Royal is 2-8 against Simi Valley since October of 2014 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The Royal Highlanders will welcome the Simi Valley Pioneers at 7:00 p.m. Both come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Last Friday, Royal was able to grind out a solid victory over Dos Pueblos, taking the game 20-13. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Highlanders.
The critical scores for Royal came from Dylan Mason, Devon Ware, and Jonathan Arreola.
Royal's defense made their presence known, laying out Drew Schultz. three times. Mason was especially locked on to Dos Pueblos' QB and sacked him twice. Mason's also deserves a shoutout for his performance on D, picking up two sacks and making six total tackles (2.0 for loss).
Meanwhile, Simi Valley earned a 49-41 win over Valencia last Friday.
Brice Hawkins had a dynamite game for Simi Valley, rushing for 153 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 8.5 yards per carry.
Simi Valley's defense was in the mix too, especially the secondary: they snagged two passes before it was all said and done. The picks came courtesy of Jayden Clarke and Seth Knight. Izak Simpson was another major factor on D, picking up three sacks and making 11 total tackles (3.0 for loss) which he returned for a touchdown.
Royal's victory ended a five-game drought at home dating back to last season and bumped them up to 2-0. As for Simi Valley, their win bumped their record up to an identical 2-0.
Royal took a serious blow against Simi Valley in their previous meeting back in September of 2023, falling 62-7. Thankfully for Royal, Jesse Sereno (who threw for 176 yards and four touchdowns while completing 78.6% of his passes) 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
