The Smoky Valley Vikings will take on the Trinity Academy Knights at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Given that the two teams suffered a loss in their last game, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this matchup.
Smoky Valley came up short against Haven on Friday, falling 42-16.
Smoky Valley might have lost, but man, Gavin Stambaugh was a machine: he rushed for 161 yards and a touchdown while picking up 7.3 yards per carry.
He was just one part of a punishing run game: Smoky Valley was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 218 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 191 rushing yards in six consecutive contests dating back to last season.
Meanwhile, Trinity Academy was not able to break out of their rough patch on Friday as the team picked up their fourth straight defeat. They might be feeling deja-vu: they lost 41-33 to Kingman, which was the same score (and result) they got the week prior.
Despite their loss, Trinity Academy saw several players rise to the challenge and make noteworthy plays. Zac Zimmerman, who threw for 436 yards and five touchdowns while completing 76% of his passes, and also rushed for 33 yards, was perhaps the best of all. Another player making a difference was Cooper Garrison, who picked up 128 receiving yards and three touchdowns.
Smoky Valley now has a losing record at 1-2. As for Trinity Academy, their defeat dropped their record down to 0-4.
The upcoming match will be a clash of competing strengths. Smoky Valley has deployed a run-first offense that has averaged 239.7 rushing yards a game. Meanwhile, Trinity Academy has preferred to attack from the air: they average 315.3 passing yards per game. So which strategy will prevail on Friday? There's only one way to find out.
Everything came up roses for Smoky Valley against Trinity Academy in their previous matchup back in November of 2019, as the team secured a 48-0 win. Will Smoky Valley repeat their success, or does Trinity Academy have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
