THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – Cal Lutheran football turned in a dominant home-opening performance Saturday afternoon, scoring 34 unanswered points across the second and third quarters before cruising past the University of Puget Sound, 41-7, at William Rolland Stadium.
The Kingsmen (1-1) found their rhythm after a scoreless opening quarter, putting together three touchdowns in the second quarter before adding three more scores in the second half. Cal Lutheran finished the afternoon with 454 yards of total offense while holding the Loggers to 248 yards.
Quarterback
Joe Farley led the offensive charge, completing 12 of 18 passes for 267 yards and four touchdowns. He also added 20 rushing yards and a touchdown on the ground.
Farley opened the scoring with a 20-yard touchdown run just eight seconds into the second quarter, capping a 72-yard drive to put the Kingsmen ahead 6-0.
Cal Lutheran added to its lead later in the quarter when Farley connected with
Maddox Bernardino for a four-yard touchdown with 6:33 remaining. The Kingsmen then struck again just before halftime, as Farley found
Tyler Woodworth for a 10-yard touchdown with 1:15 on the clock to send Cal Lu into the break with a 20-0 advantage.
The Kingsmen picked up right where they left off in the third quarter, as Farley connected with
TeNorris Merkel for a 66-yard touchdown to extend the lead just over two minutes into the half. Four minutes later, Farley found Woodworth again, this time for a 42-yard touchdown, putting Cal Lutheran ahead 34-0.
Puget Sound got on the board with a one-yard touchdown run late in the third quarter, but the Kingsmen defense answered by keeping the Loggers out of the end zone for the remainder of the afternoon.
With just over five minutes left in the game,
Blake Hurley intercepted a Puget Sound pass and returned it for a touchdown, putting the finishing touches on the 41-7 victory. The interception was one of four by the Kingsmen defense, which held the Loggers to 16-of-38 passing for 112 yards.
Merkel finished with two catches for 110 yards and a touchdown, while Woodworth hauled in three passes for 60 yards and two touchdowns. Bernardino added three receptions for 58 yards and a touchdown.
Cal Lutheran also controlled the ground game, rushing for 177 yards on 35 attempts.
John Gilbert led the Kingsmen with 63 yards on 11 carries, while
Kaden Taylor added 30 yards on six attempts.
The Kingsmen return to William Rolland Stadium next Saturday night, September 26, for their first SCIAC game of the season, hosting the University of Redlands at 7:05 p.m. in the annual Smudge Pot Trophy game. Cal Lutheran looks to keep the trophy in Thousand Oaks after bringing it home for the first time since 2012 last season.
