For the first time this season, Liberty will have a chance to prove themselves in a conference matchup. They will challenge the Mountain Ridge Mountain Lions at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the two teams posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.
Liberty is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Arizona's top teams: Pinnacle, who was ranked seventh at the time (Liberty was ranked second). The Lions took their contest on Friday with ease, bagging a 39-8 win over the Pioneers. The victory was nothing new for the Lions as they're now sitting on three straight.
Brayden Stevens
| 09/26/25 @ Pinnacle | 156.9 |
| 09/19/25 vs ALA - Queen Creek | 149.3 |
| 09/12/25 @ Highland | 49 |
| 09/05/25 @ Corner Canyon | 25.3 |
| 08/28/25 vs Mountain View | 91.7 |
| + 3 more games |
Liberty can attribute much of their success to Brayden Stevens, who threw for 132 yards and three TDs while completing 83.3% of his passes, and Kam Segall, who picked up 86 receiving yards and a pair of touchdowns. What's more, Stevens racked up 156.9 passer rating, the most he's had since back in September of 2024.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Mountain Ridge). They had just enough and edged out Valley Vista 41-39. The Mountain Lions haven't had any issues with the Monsoon recently, as the game was their sixth consecutive win against them.
Mountain Ridge's win came from a few key players Liberty will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Lukas Baughman, who threw for 252 yards and four touchdowns. Sanel Eminovic was in the mix too, providing Mountain Ridge with two scores.
One reason for the win was Mountain Ridge's imposing defensive line, which managed to get into the backfield for five sacks. Leading the way was Havish Chirumamilla with two. Mountain Ridge got some further help from Brody Lima: he picked up a sack and made four total tackles (4.0 for loss).
Liberty's victory bumped their record up to 4-1. As for Mountain Ridge, their win (their first of the season) made their record 1-4.
Everything came up roses for Liberty against Mountain Ridge in their previous matchup back in October of 2022, as the squad secured a 42-0 victory. Will the Lions repeat their success, or do the Mountain Lions have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
