SALEM, Ore.—Lewis & Clark College football racked up their third-most yards in a single-game in program history (648) and their most-ever points against rival Willamette University to earn their sixth-straight win in the Wagon Wheel Rivalry Game on Saturday afternoon at McCulloch Stadium.
THE BASICS
Lewis & Clark 63, Willamette 13
(Lewis & Clark 5-5, Northwest Conference 4-3)
(Willamette 1-9, NWC 0-7)
HOW IT HAPPENED
With the win, Lewis & Clark wrapped up their first .500 season and first top-four finish in the NWC season 2012 (7-2, second-place). The Pioneers 4-3 record puts them in a tie for third-place with Pacific Lutheran University.
The Pioneers offense posted 648 yards on 81 plays for an average of 8.0 yards per play. Lewis & Clark's 517 yards through the air is the fourth-most in program history. Defensively, Lewis & Clark allowed just 263 yards (their fewest during NWC play) and forced the hosts to punt (six time) or turn the ball over (twice) on eight of their 10 full drives.
Senior quarterback
Cruz Montana earned the start in his final collegiate game and recorded the most passing yards in a single-game of his career. Montana finished 23-30 for a new career-high of 370 passing yards and tied his career-high with four passing touchdowns in just 2.5 quarters.
Fellow senior
Trey Morris and junior
JT Willis kept the passing game moving over the final 20 minutes. Morris went 4-5 for 76 yards and Willis finished 4-5 for 69 yards. Senior running back
Elijah Washington threw a two-yard touchdown pass on his only attempt.
Senior wide receiver
Desmon Holton registered a career-high of his own. Holton nearly doubled his career-high in receiving yards by posting seven catches for a team-high 151 yards and a touchdown catch. Senior
Ben Burnham added a career-high in yards as well. Burham racked up seven catches for 138 yards.
Senior
Devon Guest added six catches for 94 yards and a touchdown. Freshman
Mateo Maehara totaled a career-high three catches for 40 yards and freshman
Riley Gann posted his first collegiate catch – a one-yard touchdown.
Washington led the Pioneers backfield by rushing 16 times for 78 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Montana added six rushes for 34 yards and sophomores
Jordan Lahusky (18 rushing yards yards) and
Jack Bellomy (one yard) each added rushing touchdowns.
Freshman
Solomon McDaniel and senior
William Powell II led the Pioneers with five tackles. McDaniel posted three solo tackles, a team-high 2.5 tackles for loss, his first two collegiate sacks and a forced fumble. Freshman
Logan Wacker added a sack as well and freshman
Jordan Delgado posted his first collegiate interception.
After the two teams traded scores in the opening four minutes, Lewis & Clark scored the next 28 points and 56 of the next 63.
Montana opened the scoring 2:28 into the game when he connected with Guest for a 44-yard touchdown catch. Willamette answered three plays later, when Gabriel Herrera punched the ball in from the one to make it 7-6. That's as close as Willamette would get the rest of the way.
Washington capped off a 9-play, 60-yard drive with a 12-yard rushing touchdown to make it 14-6 Lewis & Clark with 6:47 to go in the first quarter.
After the Pioneers forced a Willamette punt, the visitors went on a 13-play, 88-yard drive to extend their lead to 21-6. The Pioneers faced a 2
nd and 20 late in the drive but Montana rushed for 13 yards and then found Burnham for a 22-yard reception to the Bearcats two-yard line. Washington added his second score of the day with a two-yard rushing touchdown.
Lewis & Clark pushed their lead to 28-6 when Montana found
Julius Walker in the flat and the freshman raced in for a 14-yard touchdown. They made it 35-6 less than a minute later. Willamette went 3-and-out and Montana connected with Holton on a long pass for a 69-yard touchdown catch.
The Bearcats posted their only score of the second half on their first drive to close within 35-13. It would be all Pioneers from there.
Facing a fourth and one from the Bearcats two, the Pioneers pulled out a role reversal, with Washington throwing a pass to Montana for a two-yard touchdown catch. The Pioneers got the ball right back when sophomore
Joshua Arcayena forced a fumble on the kickoff and senior
Huero Lopez recovered the fumble at the Willamette 28. Six plays later, Montana found Gann in the end zone for a one-yard score. It would be Montana's final collegiate pass and Gann's first collegiate catch.
The Pioneers forced a turnover on Willamette's next drive when the Bearcats went for it on fourth and one from their own 35 but the pass was incomplete. Lahusky made the hosts pay as he registered a two-yard touchdown rush to make it 56-13.
Lewis & Clark wrapped up their scoring with 2:41 to play. Bellomy made the most of his fourth collegiate carry, as he ran the ball in from the one-yard line for his first career TD.
BY THE NUMBERS
- With the win, Lewis & Clark retains the Wagon Wheel for a program-record sixth-straight season. The Pioneers have defeated the Bearcats seven times in a row (a program record). Lewis & Clark's 63 points and 50-point win margin are both their most in the 74-game history between the two programs.
- The Pioneers 63 points are tied for the sixth-most points by Lewis & Clark in a single-game in program history. It's the 11th time in program history the Pioneers have eclipsed 60 points and the first time in school history the team has posted 60 or more points in back-to-back games. The Pioneers recorded 60 or more points twice in the 1962 and 2010 seasons – but not in back-to-back games.
- Montana's 370 passing yards are the 20th-most passing yards in a single-game by a Pioneers quarterback in program history.
- Lewis & Clark's 648 total yards sits third most in program history. In 1989, the Pioneers posted 795 yards against Western Oregon University and 694 yards versus Willamette.
- Thien Hoang (7-7) and Huxley Richardson (2-2) combined to go 9-9 on point after attempts.
WHAT'S NEXT
Lewis & Clark expects to return all but their 12 seniors from this year's team. The Pioneers will be looking to post back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since 1990-1991.
