TACOMA, Wash. – Time ticked away as Duncan White marched the
Puget Sound football team down the field and eventually tied up the
game with 21 seconds left. However, Pacific Lutheran was able to
hit a 49-yard field goal as time expired to sneak out of Baker
Stadium with a 31-28 win.
It is the second consecutive week that the Loggers have had
their hearts broken with a field goal on the last play of the
game.
White had the best game of his Logger career as he tossed four
TD passes in the game on 21-of-34 passing for 235 yards, including
the game-tying toss with just 21 seconds on the clock.
While White constructed an efficient passing attack, Casey Larson and Kyle Reynvaan each had
breakout games to lead the Loggers to 168 rushing yards. Larson had
a season-high 115 yards on 18 attempts, including a 44-yard scamper
that set up a Loggers score. Reynvaan carried the ball 20 times for
84 yards.
White, Larson and Reynvaan led the Loggers down the field for
the game-tying drive. The Loggers took over on their own 27-yard
line with 4:14 remaining. A healthy dose of Larson and Reynvaan
helped move the Loggers down the field and White connected on three
of his six passes on the drive, including a nine yard TD strike to
John Duncan on
third-and-goal with 21 seconds left. The extra point tied up the
game at 28-28.
A squib kick on the ensuing kickoff, coupled with a personal
foul against the Loggers moved the Lutes to the Logger 32 to start
the drive with seven seconds remaining. Nasser Abdelrasul
knocked down a hail mary attempt with just one second remaining.
However, Richrd Isett nailed a 49-yarder as time expired to end the
game.
The Loggers and Lutes traded leads and kept the game close
through all 60 minutes as both teams continued to fight. The
Loggers scored first after Cory Dunn picked off a pass
on the first play from scrimmage to give the Loggers the ball.
White later found Adam Kniffin on a fade
route to give the Loggers a 7-0 lead. In the second quarter, the
Lutes tied up the game at 7-7.
The Loggers were quick to respond when White and Kniffin hooked
up again on a two-yard slant route to regain the lead for the
Loggers at 14-7. However, the Lutes marched down the field for
another score just before halftime. A bad snap on the extra point
was picked up and run in for the two-point conversion, giving the
Lutes a 15-14 lead at the half.
The Loggers next strike came on a 43-yard pass to Lukas Diesing, who led
the Logger receivers with 102 yards. Diesing had found his way
behind the defense where White hit him in stride and he waltzed
into the end zone to once again give the Loggers the lead, 21-15.
About two minutes later, the Lutes responded with a 49-yard run by
Alec Simmons to take a 22-21 lead. Jordan Rasmussen finally found
Greg Ford on a 73-yard TD strike after Ford had been limited to
just three catches for 39 yards in the game to seemingly seal the
deal. However, the Logger defense responded .
Damarkus Millner pushed his way through the line to block the
extra point and keep the Loggers within striking distance, down
28-21. The crucial block set up the final sequence of events as the
Loggers hopes were lifted and dashed in just a few ticks of the
clock.
The Loggers will conclude their three-game homestand next
Saturday when they host nationally-ranked Linfield for the 2010
Homecoming game at 1 p.m.