Leopards Drop Homecoming Contest To Cal Lutheran
Cal Lutheran claimed a share of the conference crown after upending the Leopards (Scott Chisholm photo)
Cal Lutheran looked every bit the SCIAC first-place team against the University of La Verne in a 45-3 verdict Saturday in the Leopards' Homecoming game at Ortmayer Stadium.
After the Leos put the first points of the game on the board, the Kingsmen responded by controlling action the rest of the way to clinch a share for the conference championship. Cal Lu put the game out of reach with 21 points in the third quarter.
La Verne began the game by a putting together a solid opening drive, gaining 61 yards on 10 plays to take an early 3-0 lead on a 34-yard field goal from Wesley Dean at the 12:17 mark of the first quarter.
But La Verne's lead on the Kingsmen was short-lived, as Derek Wilson returned the Leopard kickoff 89 yards for the go-ahead score, giving the CLU a 7-3 advantage.
The Kingsmen then picked off a Leopard pass and proceeded 61 yards on 11 plays for a touchdown. Jericho Toilolo connected with Eric Rogers for a 25-yard touchdown for a 14-3 CLU lead with 5:01 left in the first quarter.
The two teams traded possessions before the Kingsmen drove inside the Leopard 20-yard line. The drive stalled, but CLU placekicker Jackson Damron connected on a 35-yard field goal to stretch the advantage to 17-3 with 12:16 remaining.
La Verne's offense was held in check against Cal Lu's defense in the second quarter as three possessions produced a pair of punts and a fumble. The Leopard defense also forced a turnover midway through the second quarter to end one Kingsmen drive.
The Leos held Cal Lutheran out of the end zone until the final minute before half when Kingsmen running back Antoine Adams barreled in from 2 yards out to give the visitors a 24-3 lead at intermission.
The third quarter belonged to the Kingsmen as they scored three times in a total of 10 plays. An Adams TD rush of 4 yards capped a 6-play, 45-yard drive at 12:03. Bobby Rodrigues scored from 3 yards out at 7:02 completed a 3-play, 20-yard drive while Adams got his third touchdown of the day from 6 yards out immediately following a CLU interception.
Toilolo finished with 121 passing yards while Rogers totaled 4 receptions for 88 yards. For La Verne, Anthony Andre completed 10 of 25 passes for 119 yards. Cedric Ho led the Leos in receiving with 8 grabs for 62 yards.
CLU improves to 7-1 overall and 5-0 in the SCIAC while La Verne drops to 0-8 and 0-6, respectively.
La Verne concludes the 2009 campaign next Saturday as it hosts non-league rival Chapman in a 1 pm start at Ortmayer Stadium.
