Ridgway/Johnsonburg will face off against the Port Allegany Gators at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Ridgway/Johnsonburg is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They blew past Coudersport, posting a 45-16 win at home. The victory was a breath of fresh air for Ridgway/Johnsonburg as it put an end to their three-game losing streak.
Ridgway/Johnsonburg had a senior duo take command as Rocco Delhunty rushed for 161 yards and two touchdowns on only ten carries and Michael Gerg rushed for 113 yards and two touchdowns on only 15 carries. The dominant performance gave Delhunty a new career-high in rushing yards.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Ridgway/Johnsonburg was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 402 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 153 rushing yards in five consecutive games.
Meanwhile, Port Allegany put another one in the bag on Friday to keep their perfect season alive. They claimed a resounding 57-20 win over Union/Allegheny-Clarion Valley at home. The result was nothing new for the Gators, who have now won four matchups by 26 points or more so far this season.
Aiden Bliss was his usual excellent self, rushing for 208 yards and five touchdowns while picking up 13.0 yards per carry, and also catching a touchdown. His rushing production has been exceptional recently as that marked his fifth straight game with at least 127 rushing yards dating back to last season. Another player making a difference was Chase Boyd, who rushed for 74 yards and a touchdown on only ten carries.
Port Allegany's defense was in the mix too, especially the secondary: they snagged five passes before it was all said and done. Nick Wilfong led the group effort, picking up three of those interceptions all by himself.
Ridgway/Johnsonburg's victory bumped their record up to 2-3. As for Port Allegany, they pushed their record up to 5-0 with the win, which was their tenth straight at home dating back to last season.
Friday's match might be decided in the on the ground. Ridgway/Johnsonburg has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 266.8 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Port Allegany struggles in that department as they've been averaging 396.6. It's looking like Friday's contest might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Ridgway/Johnsonburg was dealt a bruising 40-0 loss at the hands of Port Allegany when the teams last played back in August of 2023. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Bliss, who rushed for 92 yards and a touchdown on only ten carries. Now that Ridgway/Johnsonburg knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
