After each having a week off, the Gadsden Panthers and the Lovington Wildcats will shake off the rust and duke it out at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Gadsden is coming into the matchup on a three-game losing streak.
Gadsden is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of New Mexico's top teams: Roswell, who was ranked ninth at the time (Gadsden was ranked 22nd). The Panthers took a 33-14 bruising from the Coyotes last Friday.
The loss doesn't tell the whole story though, as several players had good games. One of the most active was ETHAN MORALES, who rushed for 40 yards and one touchdown, and also threw for 141 yards and one TD. ARMANDO RAMIREZ was another key player, gaining 64 total yards and a touchdown.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Lovington). They blew past Mayfield, posting a 50-6 win. Perhaps unsurprisingly given the team's high-flying offense, the game also marked the team's biggest victory of the season.
A big part of Lovington's win came down to the chemistry between Justin Allen and his top target Elijah Rivero. Allen threw for 117 yards and a pair of TDs on only ten passes while Rivero picked up 143 receiving yards and a pair of scores. Allen's passing game has become a key predictor of Lovington's success: the team is 2-1 when his passer rating is 100 or higher, but only 1-3 otherwise. Zachary Diaz was in the mix too, providing the Wildcats with two touchdowns.
Gadsden's loss dropped their record down to 4-3. As for Lovington, their victory ended a four-game drought on the road dating back to last season and puts them at 3-4.
Gadsden didn't have too much breathing room in their game against Lovington in their previous matchup back in October of 2024, but they still walked away with a 32-28 win. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was the Wildcats' Mathew Prudencio, who threw for 219 yards and three TDs. Now that he won't be playing on Friday, will it be easier for the Panthers to walk away with another win? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
