The Santa Barbara Dons will head out to face off against the Calabasas Coyotes at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Santa Barbara will be strutting in after a victory while Calabasas will be coming in after a defeat.
Santa Barbara is headed into the matchup after thoroughly thrashing Rio Mesa: they outscored them in every quarter. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that the Dons blew the Spartans out of the water with a 45-13 final score. The final result isn't all that surprising considering the Dons' considerable advantage in MaxPreps' California football rankings (they are ranked 133rd, while the Spartans are ranked 352nd).
One reason for the win was Santa Barbara's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for 5.5 sacks. The heavy lifting was done by Henry Crafton and Nate Meister, who racked up 4.5 sacks between them. Santa Barbara got some further help from Reid Miller: he made three total tackles and defended two passes in addition to snagging two interceptions.
Meanwhile, Calabasas was not able to break out of their rough patch on Friday as the team picked up their third straight loss. They were beaten by Newbury Park 46-14. The Coyotes were in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 39-14.
Santa Barbara will have to contain Dominik Hardy as he made an impact in Calabasas' last game. He threw for 155 yards and a pair of TDs. Hardy's passing game has become a key predictor of Calabasas' success: the team is 3-1 when his passer rating is 110 or higher, but only 0-3 otherwise.
Santa Barbara now has a winning record of 4-3. As for Calabasas, they now have a losing record of 3-4.
Santa Barbara was able to grind out a solid win over Calabasas in their previous matchup back in October of 2024, winning 28-21. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Dons since the squad 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
