Two dominant signal callers in Hudson Bailey and Aiden Knechtenhofer are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The St. Pius X Warriors will head out on the road to face off against the Savannah Savages at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both teams are coming into the contest red-hot, with St. Pius X sitting on seven straight wins and Savannah on five.
St. Pius X's defense heads into the matchup hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Friday. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat Lafayette 74-0 at home. The game marked the Warriors' most dominant victory of the season.
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead St. Pius X to victory, but perhaps none more so than Cannon Cruse, who rushed for 175 yards and two touchdowns on only 14 carries. Cruse's longest rush was for an impressive 52 yards, which helps to explain his lofty yards per carry total. St. Pius X also got a significant boost from Larry Cascone, who ran away from the competition to the tune of 107 yards.
He was just one part of a punishing run game: St. Pius X was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 318 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 252 rushing yards in three consecutive matches.
Meanwhile, Savannah hadn't done well against Maryville recently (they were 0-9 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Friday. Savannah claimed a resounding 42-14 win over Maryville at home. The Savages might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won six contests by 20 points or more this season.
Savannah got their victory on the backs of several key players, but it was Knechtenhofer out in front who threw for 142 yards and three touchdowns while completing 77.8% of his passes, and also rushed for 35 yards and a touchdown. Jaiden Martinez was Knechtenhofer's top target, picking up 122 receiving yards and two touchdowns, while also rushing for 43 yards.
Savannah wouldn't let Maryville keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force two fumbles. Savannah can thank Gage Bowland and Kale Bechtold for forcing both of them. Bowland is also on a roll when it comes to total tackles, as he's now made six or more in the last eight games he's played dating back to last season. Landon Noland was another major factor on D, making 14 total tackles and defending a pass.
St. Pius X pushed their record up to 7-1 with the win, which was their seventh straight at home dating back to last season. As for Savannah, their record is now 6-2.
Friday's matchup might be decided in the on the ground. St. Pius X has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 202 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Savannah struggles in that department as they've been averaging 228.6. It's looking like Friday's game might have some serious battles in the trenches.
St. Pius X took their victory against Savannah in their previous matchup back in October of 2023 by a conclusive 34-13. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was Savannah's Cade Chappell, who rushed for 140 yards and a touchdown. Now that he won't be playing on Friday, will it be easier for St. Pius X to walk away with another win? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
