The Rocklin Thunder will face off against the St. Mary's Rams at 7:00 p.m. on Saturday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Two teams were on the hunt for playoff glory, but only Rocklin walked away with it. They really took it to the Golden Eagles for the full four quarters, racking up a 35-8 victory on the road. The victory was nothing new for Rocklin as they're now sitting on five straight.
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Rocklin to victory, but perhaps none more so than Derek Keeley, who rushed for 115 yards and a touchdown on only 12 carries. Keeley was no stranger to the big play, taking off on a dash that went for 53 yards. Another player making a difference was Rafi Merino, who rushed for 71 yards and two touchdowns on only eight carries.
Meanwhile, St. Mary's had already won seven in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 37.3 points), and they went ahead and made it eight on Friday. They took their matchup on the road with ease, bagging a 41-12 victory over Manteca. With St. Mary's ahead 27-6 at the half, the matchup was all but over already.
Asante Carter continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, rushing for 107 yards and four touchdowns on only 12 carries. Carter hasn't dropped below two rushing touchdowns for four straight games. Kenneth Moore iii was another key contributor, gaining 136 total yards and a touchdown.
Their wins bumped Rocklin to 11-1 and Del Oro to 8-5.
Keep an eye on the end zone in Saturday's game as Rocklin and St. Mary's haven't had much trouble getting there this season. Rocklin commands a daunting offense this season, having averaged 4.9 touchdowns per game. However, it's not like St. Mary's struggles in that department as they've been even better at 6 per game. With these two high-octane teams facing off on Saturday, fans should be in for an exciting offensive matchup.
Rocklin skirted past St. Mary's 51-48 when the teams last played back in November of 2021. Will Rocklin repeat their success, or does St. Mary's have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
