SPOKANE, Wash – Austin Ewing threw for 249 yards and a go-ahead score to Luis Salgado who racked up 137 scrimmage yards, and the Pirates kept their undefeated season alive on a rain-soaked day in Spokane, surviving George Fox 24-13 on Saturday at the Pine Bowl.
Whitworth (8-0 overall, 6-0 NWC) overcame an early interception, two failed fourth and goal conversions, and a fourth quarter deficit to snap a two-game losing streak to George Fox.
The Bruins (3-6 overall, 2-4 NWC) took a 13-10 lead when DeMontre Thomas II punched in a 1-yard score on fourth and goal with 14:52 left to go. It was the first time the Pirates had trailed in the second half this year since week two against Chapman.
The deficit didn't last long.
Just three plays later, Delgado took a short pass from Ewing and ran away from everybody for a 61-yard go-ahead touchdown, the fourth and final lead change of the afternoon.
The Pirates extended their lead on the next possession with some receiver-to-receiver magic as Dillon Kuk tossed a 16-yard score to Evan Liggett who made the catch in traffic to put the Pirates up 24-13. Kuk leads the team with 10 receiving touchdowns, he now adds a passing score to the resume. Liggett led the Pirates' in receiving with six grabs for 91 yards and a touchdown on eleven targets.
The Bruins' last gasp was snuffed out when Joshua Lawson picked off Thomas at the goal line on a deflected pass with just 4:10 left to play. The Pirates picked up three first downs after that to bleed out the final seconds and improve on their best season since 2018.
The Bruins had a shot to beat Whitworth for the third consecutive season after they followed a fourth down goal line stop with a 17-play, 97-yard drive that took 9:24. The drive was carried by four third down conversions and a fourth-and-goal touchdown by Thomas that put the Pirates in a brief hole.
Thomas was accountable for three conversions, finding Sheyden Ioka for 20 yards, River Owen on a 32-yard jump ball, and using his legs on a 25-yard scramble. Thomas finished with 208 yards passing and a team-leading 57 yards on the ground and a touchdown.
Solo Hines led Whitworth with 86 rushing yards on five carries including a 67-yard house call in on the Pirates' second possession for a 7-3 lead. Iden Bone tied a career-long with a 32-yard field goal in the final seconds of the half, and Whitworth led 10-6 at the break.
Whitworth is 8-0 for the first time since 2018, the last time they won the Northwest Conference.
The Pirates will hit the road next week for a 'winner-take-all' showdown in McMinnville with unbeaten Linfield, the winner will be crowned as conference champions and get an automatic bid to the postseason.
Linfield has won their last 33 conference games; their last loss was a 19-14 loss at Whitworth in September of 2018.
