The Estrella Foothills Wolves will square off against the Deer Valley Skyhawks at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Deer Valley is hoping to do what Copper Canyon couldn't last Thursday: put an end to Estrella Foothills' winning streak, which now stands at four games. Estrella Foothills blew past Copper Canyon 36-14. That's two games straight that the Wolves have won by exactly 22 points.
AJ Horne was his usual excellent self, rushing for 130 yards and two touchdowns on only 15 carries. Hone Wray was another key player, rushing for 46 yards and a touchdown.
Estrella Foothills was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 247 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 165 rushing yards in four consecutive matches.
Meanwhile, Deer Valley was fully in charge last Thursday, breezing past Maryvale 51-8. The Skyhawks' victory was nothing new given the team hasn't lost yet this season.
It was another big night for Marcus Johnson, who rushed for 223 yards and five touchdowns while picking up 13.1 yards per carry. He was no stranger to the big play, taking off on a dash that went for 63 yards.
Deer Valley wouldn't let Maryvale keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force three fumbles. It was truly a group effort as Nathaniel Cervantes, Rylan Barnes, and Anthony Rosas picked up one apiece. Deer Valley got some further help from William Simpson: he picked up a sack and made eight total tackles (2.0 for loss).
Deer Valley pushed their record up to 9-0 with the win, which was their fifth straight on the road. Those victories were due in large part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 49.0 points per game. As for Estrella Foothills, they have been performing well recently as they've won five of their last six games, which provided a nice bump to their 7-2 record this season.
Friday's matchup might be decided in the on the ground. Estrella Foothills has been unstoppable on the ground this season, having averaged 204.9 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Deer Valley struggles in that department as they've been averaging 163.6. It's looking like Friday's contest might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Estrella Foothills beat Deer Valley 28-20 in their previous meeting back in November of 2023. The rematch might be a little tougher for Estrella Foothills since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
