SPOKANE, Wash. – Whitworth University shook off rust, cold and inexperience in a dominating 53-6 win over visiting Puget Sound in the first Pirate football game ever played in February on Saturday afternoon at the Pine Bowl.
Whitworth had eight new starters on offense, seven on defense and a new kicker. And it was their first game in over 450 days.
The new offense rolled up 451 yards, split nearly evenly between passing yards (231) and rushing yards (220). The defense held the Loggers (1-1) to only six first downs and took the ball away five times. And the new kicker? All Nate RaPue did was make all six of his field goal attempts to set a new Whitworth record.
RaPue scored 22 points on six field goals and four extra points. He was good from 28 and 23 yards in the first quarter, 24 in the second, 34 and 27 in the third, and 22 in the fourth.
Jaedyn Prewitt, making his first start at quarterback for Whitworth, completed 8 of 16 passes for 201 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. His first touchdown pass was a 29-yard completion to Ethan Peloquin on fourth down with 6:08 left in the second quarter that increased Whitworth's lead to 23-0. The pair combined for a 73-yard touchdown with 41 seconds left in the half to increase the margin to 30-0.
Prewitt played only one possession into the third quarter after Dawson Ruhl scored his second touchdown of the game to give the Bucs a 37-0 lead. Ruhl scored Whitworth's first touchdown of the season in the first quarter with a one-yard run. His second was a 23-yard burst through several tacklers and he finished with 62 yards on ten carries.
Chad Carlson ran for a 4 yard touchdown in the fourth quarter. Isaiah Jones rushed for 70 yards to lead the Pirates, and none of his carries came before halftime. Similarly, Carlson picked up 56 yards on the ground after halftime.
Kanen Ables and Matthew Porras combined to complete two passes in eight attempts after relieving Prewitt. Peloquin finished with two catches for 102 yards. Brayden Corona led the team with three catches. The Pirates did not turn the ball over in the game.
The five turnovers that Whitworth's defense forced turned the game into a rout early. And the first really wasn't a turnover in the stats. The Loggers misplayed a punt on their first possession, allowing Whitworth to take over at the 14, which led to RaPue's first field goal. The Loggers had a pair of fumbles in the first quarter which led directly to Whitworth points. The second came when Murdock Rutledge completed a fourth down pass to Austin Knight which went 47 yards before Bryce Hornbeck forced a fumble at the two that went out of bounds for a Whitworth touchback.
Hornbeck added an interception in the third quarter. Colton Chelin had an interception in the second quarter that set up the first Prewitt-Peloquin connection. Ethan Fields added another interception in the third quarter.
RudyJay Keopuhewa, the only returning starter on the defensive line, and Dylan Ventress, who made his first start at linebacker, led Whitworth with five tackles each.
The Pirates dominated time of possession 44:08 – 15:52.
The Loggers avoided the shutout when Rutledge completed a 45 yard touchdown pass to Anthony Ball in the third quarter to make the score 43-6. Rutledge finished 5-19 for 116 yards with one touchdown and three interceptions. Duncan Varela ran 10 times for 59 yards.
Zachary Meyer had nine tackles for the Loggers, while Ezekiel Sayavong finished with three sacks.
Whitworth will travel to play at Pacific Lutheran next Saturday.