Martinsville faced Oblong in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Friday. 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.
When it comes to explaining why Martinsville lost, don't look at Gabe Griffin. Despite the final result, he rushed for 83 yards and two scores.
Oblong's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Lucas Blessing led the charge by rushing for 208 yards and a pair of touchdowns while picking up 9.5 yards per carry. Blessing's rushing production has been exceptional recently as that marked his third straight game with at least 208 rushing yards. Another player making a difference was Caden Goodwin, who gained 165 total yards and two touchdowns.
This is the second loss in a row for Martinsville and nudges their season record down to 3-5. Admittedly, the team was facing some tough opposition over that stretch, including 6-1 Metro-East Lutheran (their opponents had an average overall winning percentage of 67.9% over those games). As for Oblong, their victory ended a three-game drought on the road and puts them at 4-4.
Looking ahead, Martinsville will face off against South Fork/Edinburg/Morrisonville at 1:00 p.m. on Friday. The Bluestreaks will need to watch out since the Ponies have now posted at least 31 points in their last five matchups. As for Oblong, they will be playing at home against Metro-East Lutheran at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
