Football Game Preview: La Vega Pirates vs. Carthage Bulldogs

The La Vega Pirates will take on the Carthage Bulldogs in a holiday battle at at 11:00 a.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.

La Vega is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Friday. They breezed by Wimberley to the tune of 62-35. The win was nothing new for the Pirates as they're now sitting on ten straight.

La Vega's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Bryson Roland led the charge by rushing for 189 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 7.9 yards per carry. Roland's rushing production has been exceptional recently as that marked his third straight game with at least 189 rushing yards. Kourtney Parr was another key passer, throwing for 263 yards and three touchdowns while completing 71.4% of his passes.

Roland was just one part of a punishing run game: La Vega was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 254 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 192 rushing yards in five consecutive matches.

Meanwhile, Carthage waltzed into their contest on Friday with 13 straight wins... but they left with 14. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat the Eagles 45-17. Carthage's victory was all the more impressive since the Eagles were averaging only 13 points allowed on the season.

Carthage's win was their 11th straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 14-1. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 50.2 points per game. As for La Vega, their victory bumped their record up to 12-3.

Things could have been worse for La Vega, but things could have been a whole lot better as they took a 42-28 loss to Carthage in their previous matchup back in December of 2019. Can La Vega avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.