The Loyola Cubs will head out on the road to face off against the Yorba Linda Mustangs at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the two teams posted some lofty point totals in their previous games.
It can be hard to translate regular season success to the playoffs, but Loyola had no problem doing just that on Friday. They really took it to Norte Vista for the full four quarters, racking up a 35-7 win at home. The victory was nothing new for Loyola as they're now sitting on five straight.
Loyola's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Sean Morris, who rushed for 56 yards and two touchdowns. Khalil Cueva was in the mix too, providing Loyola with two touchdowns.
The team's defense also helped out by holding Norte Vista to a paltry 205 yards. A big part of that defensive dominance came down to Loyola's ability to keep the quarterback under pressure: the team laid him out three times before it was all said and done. Isaiah Sanders was particularly dangerous to the passing game, picking up 2.5 sacks himself.
Meanwhile, even if it wasn't a dominant performance, Yorba Linda beat Moorpark 34-30 on Friday. The victory made it back-to-back wins for Yorba Linda.
Yorba Linda relied on the efforts of Dylan Gardner, who picked up 157 receiving yards and two touchdowns, and Holden Nagin, who threw for 301 yards and five touchdowns while picking up 13.7 yards per attempt. Gardner was no stranger to the big play, lighting up the secondary with a catch that went for 65 yards.
Loyola has yet to lose a matchup at home this season, leaving them with a 6-5 record. They've been dominating during the games in that stretch too, as they've won by an average of 23.67 points. As for Yorba Linda, they are on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last eight games, which provided a nice bump to their 8-3 record this season.
