MOSES LAKE — Local college football teams are gearing up for Week 9 of action across the country, aiming for strong finishes down the stretch of the regular season. Read along for a look at the matchups for Central Washington, Eastern Washington and Washington State.

Central Washington at Texas A&M-Kingsville

The Wildcats take their 6-0 record in the Lone Star Conference down into southern Texas this weekend for a contest against the 5-2 Javelinas.

Central (6-2) have won their previous six games after a 0-2 start to the year, riding off the strength of its rushing attack; running back Tyler Flanagan leads the league in rushing yards (819) and is tied for the lead with 10 rushing touchdowns this fall, and fellow back Tre’Jon Henderson has rushed for 397 yards and two touchdowns. Against West Texas A&M last week, Flanagan ran for 186 yards and a touchdown on 26 carries in the Wildcats’ 30-14 win.

The Javelinas have alternated wins and losses through their five LSC games this season, coming at 3-2 in the conference entering Saturday. A strong second quarter against Eastern New Mexico allowed the Javelinas to take a 21-7 lead into halftime, eventually winning 35-14.

Kickoff between the Wildcats and Javelinas is at 6 p.m. Saturday. Central has won the last two meetings, including last season’s 23-19 home win.

Eastern Washington at Portland State

Eastern (3-4) is coming off a 31-23 home win over Weber State last week, a win that snapped a two-game skid for the Eagles after back-to-back losses to Idaho and Idaho State. The Eagles showed a balanced offensive attack on Saturday against the Wildcats, with quarterback Kekoa Visperas completing 20 of 27 passes for 228 yards and a touchdown and the Eagle run game amassing 211 yards on 46 carries. 

Portland State (3-4) is also coming off a loss, a 38-24 home loss to Idaho State on Saturday afternoon where the Vikings nearly overcame a 14-point deficit before the Bengals stepped on the gas in the fourth quarter. 

Eastern has won eight of the previous 10 meetings between the Eagles and Vikings, though Portland State came out on top 38-35 in last season’s matchup. Kickoff is at 1 p.m. Saturday at Hillsboro Stadium.

Washington State at Arizona State

After a 4-0 start to the year, the Cougars have dropped their last three games, two of which have been on the road; at UCLA (25-17) on Oct. 7, vs. Arizona (44-6) on Oct. 14 and last weekend’s 38-24 road loss to Oregon.

Oregon and WSU traded scores through the first 29 minutes of Saturday’s game, but the Ducks took their first lead with under a minute remaining in the first half after a two-yard run by quarterback Bo Nix. The Cougars responded with a field goal as the clock hit zero, but Oregon scored touchdowns on three of its first four drives to begin the second half and extend the lead, which WSU was unable to overtake.

Arizona State has lost its last six games after a season-opening win against Southern Utah, but has kept the score close in its last three contests; The Sun Devils lost to California 24-21, Colorado 27-24 and Washington 15-7. Against the Huskies, ASU led 7-6 early in the fourth quarter and held quarterback Michael Penix Jr. to his fewest passing yards so far this season (275).

The Sun Devils and Cougars kick off at 5 p.m. in Tempe, Arizona. WSU has won the previous two matchups between the schools.