SPOKANE, Wash. -- Known primarily for its explosive passing attack, Whitworth College used a strong running game to defeat visiting University of La Verne 37-16 in a non-conference college football game on Saturday afternoon at the Whitworth Pine Bowl. The Pirates, ranked 20th in the latest D3football.com poll, improved to 2-0 in their home opener, while the Leopards fell to 0-2.
Whitworth, led by quarterback Joel Clark, ran for 255 yards and three touchdowns, averaging 7.3 yards per carry. Clark ran six times for 132 yards, including a 76 yard score in the second quarter. One of his carries was actually a seven yard sack in the second half. Starting tailback Chris Ahsing ran for 59 yards on only eight carries before suffering an ankle injury in the second quarter. Kyle Havercroft and Shane Stonemetz each ran for a touchdown in the second half. Clark, Whitworth's all-time leader in total offense with 7,310 yards, finished with 331 on this day after completing 15 of 19 passes for 199 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. Steve Silva caught eight of the passes for 76 yards, while Michael Allan caught four for 60 yards, including a 38 yard touchdown to end the Bucs' first possession. Nick Koller had three catches for 63 yards and a score. Steven Martinez led La Verne offensively by completing 19 of 37 passes for 243 yards with a touchdown and three interceptions. He also was the leading rusher with 14 yards on four carries. Troy Doolittle also saw time at quarterback, completing 11 of 15 passes for 118 yards with a touchdown. Matt Griffin led all players with nine receptions for 82 yards. Michael Moreno caught six passes for a game-high 128 yards with a touchdown. Melvin Ward caught the Leopards' other touchdown in the fourth quarter. Whitworth drove 74 yards in only five plays to score the game's first touchdown. Clark hit Allan from 38 yards away for the score. The Pirates scored on their first possession of the second quarter, when Clark hit Koller from two yards away. Clark set up the score with a 37 yard run. On Whitworth's next possession, Clark faked a handoff and went around the left end untouched 76 yards to the endzone, giving the Pirates a 21-0 lead.
La Verne's Paul Bennett kicked a 43 yard field goal as time expired to end the half. Whitworth had a halftime edge of 290-168 in total offense. The Leopards got to within 21-10 early in the second half when Martinez hit Moreno over the middle, and Moreno escaped a tackle and broke loose for a 61 yard touchdown on their first possession. After the Pirates fumbled on their next possession, giving La Verne a chance to get right back in the game. But the Pirates forced a punt, getting the ball back on their own four yard line. Whitworth then drove 96 yards in 8 plays to score a touchdown and regain control at 28-10. Havercroft scored from the two, and the TD was set up by a 52 yard completion from Clark to Koller. The teams traded touchdowns in the fourth quarter. Whitworth went up 35-10 on Stonemetz's first career touchdown, an eight yard effort. Doolittle completed an 18-yard touchdown pass to Ward with 2:53 to play. But Whitworth's Nick Portrey blocked the PAT and Ryan Marshall returned the ball for a defensive two point conversion. Whitworth finished with a 454-406 edge in total offense, but ran 17 fewer plays. On defense, Whitworth's Jay Tully had 10 tackles, an interception he returned 30 yards and another pass break up. Casey Clifton added nine tackles, including two for loss, and three quarterback hurries. Greg Caster had an interception, as did Marshall. La Verne's Corey Tello had nine tackles, including two for loss, while DeAndre Valencia added eight stops. Whitworth will travel to the University of Wisconsin-Stout next Saturday. The game against the Blue Devils will kick off at 1:00 pm, Central Daylight time (11:00 am PDT). The game will be heard on KSBN radio with the broadcast starting at 10:35 am. La Verne will take next week off before opening SCIAC play at Cal Lutheran on September 30th. |
