SALEM, Ore. - Willamette rallied from a 14-0 first half deficit,
scoring three touchdowns in the final period to defeat visiting
Pacific Lutheran, 35-17, in a Northwest Conference football game
played Saturday afternoon at McCulloch Stadium.
Sophomore tailback Jamiere Abney scored three touchdowns in the
second half to lead the Bearcats, ranked No. 17 in the
D3Football.com Top 25, to their sixth consecutive victory
after a season-opening loss. Willamette, the defending conference
champion, currently sits atop the NWC standings with a 3-0 record.
With the loss, Pacific Lutheran is now 1-4 overall and 1-1 in the
conference.
PLU running back Drew Griffin scored a rushing touchdown and a
receiving touchdown as the Lutes surged to a 14-0 lead. Griffin's
two-yard scoring run with 8:50 remaining in the first quarter
capped a 13-play, 70-yard drive. With 3:37 left in the half he took
an AJ Palazzolo pass 12 yards for a score to put the Lutes on top,
14-0. The drive consumed 15 plays and covered 80 yards.
Willamette responded with a 63-yard scoring drive, Terrell
Malley scoring from six yards out to make it 14-7 at the half.
The Lutes made it 17-7 on Richard Isett's 22-yard field goal
with 8:04 left in the third period, and that kick capped another
impressive 13-play, 69-yard drive. Again, Willamette responded with
another scoring drive, going 74 yards with Jamiere Abney diving in
from two yards out.
With the score 17-14 in favor of the Lutes, the host Bearcats
benefitted from three short-field drives to tally a trio of
touchdowns. Scott Schoettgen caught a 3-yard pass from Kevin Ramay
and Abney added 1- and 4-yard scoring runs. Schoettgen's touchdown
with 6:48 remaining in the game gave Willamette its first lead
at 21-17, and it would not trail after that. The three drives
covered 21, 22 and 35 yards.
The Lutes gained 429 yards to 325 for the Bearcats, but they
threw four interceptions and lost one fumble. Jordan Rasmussen was
20-for-31 for 248 yards with two picks, and Palazzolo was 11-for-16
for 80 yards and two interceptions. Griffin led the Lutes with 11
receptions for 135 yard. Nick Caraballo, who converted from
quarterback to wide receiver at the start of the season, had his
best game with five catches for 63 yards.
PLU returns to conference action next Saturday when it hosts the
Puget Sound Loggers at 12:30 p.m. at Sparks Stadium in Puyallup.
- PLU -
