A feisty cat fight will be fought when Panthers takes on the Claxton Tigers at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.
Portal is headed into the match out to prove that what happened against Emanuel County Institute on Friday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Portal took a blow against Emanuel County Institute, falling 38-3. The matchup marked the Panthers' lowest-scoring game so far this season.
Despite the defeat, Portal had strong showings from Harold Washington, who gained 117 total yards, and Samari Mcbride, who rushed for 61 yards. Those 61 rushing yards gave Mcbride a new career-high.
Meanwhile, Claxton had to endure an 11-game losing streak dating back to last season, but that streak is no more. They simply couldn't be stopped on Friday as they easily beat Savannah 42-8 on the road. The contest was pretty much decided by the half, when the score had already reached 21-0.
Jontarrius Calhoun continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 206 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 7.6 yards per carry. That high mark didn't come from nowhere: he posted at least 100 rushing yards in the third games prior.
Claxton didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Averi Phillips and Junior Waller. Another thorn in Savannah's side was Dereon Brewton, who picked up two sacks and made eight total tackles (3.0 for loss).
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Claxton was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 325 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've managed all season.
Portal dropped their record down to 2-4 with the loss, which was their fourth straight at home dating back to last season. As for Claxton, their victory ended a seven-game drought on the road dating back to last season and puts them at 1-7.
Portal came up short against Claxton in their previous matchup back in October of 2021, falling 20-15. Can Portal avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
