The Chaparral Lobos will face off against the Moriarty Pintos 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.
Chaparral took a loss when they played away from home back in October, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed last Friday. They secured a 33-28 W over Portales. Considering the Lobos' offense had been struggling lately, the high-scoring outing was a much-needed turnaround.
A big part of Chaparral's win came down to the chemistry between Israel Nieto and his top target Raul Lopez. Nieto rushed for 68 yards and four touchdowns on only nine carries while Lopez rushed for 156 yards and one score while picking up 8.7 yards per carry.
Wins are hard to come by when you can't run the rock, something Chaparral proved: they limited Portales to a paltry 1.2 yards per carry. The team can thank Moises Gurrola for the heroic effort on defense: he. Chaparral didn't have any issues in that department, having averaged 7.6.
Chaparral's defense didn't let Kingston Lee, get away unscathed either: they got into the backfield for three sacks. Gurrola was particularly dangerous to the passing game, picking up two himself.
Meanwhile, it can be hard to translate regular season success to the playoffs, but Moriarty had no problem doing just that on Friday. They blew past the Rams 49-13. The Pintos might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won four matchups by 36 points or more this season.
Moriarty's win came from a few key players Chaparral will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Mateo Manley-Griego, who rushed for 151 yards and one TD on only 13 carries. He is becoming a predictor of Moriarty's success: when he posts at least 80 rushing yards the team is undefeated (and 3-4 when he doesn't). Another player making a difference was Devin Ortiz, who rushed for 37 yards and three touchdowns.
Chaparral's victory was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 7-3. Those home wins came thanks in part to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 37.3 points over those games. As for Moriarty, their victory bumped their record up to 6-4.
Friday's game might be decided on the ground. Chaparral has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 180 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Moriarty struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 264.3 rushing yards. There's a good chance Friday's contest turns into a tough fight on the ground. Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other football content.
