Complete Box and Play by Play

SPOKANE, Wash. -- While Whitworth quarterback Joel Clark had another career offensive performance, there were too many talented Wildcats to overcome as top-ranked Linfield College defeated the host Pirates 47-32 in a Northwest Conference football game on Saturday afternoon in the Pine Bowl.

Clark Passed for 400 yards and five touchdowns

Clark completed 22 of 44 passes for 400 yards and five touchdowns, both career highs, but three key interceptions and four sacks helped turn the tide in the Wildcats' favor.

Linfield's All-America tandem of QB Brett Elliott and receiver Casey Allen provided plenty of offense for the Wildcats as well. Elliott completed 19 of 29 passes for 307 yards and two touchdowns. He had one interception. Allen caught eight passes for 190 yards and two scores.

Whitworth opened the scoring when Clark hit tight end Michael Allan on a quick screen and Allan raced 61 yards up the right sideline with 9:42 to play in the first quarter.

Linfield then got on the board after some Pirate trickery didn't work. Whitworth tried a fake punt on its own 24 yard line and Kyle Snell's pass attempt to Jay Tully fell incomplete. Linfield scored three plays later on a seven yard pass from Elliott to Allen.

Chris Boock took the second of Linfield's three interceptions back 56 yards for a touchdown to give Linfield a 14-7 lead on the next Pirate possession. Scott Lasswell then broke loose for an 18-yard run to lift the Wildcats to a 20-7 advantage midway through the second quarter after a failed extra point. Garrett Wales kicked the first of his two field goals, this one from 26 yards, to extend the lead to 23-7.

Clark hit Allan again from 29 yards on fourth and one with 54 seconds to play to pull the Pirates within 23-14 at halftime.

After the Pirates held Linfield on fourth down at the Pirate 13 yard line to open the third quarter, Josh Ort intercepted Clark at Whitworth's 44 and returned it back to the Pirates' three yard line. Lasswell then scored on the next play to give Linfield a 30-14 lead. Linfield's defense then held the Pirates again, forcing a punt to the Wildcats' 45 yard line. Three Elliott completions later, Allen caught his second touchdown of the game, an 18-yarder, and the Linfield lead was 37-14.

Michael Allan caught two touchdowns

But the Pirates fought back. Whitworth scored on its next possession when Clark found Nick Koller from ten yards away with 13:49 to play. After forcing a Wildcat punt, Whitworth scored again, this time an 18-yard connection from Clark to Nick Kuntz to pull the Pirates within 37-26 after two missed extra points.

The Wildcats answered back with a 76 yard drive, culminated in a Mordechai Kotler one yard run with 7:15 to go in the game and extending the lead back to 44-26.

The Pirates quickly responded, scoring on a three yard swing pass from Clark to Kyle Havercroft with 6:03 to play. The touchdown was set up by a 78 yard completion from Clark to Kuntz the previous play.

Linfield put the game away with a 55 yard drive that took more than four of the final six minutes off of the clock. Wales connected on a 36 yard field goal for the game's final margin of victory.

Kuntz finished with career-highs of eight catches and 163 receiving yards for the Bucs. Allan had three catches for 114 yards. Chris Ahsing was Whitworth's leading rusher with 47 yards on 18 carries as the Wildcats limited the Pirates to only 59 net yards on the ground.

The Wildcats picked up 131 yards rushing, led by Kotler's 73 yards on 13 carries and Lasswell's 46 yards on 11 tries. Brad McKechnie caught five passes for 67 yards to complement Allen's day.

Defensively the Pirates were led by Austin Richard's seven tackles and Casey Clifton's nine yard sack. Ryan Marshall picked off his second interception of the season to end the first half.

Brandon Olson, the current NWC Defensive Player of the Week, led the Wildcats with 15 tackles, including a four yard sack. Cam Rodgers had Linfield's first interception, which ended Whitworth's first drive, and a sack. Mike Ketler, Robert Acevedo also had a sack for the Wildcats.

Whitworth had a 459-438 edge in total yardage and a 35:00-25:00 edge in time of possession.

The Pirates will try to pick up their first NWC win of 2005 at the University of Puget Sound next Saturday. The game will kick off at 1:30 pm. Linfield steps out of conference play to take on Southern Oregon in Ashland next week.