Two dominant signal callers in Wyatt Horton and Tait Reynolds are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Pinnacle Pioneers will challenge the Queen Creek Bulldogs at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, both will really light up the scoreboard.
Pinnacle is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Friday. They breezed by Mountain Pointe to the tune of 46-7. The Pioneers might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won six contests by 31 points or more this season.
Xavier Valdivia was his usual excellent self, rushing for 111 yards and two touchdowns. The dominant performance gave him a new career-high in rushing yards. Alex Lugo got in on the action as well, returning a kick for a touchdown.
Another reason for the win was Pinnacle's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for seven sacks. It was truly a group effort as Owen Pimbert, Dillon Aakre, and Ian Garcia picked up two apiece. Pimbert is also on a roll when it comes to total tackles, as he's now made five or more in the last three games he's played.
Special teams played a big role in the game for Pinnacle, adding 20 points to the final score. All came courtesy of Ryan Orzol: he went 3-for-3 kicking field goals for nine points, and 5-for-5 kicking extra points for an additional five.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Queen Creek, who bounced back after a loss on the road last Friday. They enjoyed a cozy 42-28 victory over O'Connor on Friday.
It was another big night for Reynolds, who rushed for 176 yards and three touchdowns on only 11 carries, and also threw for 152 yards and a touchdown. Lucas George also helped out as he racked up 102 rushing yards.
Queen Creek was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 294 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 174 rushing yards in eight consecutive games.
Queen Creek pushed their record up to 9-2 with the win, which was their sixth straight at home. Those good results were due in large part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 35.0 points per game. As for Pinnacle, the victory was the fourth in a row for them, bringing their record for this year to 8-3.
Friday's matchup might be decided in the on the ground. Pinnacle has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 164.6 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Queen Creek struggles in that department as they've been averaging 218.8. It's looking like Friday's match might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Pinnacle was able to grind out a solid win over Queen Creek in their previous meeting back in November of 2022, winning 24-14. The rematch might be a little tougher for Pinnacle since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
