By Shannon Fagan, WEIS Sports Director

SAND ROCK – No one would’ve blamed the Spring Garden Panthers if their heads weren’t in their season-opening football game at Sand Rock on Thursday night.

About an hour before boarding their buses, they received the horrible news that two Spring Garden students who were sisters – one who had just graduated in May – had been tragically killed in a car accident earlier in the afternoon.

But with hearts heavy, the Panthers persevered.

Junior quarterback Brady Ruark and senior tailback Clayton Sadler both grounded out over 100 yards and three touchdown apiece. Making his first start at quarterback, Ruark ran for 181 yards on 18 carries. Sadler tallied 155 yards on 22 totes.

Sophomore running back Ben Baker also added just over 100 rushing yards for good measure to lead Class 1A, No. 6 Spring Garden to a 44-28 victory.

“Like I told our kids, we’ve got to focus on what we’ve got to get done. We’ve got to play this game, but as soon as it’s over, we’ve got to flip a switch and be a loving neighbor, be a loving classmate, and be supportive,” Spring Garden coach Barrett Ragsdale said.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the McCain family. I was proud of how our guys came out here and handled the football game.”

“When we first heard about it we were devastated,” Sadler said. “When we got on the bus we had a little talk. I kind of got everybody together when we were warming up and I told them ‘You’ve just got to clear your heads.’ I said ‘Just play this game for them. Just think about the good moments you had with them, not what’s going on and push through.’ That’s kind of how I went into it.”

Sadler shook off his emotions on the Panthers’ first drive of the game. He capped a 13-play, 68-yard drive with his first touchdown of the night on a 1-yard run. Baker ran in for the 2-point conversion to give Spring Garden and early 8-0 advantage.

Sand Rock, under the direction of new head coach Tanner Nelson, responded with a scoring drive of its own. Junior quarterback Alec Ashley connected with senior receiver Alex Stone on a 24-yard touchdown pass. Ashley added the 2-point conversion run to tie the game at 8 with 4:36 remaining in the first quarter.

The Panthers bounced back on Ruark’s 43-yard scoring run. He then connected with fullback Zane Edwards on the 2-point try to put Spring Garden back out in front 16-8 at the end of the first quarter.

If Ruark had any nerves in his first start behind center, he didn’t show them.

“There’s a little bit of pressure when it comes to your first time starting, but I think as a team we did pretty good,” he said. “Our offensive line blocked well. The backs blocked well, and I just ran behind them.

“We ran the same three plays on all three of my touchdowns. One was just on the opposite side. This is probably the best set of backs blocking-wise we’ve had in 10 years, and that’s really good for this team.”

After the Wildcats turned the ball over on downs, Spring Garden methodically drove down the field again. This time, Sadler capped a 10-play, 73-yard march with a 12-yard score. The 2-point try was no good, keeping the score at 22-8 at halftime.

It took just two plays in just over a minute elapsed in the third quarter for Sand Rock to get back in the game. Ashley connected with junior receiver Brendon Lindsey on a 56-yard pass for the touchdown. Ashley’s pass on the 2-point conversion fell incomplete, but the Wildcats were within eight at 22-14.

Spring Garden countered again with another long scoring drive. This one went for 71 yards, resulting in Sadler’s third touchdown of the game – a 3-yard run. Another Panther try for 2 failed, keeping the score at 28-14 with under seven minutes remaining in the third quarter.

The Wildcats battled back with a bit of trickery on their next possession. Sophomore receiver Ryker Woodall took a handoff and threw a 35-yard touchdown pass to a wide open Lathan Amos. Ashley’s ensuing pass on the 2-point conversion fell short, but Sand Rock had closed the gap to single digits again at 28-20.

The momentum the Wildcats had lasted just one play.

Following the kickoff, Ruark ran 58-yards for another Spring Garden score. Sadler’s rush for 2 pushed the Panther lead to 36-20 with 4:18 to go in the third.

Another Sand Rock drive stalled on the final play of the third quarter, then the Panthers put the game away with Ruark’s 18-yard touchdown run. Baker ran in for 2 to give Spring Garden a 44-20 advantage.

“Our guys showed some resilience and really fought,” Ragsdale said. “Our line was blocking and being physical, and then our backs – I think we had five different guys tote the ball tonight. The key part in that is they all blocked very well for each other, and I can’t say enough about our line. Zack Scogin, Brody Lemons, Dawson Ellzey, Jake Marlow, Chandler Rogers, and Hayes Guthrie, those guys did a great job tonight.”

Ashley connected Woodall on a 15-yard touchdown pass, then Ashley ran in for 2 for the final.

Ashley completed 14-of-20 pass attempts for 220 yards and three touchdowns. He also added 54 yards rushing on six carries.

Woodall had six catches for 57 yards and a score. Stone had four grabs for 53 yards and a touchdown. Lindsey caught three passes for 102 yards and a score. Amos had a pair of catches for 43 yards and a touchdown.

“We didn’t quit,” Nelson said. “We continued to fight, but we just couldn’t get them off the field. Third-and-8, third-and-10, third-and-4, and it was a big run play. We just weren’t fitting up in there and were not executing defensively. We had several crucial penalties, but you can’t blame no one other than us. We’ve got a lot of stuff to get cleaned up, but that’s why you like to play good teams early.”

Spring Garden hosts Pleasant Valley next Friday. Sand Rock is at West End of Walnut Grove.