FOREST GROVE, Ore. – Pacific Football fell behind early in the contest and were unable to recover as Whitworth came away with the 28-17 victory on Saturday afternoon inside Hanson Stadium.
The Boxers out-gained the Pirates 293-288 but struggled on third down, converting just five of their 13 chances. Whitworth was clinical in the road win, capitalizing on three of its four red zone opportunities.
Top Performers
- Ryan Helt had a steady performance under center, going 18-of-29 for 293 yards with two touchdown passes without an interception.
- Kai Bookland was Helt's favorite target with seven grabs for 87 yards.
- Jaden Ramos came through with a career day, hauling in a 69-yard touchdown catch to highlight his three-catch, 80-yard day.
- Sancho Eskridge led the defense yet again with 12 tackles, including 1.5 tackles-for-loss and one pass break-up.
How It Happened
Whitworth opened the scoring just over a minute into the contest with a quick three-play, 58-yard drive to take an early 7-0 lead on Luis Salgado's long touchdown run.
Pacific replied with a field goal on the ensuing possession after seeing its drive stall on the visitor's five-yard line.
Caden Almer knocked down the 23-yard attempt to make the score 7-3.
The visitors made it two scores in two drives when Logan Kitselman capped off a methodical 11-play, 75-yard drive with his six-yard plunge. Both offenses were unable to find a rhythm in the remaining minutes of the half and the Pirates would take a 14-3 lead into the locker room.
The Boxers showed life early in the third period when Helt hit
Tyler Vargas for a 34-yard strike to bring Forest Grove's team within a score.
However, Whitworth answered with another quick touchdown to, once again, make it a two-score game. The Boxers were unable to cut the deficit on their next two possessions and the Pirates took advantage when quarterback Jaedyn Prewitt found Ethan Peloquin in the end zone to put the game out of reach.
Pacific scored once more before the end of the game when Ramos reeled in a 69-yard bomb from Helt to make the final score 28-17
What It Means
Pacific falls to 4-4 overall (3-3 NWC) with one game remaining on its Northwest Conference slate.
Up Next
The Boxers head to Tacoma, Wash. on Nov. 12 at 1 p.m. to take on Pacific Lutheran in the season finale.
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