The South Lake Eagles will head out on the road to face off against the Lake Minneola Hawks at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (South Lake has five straight wins, Lake Minneola has seven straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
On Friday, South Lake strolled past East Ridge with points to spare, taking the game 49-35. The victory almost wasn't to be: the Eagles were down 35-21 in the second quarter.
Tre Kelly
| 10/17/25 vs East Ridge | 3 |
| 09/26/25 @ Forest | 2 |
| 09/05/25 vs The Villages Charter | 2 |
| 10/10/25 vs Horizon | 1 |
| 09/11/25 vs Davenport | 1 |
South Lake's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Malik Holman led the charge by rushing for 197 yards and one score while picking up 10.9 yards per carry, and also picking up 32 receiving yards and one touchdown. Holman's rushing production has been exceptional as that marked his fifth straight game with at least 107 rushing yards. Tre Kelly was in the mix as well, providing South Lake with three TDs.
They were just one part of a punishing run game: South Lake was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 289 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 154 rushing yards in six consecutive matchups.
South Lake's defensive line stepped up as well, laying out the QB 12 times. East Ridge's QB won't forget Jesse Barker Jr. anytime soon given he sacked him four times. South Lake received some extra help from Anthony Johnson, whose fumble return for a touchdown made for one of the most unforgettable moments.
Meanwhile, Lake Minneola played a tough game on Friday in which they were outscored in every quarter. They were dealt a 59-8 defeat at the hands of Horizon. Lake Minneola was in a tough position after the first half, with the score already sitting at 52-0.
Lake Minneola's loss dropped their record down to 1-7. As for South Lake, their record now sits at 7-1.
Friday's contest might be decided in the trenches. South Lake has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 200.6 rushing yards per game. It's a different story for Lake Minneola, though, as they've been averaging only 46.8 rushing yards. How will they fare against such a dominant running game?
South Lake didn't have too much breathing room in their matchup against Lake Minneola in their previous meeting back in October of 2024, but they still walked away with a 28-24 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Eagles since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
