Winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Gardner). They blew past the Burncoat Patriots 46-14 on the road on Friday. The game was pretty much decided by the half, when the score had already reached 30-0.
Ayden Sparrow was his usual excellent self, rushing for 175 yards and a touchdown on only 14 carries. His longest rush was for an impressive 67 yards, which helps to explain his lofty yards per carry total. Another passer making a difference was Alexavier Figueroa, who threw for 138 yards and three touchdowns on only 11 passes.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Gardner was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 278 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 172 rushing yards in five consecutive matches dating back to last season.
Gardner's defense made their presence known, laying out the QB five times. Burncoat's QB won't forget Shy'Ron Thompson anytime soon given he sacked him twice.
When it comes to explaining why Burncoat lost, don't look at Dj Daniels. Despite the final result, he rushed for 102 yards and two touchdowns on only seven carries. Burncoat also got help from Calvin Njenga, who showed off his sure hands for 80 receiving yards.
Gardner's record now sits at 4-0. As for Burncoat, their loss was their first of the season and makes their record 3-1.
Both teams are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Gardner will host Southbridge at 6:00 p.m. on Saturday. Gardner's defense has only allowed 13 points per game this season, so Southbridge's offense will have their work cut out for them. As for Burncoat, they will look to defend their home field on Saturday against North at 12:00 p.m. Burncoat is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 34.5 points per game this season.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
