Winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Mercedes). They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 41-38 victory over the Lopez Lobos on Friday. The high-flying offensive performance was a huge turnaround for the Tigers considering their seven-point performance the match before.
It was another big night for Robert Sanchez, who rushed for 188 yards and five touchdowns while picking up 10.4 yards per carry.
He was just one part of a punishing run game: Mercedes was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 238 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 169 rushing yards in seven consecutive games.
When it comes to explaining why Lopez lost, don't look at Eddie Slovak. Despite the final result, he rushed for 236 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 7.2 yards per carry. Slovak's rushing production has been exceptional recently as that marked his fifth straight game with at least 110 rushing yards dating back to last season. Another player making a difference was Guadalupe Ramirez, who threw for 176 yards and two touchdowns.
Mercedes now has a winning record of 4-3. As for Lopez, with the defeat, they broke their three-game winning streak and moved their record to 5-2.
Mercedes will head out to square off against Pharr-San Juan-Alamo Southwest at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Mercedes is facing Pharr-San Juan-Alamo Southwest at the right time seeing as Pharr-San Juan-Alamo Southwest is stuck on a five-game losing streak. As for Lopez, they will welcome Porter at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Porter is coming into the contest with four straight losses on the road, meaning Lopez will have to defend against a team hungry for a win.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
