Chaparral has been away from home for three games now, but on Friday they'll finally make their return. They will challenge the Murrieta Valley Nighthawks at 7:00 p.m. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, both will really light up the scoreboard.
Chaparral will bounce into Friday's matchup after beating Vista Murrieta, who they hadn't topped in nine consecutive meetings. Chaparral breezed by Vista Murrieta on the road to the tune of 55-28 on Friday. The result was nothing new for the Pumas, who have now won four contests by 21 points or more so far this season.
The match pitted two dominant signal callers against one another in Dane Weber and Bryson Beaver. Weber had a great game and rushed for 167 yards and three touchdowns on only 12 carries. Meanwhile, Beaver did his best for the losing side, throwing for 185 yards and three touchdowns.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Chaparral was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 280 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've posted since back in October of 2023.
Chaparral didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Logan Coleman and Camren Williams.
Meanwhile, Murrieta Valley came tearing into Thursday's game with three straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 36 points) and they left with even more momentum. They strolled past the Cougars with points to spare, taking the game 42-27. Given the Nighthawks' advantage in MaxPreps' California football rankings (they are ranked 18th, while the Cougars are ranked 114th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Dorian Hoze was his usual excellent self, rushing for 163 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 7.4 yards per carry. His rushing production has been exceptional recently as that marked his third straight game with at least 130 rushing yards dating back to last season. The team also got some help courtesy of Ty Isaia, who threw for 139 yards and three touchdowns.
Chaparral's win bumped their record up to 5-1. As for Murrieta Valley, their victory was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 5-1.
Friday's match might be decided in the on the ground. Chaparral has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 172.2 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Murrieta Valley struggles in that department as they've been averaging 216.8. It's looking like Friday's matchup might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Chaparral won a contest that couldn't have been any closer in their previous matchup back in October of 2023, slipping by Murrieta Valley 36-35. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Hoze, who rushed for 210 yards and three touchdowns. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Chaparral still be able to contain Hoze? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
