago with three straight wins... but they left with four. They came out on top against the Eagles by a score of 45-34.
De'Alcapon Veazy continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 222 yards and three touchdowns. With that strong performance, he is now averaging an impressive 113.2 rushing yards per game. Another player making a difference was Troy McWhorter, who picked up 55 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Ponderosa is on a roll lately: they've won six of their last seven matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 7-3 record this season. Those victories were due in large part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 39.4 points per game. As for Grand Junction, their win was their seventh straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 10-1.
Saturday's match might be decided in the on the ground. Grand Junction has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 250.5 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Ponderosa struggles in that department as they've been averaging 205.1. It's looking like Saturday's contest might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Grand Junction was dealt a bruising 45-14 defeat at the hands of Ponderosa in their previous matchup back in October of 2020. Thankfully for Grand Junction, Jack Hanenburg (who threw for 315 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 11.3 yards per attempt, and also rushed for 99 yards and two touchdowns) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
