The Yough Cougars are taking a road trip to square off against the Southmoreland Scotties at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Yough is coming into the match on a four-game losing streak.
Yough will head into Friday's game ready to turn things around: they couldn't quite beat Mt. Pleasant on Friday, but the three-point margin was a huge improvement compared to the 51-point defeat they were dealt last Friday. Yough fell just short of Mt. Pleasant by a score of 22-19.
Despite the loss, Yough had strong showings from Ryan Sarver, who picked up 86 receiving yards and a touchdown, and Jaiden Dixon-Bretzel, who picked up 90 receiving yards and a touchdown. Sarver got the majority of those receiving yards when he pulled down a pass and took off for a gain of 53 yards.
Meanwhile, Southmoreland's offense rose to the challenge against a Trojans defense that boasted an average of only 17.5 points allowed on Friday. Southmoreland strolled past Derry with points to spare, taking the game 31-14. That's two games straight that the Scotties have won by exactly 17 points.
A big part of Southmoreland's win came down to the chemistry between Anthony Smith and his top target Elliot Premus. Smith threw for 296 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 11.8 yards per attempt while Premus picked up 155 receiving yards and two touchdowns. A healthy portion of that aerial production (100 yards to be exact) also went to Jackson Mickens, who also brought in a receiving touchdown.
Southmoreland wouldn't let Derry keep a hold of the ball as they managed to force two fumbles. Southmoreland can thank Luke Stinnett and Stanley Chapman for forcing both of them.
Yough's defeat dropped their record down to 2-4. As for Southmoreland, their victory bumped their record up to 5-1.
Friday's contest might be decided in the on the ground. Yough has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 186.7 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Southmoreland struggles in that department as they've been averaging 156.5. It's looking like Friday's matchup might have some serious battles in the trenches.
Yough took a serious blow against Southmoreland when the teams last played back in October of 2021, falling 35-7. Can Yough avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
