With a playoff game on the line, Athens rose to the challenge on Friday. They walked away with a 21-8 victory over the Linden-McKinley Panthers. The Bulldogs pushed the score to 21-0 by the end of the third, a deficit the Panthers cut but never quite recovered from.
Athens' success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Leo Martin led the charge by picking up 49 receiving yards and three touchdowns. Martin also deserves a shoutout for his performance on D, making eight total tackles and defending three passes in addition to snagging an interception. Athens also got a significant boost from Alex Pero, who ran away from the competition to the tune of 151 yards.
Athens' win was their ninth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 10-1. As for Linden-McKinley, the defeat snapped their winning streak at six games and leaves them with a 7-4 record.
Athens will take on Steubenville at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Steubenville will roll in looking for their 12th straight victory, something Athens surely won't give up without a fight. Linden-McKinley does not have any more games scheduled as of now.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
