CLAREMONT, Calif. - The Cal Lutheran football team faced off against Pomona-Pitzer on Saturday afternoon at Merritt Field and walked away with a 47-27 victory. After managing just 10 points last weekend against Redlands, the Kingsmen offense seemed to have their way against the Sagehen defense throughout the game.
In just four minutes the Kingsmen put together an eight-play, 77-yard drive that ended in a nine-yard rush by Isaac Seymour to take an early 7-0 lead.
The Sagehens, however, responded quickly by scoring on their following two possessions to pull ahead 14-7.
The next scoring drive for the Violet and Gold would begin with a 49-yard punt return from Kris Turner-Jackson, which brought CLU to the Pomona-Pitzer 43-yard line. The Kingsmen would later convert on a third and long with quarterback Adam Friederichsen finding senior wide receiver Sean Bellotti for a 21-yard completion to bring up a first down. The Kingsmen, however, would fail to convert on third and goal and would settle for a 22-yard field goal attempt from Chris Taylor to bring CLU within four.
After successfully stopping the Sagehens on their next possession, the Kingsmen were able to drive down field in less than three and half minutes to regain the lead, 17-14. The touchdown would come by way of a six-yard rush from senior running back CJ Washington and CLU would maintain the lead for the remainder of the game.
An incredible tackle by sophomore Trevor Roe would force Pomona-Pitzer to start its next drive from its own two-yard line. Just two plays later, a Logan Sanders interception would put the ball back in Cal Lutheran's possession with Friederichsen immediately finding senior wide receiver Ricky Johnson for a 34-yard touchdown pass, putting the Kingsmen ahead ten.
With under a minute left to play in the half, a pick-six by Roe for 44-yards would extend Cal Lutheran's lead to 31-14 to give them a comfortable 17-point halftime lead.
Pomona-Pitzer was able to score on their first drive of the half to make it a two-possession game, however, the Kingsmen remained undaunted and wasted no time putting points back on the board.
A 13-yard rush by Washington would spark a drive for CLU midway through the third quarter. Friederichsen would then connect with Bellotti who would break through three defenders for a 13-yard gain. Three consecutive rushes by Seymour for a combined 18 yards would ultimately lead to Friederichsen capping the drive off with a 17-yard touchdown pass to Johnson, further extending Cal Lutheran's lead, 38-21.
A beautiful 23-yard pass to Bellotti that brought the Kingsmen to the Pomona-Pitzer one-yard line would be short-lived as an unfortunate CLU fumble would give possession back to the Sagehens. Yet, a holding penalty in the end zone would result in a Sagehen safety, tacking on two more to the Kingsmen advantage.
Parker Boone would intercept the ball at the Pomona-Pitzer 27-yard line late in the fourth quarter, and four consecutive rushes from Ushali Ellison for a total of 17 yards would lead to running back Foorever Campbell punching in a nine-yard rush for yet another CLU touchdown.
The Sagehens were able to drive down field for a late touchdown, but it was CLU that left Pomona-Pitzer with the 47-27 victory.
Friederichsen threw for a career-high 249 yards with two touchdowns on 17-for-27 passing while also scrambling for 30 rushing yards.
Offensive receiving leaders included Johnson with 85 yards and two touchdowns and Bellotti with 74 yards. Top rushers for CLU included Seymour, Washington and Ellison who rushed for 50, 44 and 38 yards respectively. CLU outrushed the Sagehens 179-86 yards on the day.
Defensively the Kingsmen were led the by Dalton Santos and EJ Edinburgh who had five tackles a piece, Ronny Camacho, Roe and Sanders who had four tackles each and Lucas Quinn with three.
Cal Lutheran (4-1, 2-1 SCIAC) will be on the road again next weekend as they travel to Chapman to take on the Panthers. Game time is slated for 7:00 p.m.
Box Score: CLU 47, PP 27
CLU Twitter: https://twitter.com/clusports
CLU Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/clusports
CLU Instagram: http://instagram.com/clusports#
