After two games on the road, Ventura is heading back home. They will host the Newbury Park Panthers at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Both are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Ventura's defense heads into the match hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Friday. They breezed by Dos Pueblos on the road to the tune of 33-0. Given the Cougars' advantage in MaxPreps' California football rankings (they are ranked 238th, while the Chargers are ranked 670th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
It was another big night for Derek Garcia, who threw for 297 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 11.4 yards per attempt. Josh Woodworth was Garcia's top target, picking up 66 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Meanwhile, Newbury Park put another one in the bag last Friday to keep their perfect season alive. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat St. Pius X-St. Matthias Academy 44-14 at home. Fans of the Panthers have seen this all before: every one of the games they've played this season has ended in a blowout of 20+ points.
A big part of Newbury Park's win came down to the chemistry between Brady Smigiel and his top target Shane Rosenthal. Smigiel threw for 317 yards and five touchdowns while Rosenthal picked up 95 receiving yards and four touchdowns. Tyler Stromsoe helped Smigiel out on the ground, rushing for 64 yards and a touchdown.
Newbury Park's defense made their presence known, laying out the QB five times. In that department, Balen Betancourt was the leader with two sacks. Betancourt is also crushing it when it comes to total tackles: he's made at least six every time he's taken the field this season.
The victory got Ventura back to even at 2-2. As for Newbury Park, their win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 4-0.
Ventura came up short against Newbury Park in their previous meeting back in November of 2023, falling 42-30. Will Ventura have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more football content.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
