Watch: South Range vs. Girard high school football

GIRARD, Ohio (WKBN) – First place is on the line in the Northeast 8 Conference with a pair of undefeated teams set to meet in the South Range Raiders and the Girard Indians.

South Range is riding a 25-game regular season win streak as Girard is seeking their first 6-0 start in five years (2017).

Something has to give as the Raiders and the Indians will clash on this Friday’s Game of the Week.

High School Football Game of the Week
Friday, September 23, 2022 (LIVE on MyYTV at 7 pm)
South Range (5-0) at Girard (5-0)

Last 3 Meetings
Sept. 24, 2021 – South Range, 41-14
Sept. 4, 2020 – South Range, 56-28
Sept. 27, 2019 – South Range, 36-22

Last Meeting
Billy Skripac threw for 3 touchdowns in the Raiders’ 41-14 victory last fall against Girard. Skripac completed 6 of 8 passing for 215 yards. He also led the team in rushing with 95 yards on 8 carries. Ayden Leon, Shane Lindstrom and Connor Jones all hauled in touchdown for South Range.

2022 Team Statistics
Scoring Offense: Girard, 40.4; South Range, 36.8
Scoring Defense: Girard, 8.6; South Range, 11.0

Game Notes
-South Range has won 25 straight regular season games dating back to Oct. 11, 2019. The Raiders have won 19 consecutive league games with their last loss occurring in overtime against Niles (35-34).

-In their last matchup with Poland on Friday, the Raiders posted their first shutout of the season by handing the Bulldogs a 48-0 defeat. The defense held the Bulldogs’ offense to less than 30 yards. South Range’s quarterback Billy Skripac was nearly perfect as he threw for 116 yards (2 TDs) and completed 88% of his passes (7-8). Six different Raiders scored touchdowns as the burgundy and gold racked up over 400 yards.

-During the regular season, the Raiders have won ten in a row on the road.

-When scoring 30 points or more, South Range has won their last sixteen outings.

-Through the season’s first five weeks, the Raiders held four opponents to 14 points or less. That effort is very similar to the way South Range finished last year when the Raiders allowed five of their six opponents to be able to score 12 points or less.

-Girard shutout Lakeview, 49-0, to improve to 5-0 in their last outing on Friday. Nic Bengala threw for 237 yards (2 TDs) on 13 of 18 passing. Both of Bengala’s scoring tosses went to Stephen Sims. Michael Palmer also scored a pair of touchdowns while rushing for an average of 7 yards per carry (13 attempts, 91 yards).

-For the season, Girard’s offense has accounted for 27 touchdowns (11 passing, 16 rushing) as they’ve accumulated an average of 450 total yards per contest.

-Girard has won five of their last six home games.

-Since the 2017 season began, the Indians have scored 40-points or more in thirty games. Girard in unbeaten during that span at 30-0.

-Girard’s defense held their opponents in weeks 2 through five to a total of 19 points. The last time Girard had a streak such as that was in 2017 when they went six consecutive weeks of holding teams to 10-points or less.

-Girard is seeking their first 6-0 start since 2017.

2022 Northeast 8 Conference Standings
South Range – 2-0 (5-0)
Girard – 2-0 (5-0)
Hubbard – 1-1 (4-1)
Jefferson – 1-1 (4-1)
Lakeview – 1-1 (3-2)
Poland – 1-1 (2-3)
Niles – 0-2 (2-3)
Struthers – 0-2 (1-4)

Upcoming Schedule
South Range
Sept. 30 – Niles (2-3)
Oct. 7 – at Jefferson (4-1)
Oct. 14 – Lakeview (3-2)

Girard
Sept. 30 – at Poland (2-3)
Oct. 7 – Hubbard (4-1)
Oct. 14 – at Struthers (1-4)