The Maize Eagles will take on the Valley Center Hornets at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Maize will be strutting in after a win while Valley Center will be coming in after a defeat.
Last Friday, Maize made easy work of Maize South and carried off a 55-30 victory. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Eagles.
Brayden Myovela had a dynamite game for Maize, rushing for 98 yards and two touchdowns on only 12 carries, while also throwing for 185 yards and two touchdowns on only 17 passes. Those 98 rushing yards gave Myovela a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Elijah Cross, who rushed for 101 yards and two touchdowns on only 13 carries.
He was just one part of a punishing run game: Maize was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 314 rushing yards. That's a new trend for them: they were averaging 72 rushing yards per game earlier this season, but in their last three matchups they've averaged 258.7.
Meanwhile, a win for Valley Center just wasn't in the cards on Friday as the squad wasn't able to take the lead at any point. They were beaten by Derby 49-6. While losing is never fun, the Hornets can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Kansas football rankings (they are ranked 73rd, while the Panthers are ranked second).
Maize's victory ended a four-game drought on the road dating back to last season and puts them at 2-4. As for Valley Center, their loss was their fourth straight on the road dating back to last season, which dropped their record down to 1-5.
Friday's contest might be decided in the trenches. Maize has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 165.3 rushing yards per game. It's a different story for Valley Center, though, as they've been averaging only 79.8. How will they fare against such a dominant running game?
Everything came up roses for Maize against Valley Center in their previous matchup back in September of 2019, as the team secured a 47-0 win. Does Maize have another victory up their sleeve, or will Valley Center turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
