Viera is 8-2 against Melbourne since October of 2014, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Friday. The Viera Hawks will venture away from home to face off against the Melbourne Bulldogs at 7:00 p.m. Viera is no doubt hoping to put an end to a three-game streak of away losses.
Viera is headed into the contest out to prove that what happened against Osceola on Tuesday (when they were outscored in every quarter) was just a minor bump in the road. Viera was outmatched by Osceola at home and fell 49-9.
Despite the defeat, Viera had strong showings from Eric Nelson, who threw for 180 yards on 15 of 22 attempts, and Jack Hancock, who picked up 98 receiving yards.
Meanwhile, in Tuesday's Canine Competition, Melbourne came out on top. They managed a 19-13 victory over Lyman on Tuesday. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Bulldogs.
The critical scores for Melbourne came from Noah Mcnair, Kymarion Johnson, and Michael Rogers.
Melbourne didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off four passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Mcnair and Kevin Thorpe. Melbourne got some further help from Wyatt Votava: he made 19 total tackles (3.0 for loss).
Viera's loss dropped their record down to 3-5. As for Melbourne, they have been performing well recently as they've won five of their last six matches, which provided a nice bump to their 5-3 record this season.
Friday's matchup might be decided in the on the ground. Viera has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 160.5 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Melbourne struggles in that department as they've been averaging 209. It's looking like Friday's game might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Viera strolled past Melbourne when the teams last played back in October of 2023 by a score of 31-14. The rematch might be a little tougher for Viera 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
