LA VERNE, CA — Puget Sound jumped out to an early 14-0 lead and the University of La Verne football team couldn't recover, falling at home 56-28 to the Loggers.

Offensive Standouts

Gonsalves led the Leopards' ground attack finishing with 117 yards rushing on 21 carries and a touchdown. Marcellus Hunter scored two rushing touchdowns. Martaveous Holliday added 31 yards on the ground.

Sam Taylor threw for 74 yards and a touchdown with Josh Evans totaling 84 yards through the air. 

Defensive Standouts

Linebacker Conner Johnson led La Verne with seven solo tackles, 12 total tackles, and two pass breakups. He also picked off a pass in the fourth quarter.

How it Happened

The Loggers scored on their opening two possessions to jump out to a 14-0 lead. The Leopards got on the board early in the second quarter when Hunter scampered for a 10 yard rush to put the score at 21-7.

After struggling to move the ball in the opening half, the Leopards went into a wildcat formation out of the break. The strategy proved effective as the Leopards drove down the field on their opening possession off rushes by Gonsalves and freshman Elijah Washington. Gonsalves capped off the drive with a 24 yard rush to put the score at 28-14.

But the Leopards couldn't slow down the Loggers' attack, giving up three more touchdowns in the quarter.

Hunter added another rushing touchdown in the third and Taylor connected with Pete Nelsen for a 15 yard touchdown pass in the fourth.

Season Impact

The Leopards drop their second game of the season, falling to 0-2 overall. Puget Sound improves to 2-1 overall

Next Game

The Leopards next open SCIAC play when they travel down the road to face the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Stats at 1 p.m.