The Pawling Tigers's homestand will continue as they prepare to take on the Ellenville Blue Devils at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Pawling's defense has only allowed 7.5 points per game this season, so Ellenville's offense will have their work cut out for them.
Pawling is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of New York's top teams: Eldred, who was ranked 16th in their home state at the time (Pawling was ranked 11th). Pawling was the clear victor by a 38-12 margin over Eldred two weeks ago. The score at the end of the third wound up being the final score as the Tigers just coasted through the last quarter.
Meanwhile, it can be hard to translate regular season success to the playoffs, but Ellenville had no problem doing just that on Friday. They came out on top in a nail-biter against the Bears , sneaking past 30-28. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win the Blue Devils have posted since October 27, 2023.
A big part of Ellenville's victory came down to the chemistry between Pedro Bonachea and his top target Marcus Lewis-Rivera. Bonachea rushed for 103 yards and two touchdowns while Lewis-Rivera rushed for 100 yards and two touchdowns on only five carries. The bulk of those rushing yards came from one huge play: a run that gained an incredible 53 yards.
Ellenville was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 214 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 155 rushing yards in three consecutive matchups.
Ellenville has been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five contests, which provided a nice bump to their 5-3 record this season. Those victories were due in large part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 26.2 points per game. As for Pawling, their record is now 7-1.
Everything came up roses for Pawling against Ellenville in their previous matchup back in October, as the squad secured a 50-20 win. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Lewis-Rivera, who picked up 75 receiving yards and a touchdown, and also rushed for 74 yards and a touchdown. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Pawling still be able to contain Lewis-Rivera? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
