The University of Redlands took to the road on Saturday
afternoon for a Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic
Conference (SCIAC) game against the Sagehens of Pomona-Pitzer
Colleges. Despite the intermittent rain showers, the Bulldogs blew
past Pomona-Pitzer, 52-14, while utilizing three quarterbacks.
In Redlands' opening drive, the team marched 50 yards on six
plays to score on a one-yard run by senior running back Zack
Schafer (Saugus, CA). After trading possessions on the next five
drives, the Bulldogs earned another touchdown on a six-play,
65-yard series, which ended with Schafer posting his second score
of the game, this time from four yards out.
After giving up a 59-yard touchdown pass to the Sagehens, Redlands
rallied for a third score in the first quarter as senior running
back Jeff Stewart (Newark, CA) pushed his way down the field on a
13-yard rush into the end zone.
With a 21-7 advantage, sophomore kicker Joe MacMillan (Pasadena,
CA) connected on a 27-yard field goal on the team's opening
drive of the second quarter. On Pomona-Pitzer's next
possession, sophomore defensive back Mike Nicolini (Novato, CA)
picked off a pass on third down to put the Bulldogs at their own
40-yard line. Stewart moved the ball for Redlands, providing runs
of 11 and five yards, before junior quarterback Steve Smith (Lake
Oswego, OR) found junior wide receiver Brendan Barkate
(Bakersfield, CA) on a six-yard gain to the Sagehen 38. Redlands
looked to Stewart on the next pass play and he bulldozed his way
into the end zone for the score.
Near the end of the half, freshman linebacker Ian Sluss (Vista, CA)
nabbed an interception at the Pomona-Pitzer 39-yard line, giving
the Bulldogs excellent field position. Freshman quarterback Dylan
Barrera (Las Vegas, NV) and sophomore running back Daylan Swedlow
(Lake Arrowhead, CA) combined efforts to move the ball to the one
where senior running back Kraig Kraning (Cool, CA) ran it in for a
touchdown on second and goal.
The second half saw much of the same as Redlands continued to
control the game on both sides of the ball. Junior defensive back
Jared Fink (El Paso, TX) made a big fumble recovery midway through
the third quarter, coming up with the ball in the Sagehen end zone
for a touchdown. With a 45-7 lead, the Bulldogs scored once more as
Barrera found freshman wide receiver Tyler Aubrey (Santee, CA) on a
28-yard pass with 8:59 to go in the game. Despite a final score by
Pomona-Pitzer, Redlands gained a solid 52-14 victory to improve to
6-1 overall and 4-1 in conference.
Schafer led the team in rushing with 121 yards on 13 carries with a
long of 36 yards. Smith, Barerra and junior quarterback Kyle Ochoa
(Van Nuys, CA) combined efforts at quarterback, posting a total of
16 completions on 22 attempts with no interceptions for 230 yards.
They found 13 different receivers, including Aubrey on two catches
for 42 yards. On defense, Sluss provided seven tackles, including
three for a loss of four yards, while Nicolini added seven tackles
as well. Freshman punter Wes Norris (San Jose, CA) continued to
impress, posting five punts for an average of 41.2 yards.
Redlands (6-1, 4-1 SCIAC) returns home to Ted Runner Stadium on
Saturday for a 1 p.m. game against non-conference foe Chapman
University.
