The Van Vleck Leopards will venture away from home to take on the Bloomington Bobcats/Lady Cats at 7:30 p.m. on Friday. Given that both suffered a loss in their last game, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this matchup.
Last Friday, Van Vleck came up short against The Woodlands Christian Academy and fell 45-34.
Despite the defeat, Van Vleck had strong showings from Corey Austin, who rushed for 150 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 8.8 yards per carry, and Chris Martinez, who gained 137 total yards and two touchdowns. The dominant performance gave Martinez a new career-high in rushing yards.
Even though they lost, Van Vleck was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 319 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 235 rushing yards in four consecutive matches dating back to last season.
Van Vleck wouldn't let The Woodlands Christian Academy keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force two fumbles. Van Vleck can thank Wade Hutson and Collin Ashworth for forcing both of them.
Meanwhile, Bloomington lost 43-20 to Ben Bolt on Friday. The Bobcats/Lady Cats have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Amari Gardner put forth a good effort for the losing side as he rushed for 69 yards and a touchdown on only eight carries.
Van Vleck now has a losing record at 1-2. As for Bloomington, they now also have a losing record at 1-2.
Friday's game might be decided in the trenches. Van Vleck has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 330 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Bloomington struggles in that department as they've been averaging 287. It's looking like Friday's contest might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Everything came up roses for Van Vleck against Bloomington when the teams last played back in November of 2019 as the team secured a 47-6 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for Van Vleck 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
