Juniata has gone 3-0 against Bellefonte recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Saturday. The Juniata Indians will challenge the Bellefonte Raiders at 7:00 p.m. Juniata is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 29.6 points per game this season.
Two weeks ago, Juniata beat Upper Dauphin Area 21-13. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Indians.
Juniata's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Javier Lopez led the charge by rushing for 109 yards and two touchdowns on only 15 carries. Another pass catcher making a difference was Jasper Shepps, who picked up 89 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Juniata wouldn't let Upper Dauphin Area keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force two fumbles. Juniata can thank Matthew Spriggle and Wyatt Ehrenzeller for forcing both of them. Juniata got some further help from Lane Peiper: he made 13 total tackles (1.0 for loss).
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Bellefonte, who bounced back after a loss on the road two weeks ago. They were the clear victor by a 38-18 margin over Greater Johnstown last Friday. The result was nothing new for the Raiders, who have now won four contests by 20 points or more so far this season.
Liam Halterman was nothing short of spectacular: he rushed for 100 yards and three touchdowns, and also threw for 105 yards and a touchdown on only nine passes. That's the most rushing yards he has posted since back in August. Jackson Long got in on the action as well, returning a kick for a touchdown.
Juniata pushed their record up to 7-3 with the win, which was their seventh straight at home dating back to last season. Those good results were due in large part to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 9.1 points per game. As for Bellefonte, their record is now 7-4.
Everything came up roses for Juniata against Bellefonte when the teams last played back in November of 2023, as the squad secured a 37-0 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for Juniata since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
