Pandis' field goal lifts Thunder over Wildcats in 13th annual Quarry Bowl

Rocklin High senior kicker Logan Pandis stepped onto the field Friday with 14 seconds remaining and had the opportunity to win the 13th annual Quarry Bowl on a 39-yard kick with a crowd of 6,000-plus watching. Once the ball was snapped, Pandis sent the ball into the air and he watched as it barely cleared the uprights, giving the Thunder a 13-10 win against their rivals, the Whitney High Wildcats. "I practiced my breathing on the sideline, cleared my head and blocked out the whole crowd," Pandis said. "As soon as I kicked it, I knew it would be good. It felt super clean off the foot." The win is the seventh straight for the Thunder in the Quarry Bowl as they have only lost twice to the Wildcats in the regular season since the game began in 2010. "Last week, a special teams play is what won it and when we asked our kicker to win the game this week, he won it for us," Thunder coach Jason Adams said. "Our snapper, Jaxon Huntsman is off the charts. This kid can snap the hell out of the ball and we always know that we will be good on punts and field goals because he gets it there in a heartbeat." Whitney High got things going early as senior quarterback Trevor Hargis had four completions on the first drive and led the Wildcats 70 yards down the field before Isaiah Bickham punched it in from a yard out. The Thunder responded on their first offensive possession with senior running back Elias Brown rushing it twice for 58 yards to set up a 25-yard field goal for Pandis to make the score 7-3. Defense was the story of the game as both teams forced a combined five punts and three turnovers on downs. The Thunder were able to get into the end zone just before halftime as Brown rushed it in from 18 yards out making it 10-7 at the half. The Wildcats were unable to get it moving in the second half until just under four minutes remaining when they started from near their own 30-yard line. Hargis completed a pass to senior Lincoln Fifer for 20 yards on fourth down and then again to Fifer for 17 yards on third down to get into Thunder territory. A 14-yard completion to Bickham put the Wildcats in the red zone and it led to a 31-yard field goal by junior Ryan Eisert to even the score 10-10. "Hargis has really developed into a senior leader and a guy that we are leaning on and to see his growth at the quarterback position has been really exciting," Whitney coach Zac McNally said. Rocklin High had great field position with 47 seconds remaining as they began at their own 45-yard-line. Senior quarterback Joey Roberts completed a 23-yard pass to Eli Hardy and then a 9-yard pass to Austin Adams to put the Thunder into field goal range. "Joey had a tremendous week and he always steps up and competes in practice," Thunder coach Jason Adams said. "He prepares on and off the field really well and he gives us a great chance to win." The Thunder were also led by their offensive line, who gave Roberts time in the pocket and opened holes for Brown and other running backs such as Mason Silva to get through. Rocklin High's offensive line consisted of Dylan Dowd, Henry Hatada, Tom Sackinsky, Ryder Smith, Garrison Blank and Mike Ruiter. The win moves the Thunder to 5-1 on the season and they will travel to Loomis next Friday to face the undefeated Del Oro Golden Eagles. For the Wildcats, the loss drops them to 3-3 and they haven't beaten Rocklin High since the 2019 Sac-Joaquin Section playoffs. They will host the top team in the section, the Folsom Bulldogs, next Friday night. "I'm so proud of our guys tonight. They're just warriors who battle," McNally said. "I'm just excited with how we competed. This is what you expect in a rivalry game; it's going to come down to the last play. We are finally coming together as a team. It's just tough that we weren't able to finish the deal and get the win." ROCKLIN 13, WHITNEY 10 Rocklin &emsp;&emsp;3&emsp;&emsp;7&emsp;&emsp;0&emsp;&emsp;3 - 13 Whitney&emsp;&emsp;7&emsp;&emsp;0&emsp;&emsp;0&emsp;&emsp;3 - 10 Whitney - Isaiah Bickham 1 run (Ryan Eisert kick) Rocklin - Logan Pandis 25-yard FG Rocklin - Elias Brown 18 run (Pandis kick) Whitney - Eisert 31-yard FG Rocklin - Pandis 39-yard FG