The Grant Pacers will head out on the road to face off against the Laguna Creek Cardinals at 7:15 p.m. on Friday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.
After a string of six wins, Grant's good fortune finally ran out on Friday. They and Monterey Trail were almost perfectly matched up, but Grant suffered an agonizing 35-34 defeat.
Despite the loss, Grant got a solid performance out of Wayshawn Parker, who rushed for 204 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 9.3 yards per carry. Parker hasn't dropped below two rushing touchdowns for three straight games. Devin Green also helped out as he racked up 103 rushing yards.
Meanwhile, Laguna Creek never let their opponents score two weeks ago. They blew past McClatchy 63-0 at home. The result was nothing new for Laguna Creek, who have now won five matches by 32 points or more so far this season.
Mitchell Labrado and Armon Thorntona were among the main playmakers for Laguna Creek as the former threw for 154 yards and four touchdowns on only 13 passes and the latter rushed for 124 yards and two touchdowns on only ten carries. Halim Tholley was in the mix too, providing Laguna Creek with two touchdowns.
Monterey Trail's win bumped their season record to 6-3 while Grant's loss dropped theirs to 7-2.
Friday's game might be decided on the ground as these two are both standouts in the run game. Grant has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 213.1 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Laguna Creek struggles in that department as they've been averaging 181.4 per game. It's looking like Friday's contest might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Everything came up roses for Grant against Laguna Creek in their previous matchup back in October of 2022 as the team secured a 56-21 win. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was Laguna Creek's Malachi Bean-seay, who picked up 137 receiving yards and three touchdowns. Now that he won't be playing on Friday, will it be that much easier for Grant to walk away with another win? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
