THOUSAND OAKS, CALIF. - Erik Bainter threw for a pair of touchdowns and ran for another but it wasn't enough on Saturday night under the lights at William Roland Stadium as the Pacific Lutheran University football team fell 42-28 to host California Lutheran University in the season opener.

Raysen Motoyama was the star of the opening half for the Lutes (0-1), scoring on a one-yard plunge on PLU's opening offensive drive of the game. Motoyama's run capped off a seven-play, 50-yard drive for PLU that tied the score at 7-7 after the Kingsmen (2-0) scored on their opening drive.

Cal Lu needed just seven plays to set up its second touchdown of the night, utilizing a 31-yard strike through the air from Nick Lasher to Ben Anderson. The KIngsmen recovered a muffed punt early in the second quarter, setting up a Cameron Jones 19-yard touchdown reception before Jones scored again with 12 seconds left in the opening half on a 27-yard reception as Cal Lu enjoyed a 28-7 halftime advantage.

Pacific Lutheran mounted a 62-yard drive coming out of the intermission but the drive stalled at the Cal Lu 20-yard line with the Kingsmen making a defensive stand on fourth and one. Cal Lu made the Lutes pay, taking the ball and scoring on the ensuing drive with Jones hauling in a 34-yard pass for his third TD of the night.

CLU added another TD early in the fourth before Bainter tossed a pair of touchdowns in the final stanza. Bainter connected with Alex Rendon on a 17-yard score with 12:07 remaining, capping off an 85-yard drive before finding John Walker on a 34-yard toss just 17 seconds later after Colby Rhinelander recovered a CLU fumble.

Bainter used his legs with 8:13 left in the game, scampering 12-yards for the score to close out a 10-play, 72-yard drive and whittling the gap to 42-28 in what proved to be the final points of the contest.

Bainter finished with 203 passing yards and a pair of scores with no interceptions while adding 23 yards and a touchdown on the ground. Marc Basa was Bainter's most popular target, snagging seven catches for 69 yards. Motoyama was effective on the ground, racking up 90 yards and a score while averaging 6.4 yards per carry.

Kalen Davis-White led the defense with 11 tackles, including five solo stops with Shaun Kim and Aiden Shroyer both adding six tackles. Cheyn Tam-Switzer used his ball-hawking skills in the fourth quarter, coming down with the game's lone interception.

The Lutes open their home slate next Saturday, hosting University of La Verne at 12:30 p.m. inside Sparks Stadium.