Box Score NEWBERG, Ore. – Visiting Whitworth outscored George Fox 13-0 in the second half to rally for a 28-23 win over the Bruins in the Northwest Conference football opener for both teams on Saturday at Stoffer Family Stadium.
The Pirates improved to 3-1 overall and 1-0 in the NWC with their third straight win, and their third win of the year on the road.
Ian Kolste threw three touchdown passes, including a 14-yard score to Mason Elms with 2:55 to play to cap an 80-yard, game-winning drive. Kolste finished 45-53 (85%) for 327 yards and did not throw an interception.
Whitworth won despite being outgained 558-426 by George Fox (0-3, 0-1). The defense bent, but did not break, while limiting the Bruins to two punts and two missed field goals after halftime. George Fox advanced to the Pirates' 27 yard line in its final possession before Dalin McDonnell broke up the game's final pass in the end zone.
Whitworth started the game on fire, moving 67 yards on its first possession to take an 8-0 lead. Duke DeGaetano ran in from ten yards away for his eighth rushing TD of the season. Jonah Koski passed to Nick Kiourkas for the two-point conversion.
Later in the first quarter the Pirates went 96 yards in 14 plays to take a two touchdown lead. On fourth down, Kolste hit Chase Naccarato for a four-yard touchdown pass. It was one of four fourth-down conversions on the day for the Bucs.
But GFU quarterback Grant Schroeder sparked the Bruin offense by gaining 61 yards on the first play after the kickoff. That set up Damian Cook's one-yard TD run on the first play of the second quarter, cutting the margin to 15-7.
George Fox would go on to dominate the second period, outscoring the Pirates 23-0 and outgaining Whitworth 209-19. Schroeder connected with Lane Hadley for a 54-yard TD pass to trim the margin to 15-14. The Bruins took the lead on a 40-yard field goal by Uriel Gonzales. Schroeder then found Brad Lander for a nine-yard TD pass with only five seconds to play in the half, giving the Bruins a 23-15 lead (after a missed extra point) and all of the momentum heading into the locker rooms.
Whitworth forced a punt on George Fox's first possession of the second half and the Pirates responded with an 80-yard drive. Kolste hit Naccarato for a six-yard touchdown to cut the Bruins' lead to 23-22.
The Pirates forced another punt and went 54 yards to the George Fox 13. But were unable to connect on a 30-yard field goal to take the lead.
George Fox moved into Whitworth's redzone on both of its next two possessions and missed field goals twice. The second miss, from 37 yards away, set up Whitworth with its opportunity for the game-winning drive.
Kolste guided the Pirates 80 yards in 15 plays. But it was DeGaetano that carried for a pair of fourth down conversions to keep the drive alive. On third and five at the GFU 14-yard line, Kolste found Elms over the middle for what turned into the winning score.
Whitworth had a chance to put the game away when Caleb Mathena forced a fumble on the ensuing kickoff, which was recovered by Christopher Forrest at the Bruins' 22 yard line. But three runs netted only seven yards and Rehn Reiley missed a 32-yard field goal with 1:10 to play.
George Fox moved to the Whitworth 27 on its last-chance drive after Schroeder hit Trevor Daniels for 19 yards on 4th and ten at the Whitworth 46 with 12 seconds left. But Schroeder's final pass was broken up in the endzone as time expired.
Naccarato led nine different Pirates who caught at least one of Kolste's passes with ten receptions for 68 yards and two scores. Garrett McKay had seven receptions for 37 yards. DeGaetano finished with 70 yards on 14 carries to lead the running game.
While Reiley missed two field goals, he averaged 45.4 yards per punt to help Whitworth gain field position throughout the game.
Schroeder accounted for 468 yards of total offense for George Fox. He completed 20 of 41 passes for 318 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. He also ran 13 times for 151 yards as the Bruins picked up 240 yards on the ground. Daniels caught six passes for 86 yards.
Daniel Portillo led the Whitworth defense with 11 tackles, while Luke Peterson was in on nine stops. The Pirates did not record a sack.
Whitworth will be back at home for the first time in five weeks next Saturday. Puget Sound will visit the Pine Bowl during Whitworth's Homecoming Weekend. Kickoff is at 1:00 pm.
