The Soquel Knights will face off against the Palma Chieftains at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. The two teams have allowed few points on average, (Soquel: 10.2, Palma: 13.4) so any points scored will be well earned.
Soquel is headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They breezed by Scotts Valley on the road to the tune of 63-3 last Saturday. Given the Knights' advantage in MaxPreps' California football rankings (they are ranked 60th, while the Falcons are ranked 653rd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Soquel's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Keyandre Bailey led the charge by rushing for 110 yards and three touchdowns on only six carries. Another back making a difference was Tyreis Lundy, who rushed for 140 yards and a touchdown on only eight carries.
He was just one part of a punishing run game: Soquel was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 330 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've managed all season.
Meanwhile, Palma has relied on a stalwart defense averaging 13.4 points allowed per game, but that average took a hit on Friday. They took a 39-25 bruising from Salinas. The defeat continues a trend for the Chieftains in their matchups with the Cowboys: they've now lost seven in a row.
Palma's loss shouldn't obscure the performances of Eli Dukes, who rushed for 193 yards and a touchdown, and Isaak Hernandez, who rushed for 92 yards and two touchdowns.
The victory got Soquel back to even at 2-2. As for Palma, their defeat dropped their record down to 3-2.
Friday's contest might be decided in the on the ground. Soquel has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 164.2 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Palma struggles in that department as they've been averaging 262.6. It's looking like Friday's game might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Soquel beat Palma 14-7 when the teams last played back in October of 2023. Will Soquel repeat their success, or does Palma have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
