By: Ross Van De Griek
Another chapter will be written in the "Battle of Royale" on Friday night, as the Mitchell Mustangs (1-0) head across town to take on the River Ridge Royal Knights (1-0) at Tim Valentine Stadium in New Port Richey.
The Mitchell Mustangs are coming off a 49-7 win in their season opener last week vs Anclote, where junior quarterback Ezra Brennan, who transferred over the summer from Alonso went 5/10 for 96 yards & had a touchdown pass. The Mustangs were led by senior running back Tyler Williams, who had 169 yards on the ground, on 14 carries & found the end zone three times in the win. Mitchell's defense was just about as "dominate" as you could call it, according to head coach Andrew Schmitz. The Mustangs' defense was led by junior linebacker Nic Fairbank who had a team high 11 tackles in the win last week. Mitchell is looking to win their 4th straight head-to-head vs their cross-town rival, which dates back to 2004.
The River Ridge Royal Knights are coming off a 25-0 win in their season opener last week at Crystal River, where sophomore quarterback Trenton Hawks went 13/22 for 153 yards & threw for 2 touchdown passes & was picked off once. The running game was no match for River Ridge last week, as the Pirates defense held them to just 55 rushing yards for the game. River Ridge senior wide receiver Quinton Stedman led the receiving core, who had 74 receiving yards on 6 catches & had a touchdown reception. The Royal Knights also had 3 takeaways in their win last week, including two fumble recoveries by senior defensive end Ryan Grosso & Columbia linebacker commit Anthony Roussos. River Ridge junior defensive back Cole Castro also had an interception in last week's win at Crystal River.
Comments