Two dominant backs in Kaya Madhlazi and Texas Wilde are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Layton Christian Academy Eagles will square off against the Judge Memorial Catholic Bulldogs at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.
Layton Christian Academy will bounce into Friday's matchup after beating South Summit, who they hadn't topped in four consecutive meetings. Layton Christian Academy claimed a resounding 45-14 victory over South Summit at home. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Eagles.
It was another big night for Madhlazi, who rushed for 198 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 12.4 yards per carry. He is becoming a predictor of Layton Christian Academy's success: when he posts at least two rushing touchdowns the team is 2-1 (and 1-2 when he doesn't). Brayden Bott made the highlight reel by snagging an interception and taking it all the way to the house.
Layton Christian Academy's defense stepped up as well, laying out the QB eight times. The heavy lifting was done by Iverson Report and Emili Pauni, who racked up six sacks between them. Report is also on a roll when it comes to total tackles, as he's now made six or more in the last four games he's played. Layton Christian Academy got some further help from Penisoni Talanoa (Sonny): he forced a fumble, made four total tackles (3.0 for loss), and made four total tackles (3.0 for loss).
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Judge Memorial Catholic). They simply couldn't be stopped on Friday as they easily beat Providence Hall 56-6 on the road. The Bulldogs pushed the score to 56-0 by the end of the third, a deficit the Patriots cut but never quite recovered from.
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Judge Memorial Catholic to victory, but perhaps none more so than Wilde, who rushed for 115 yards and two touchdowns on only six carries. Taki Tonga was another key player, rushing for 56 yards and two touchdowns on only six carries.
He was just one part of a punishing run game: Judge Memorial Catholic was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 222 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've posted since back in October of 2023.
Judge Memorial Catholic's defense was in the mix too, especially the secondary: they snagged five passes before it was all said and done. Red Fuller led the group effort, picking up two of those interceptions all by himself.
The win got Layton Christian Academy back to even at 3-3. As for Judge Memorial Catholic, their victory ended an eight-game drought on the road dating back to last season and puts them at 2-4.
Everything came up roses for Layton Christian Academy against Judge Memorial Catholic in their previous matchup back in September of 2023 as the squad secured a 56-6 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for Layton Christian Academy 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
