The Hickory Ridge Ragin' Bulls will venture away from home to challenge the Mooresville Blue Devils at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Hickory Ridge is looking for their season's first victory.
Hickory Ridge is likely headed into the matchup with a focus on the second half, which is when things went downhill against A.L. Brown on Friday. Hickory Ridge received a blow as they fell 31-14 to A.L. Brown.
Hickory Ridge's loss shouldn't obscure the performances of David Johnson, who rushed for 80 yards and a touchdown, and Joell Wooten, who picked up 109 receiving yards. The dominant performance gave Johnson a new career-high in rushing yards. Ezekiel Kelly got in on the action as well, returning a kick for a touchdown.
Meanwhile, a well-balanced attack led Mooresville over Cox Mill in every quarter on their way to victory on Friday. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that Mooresville blew Cox Mill out of the water with a 55-0 final score. Given the Blue Devils' advantage in MaxPreps' North Carolina football rankings (they are ranked 28th, while the Chargers are ranked 152nd), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.
Mooresville's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Malachi Gwyn, who rushed for 102 yards and a touchdown on only six carries. Another player making a difference was Brody Norman, who threw for 199 yards and two touchdowns on only 18 passes.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Mooresville was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 255 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 165 rushing yards in four consecutive contests.
Mooresville's defense was in the mix too, especially the secondary: they snagged four passes before it was all said and done. It was truly a group effort as Kamelo Little, AJ Graham, Darian Reid, and Reid picked up one apiece. Graham is also on a roll when it comes to interceptions, as he's now snagged at least one in the last three games he's played dating back to last season.
Hickory Ridge's defeat dropped their record down to 0-5. As for Mooresville, their record now sits at 3-1.
Hickory Ridge came up short against Mooresville in their previous matchup back in September of 2023, falling 42-35. Can Hickory Ridge avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
