The Mathis Pirates will challenge the Orange Grove Bulldogs at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: both posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.
Mathis will head into Friday's match out to bounce back: they came back down to earth on Friday after soaring to a 64-point game in their last game. They fell just short of Palacios by a score of 43-40. The Pirates have struggled against the Sharks recently, as the game was their third consecutive lost matchup.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Orange Grove, who bounced back after a loss on the road last Friday. They strolled past Aransas Pass with points to spare on Friday, taking the game 34-20.
Linden Rodriguez went supernova for Orange Grove, rushing for 67 yards and three touchdowns, while also throwing for 102 yards and a touchdown on only nine passes. Diego Garza was another key player, rushing for 148 yards while picking up 8.7 yards per carry.
Orange Grove wouldn't let Aransas Pass keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force two fumbles. Orange Grove can thank Dom Garza and Rickey Lauer for forcing both of them. Lauer also made six total tackles, which is notable because Orange Grove is 4-1 when he posts at least four total tackles, but 1-2 otherwise.
Orange Grove was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 237 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 162 rushing yards in four consecutive contests.
Mathis' defeat dropped their record down to 4-4. As for Orange Grove, they pushed their record up to 5-3 with the win, which was their tenth straight at home dating back to last season.
Mathis came up short against Orange Grove in their previous matchup back in October of 2021, falling 44-32. Thankfully for Mathis, Cutter Stewart (who rushed for 169 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 8.5 yards per carry, and also threw for 238 yards and a touchdown) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
