The Pioneer Mustangs will face off against the Willow Glen Rams at 7:15 p.m. on Friday. Both come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Pioneer took a loss when they played away from home two weeks ago, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Friday. They skirted past Leigh 24-21. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Mustangs have posted since September 22, 2023.
The critical scores for Pioneer came from Sam Natividad, Thomas Fries, and Fries.
Pioneer was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 263 rushing yards. That's the most rushing yards they've managed all season.
Meanwhile, Willow Glen put another one in the bag on Friday to keep their perfect season alive. They came out on top against Eureka by a score of 29-16.
Willow Glen can attribute much of their success to Aiden Akery, who rushed for 22 yards and two touchdowns, and also threw for 148 yards and a touchdown while completing 84.6% of his passes.
The win got Pioneer back to even at 2-2. As for Willow Glen, they pushed their record up to 3-0 with the victory, which was their third straight at home.
Friday's match might be decided in the on the ground. Pioneer has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 165 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Willow Glen struggles in that department as they've been averaging 193. It's looking like Friday's game might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Pioneer came up short against Willow Glen in their previous matchup back in September of 2023, falling 24-17. Thankfully for Pioneer, Cedeno Chavez (who rushed for 127 yards and two touchdowns, and also threw for 144 yards and a touchdown) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
