Two dominant signal callers in Matthew Ramos and Daniel Gonzalez are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. After each having a week off, the Hillcrest Trojans and the Arlington Lions will dust off their jerseys to square off against one another at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Hillcrest's defense has only allowed 14.6 points per game this season, so Arlington's offense will have their work cut out for them.
Hillcrest's defense heads into the matchup hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed last Friday. They took their match on the road with ease, bagging a 37-0 win over Lakeside. The Trojans might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won three contests by 33 points or more this season.
Ramos continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, throwing for 281 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 11.2 yards per attempt, and also rushing for 33 yards and two touchdowns. Julian Sandoval was Ramos' top target, picking up 127 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Another reason for the win was Hillcrest's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for eight sacks. Lakeside's QB won't forget Jayden Nieto anytime soon given he sacked him twice. Ziah Guerrero was another major factor on D, picking up 1.5 sacks, making five total tackles (2.5 for loss), and defending a pass.
Meanwhile, Arlington came up short against Bell Gardens two weeks ago and fell 29-21.
Despite the defeat, Arlington got top-tier performance from Gonzalez, who rushed for 121 yards and a touchdown while picking up 7.1 yards per carry, and also threw for 231 yards and a touchdown while picking up 11.6 yards per attempt. Andrew Rogers was another key player, picking up 112 receiving yards and a touchdown.
The victory made it two in a row for Hillcrest and bumps their season record up to 4-1. As for Arlington, their loss dropped their record down to 3-2.
Friday's game might be decided in the on the ground. Hillcrest has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 252.4 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Arlington struggles in that department as they've been averaging 224.5. It's looking like Friday's matchup might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Hillcrest beat Arlington 31-21 when the teams last played back in October of 2023. Does Hillcrest have another victory up their sleeve, or will Arlington turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
