The Doral Academy Red Rock Dragons will square off against the Mater Academy East Las Vegas Knights at 4:30 p.m. on Monday. The squads are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: Doral Academy Red Rock has struggled recently with seven defeats in a row, while Mater Academy East Las Vegas will arrive with four straight victories.
Last Friday, Doral Academy Red Rock was within striking distance but couldn't close the gap as they fell 26-21 to Moapa Valley.
Despite the loss, Doral Academy Red Rock had strong showings from Merseillez Mika, who picked up 119 receiving yards and two touchdowns, and Nadine Barron, who threw for 185 yards and three touchdowns. Mika is becoming a predictor of Doral Academy Red Rock's success: when she posts at least two receiving touchdowns the team is 3-1 (and 0-12 when she doesn't).
Doral Academy Red Rock didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off three passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Adisynne McMahon and Mika.
Meanwhile, Mater Academy East Las Vegas faced Sports Leadership & Management in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Friday. Mater Academy East Las Vegas secured a 24-19 W over Sports Leadership & Management.
Mater Academy East Las Vegas found their leader in sophomore Cheyanne Thornhill, who rushed for 63 yards and one touchdown on only six carries, and also threw for 99 yards and three touchdowns. Thornhill has been hot recently, having posted three or more passing touchdowns the last four times she's played.
One reason for the win was Mater Academy East Las Vegas' imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for three sacks. In fact, those sacks all came courtesy of defensive juggernaut Serina Mendez.
Mater Academy East Las Vegas' win was their fifth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 16-6. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 34.4 points per game. As for Doral Academy Red Rock, their defeat dropped their record down to 3-13.
Doral Academy Red Rock ended up a good deal behind Mater Academy East Las Vegas when the teams last played back in February of 2024, losing 38-22. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Thornhill, who threw for 268 yards and five touchdowns, and also rushed for 52 yards. Now that Doral Academy Red Rock knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? There's only one way to find out.
