Pioneers drop two in a row to Puget Sound and Linfield

By Abe Field

The Lewis & Clark football team had a tough few weeks in their schedule, facing a resilient University of Puget Sound (UPS) team on Oct. 7 and 10th ranked Linfield on Oct. 14. The Pios lost to UPS 35-13 and to Linfield 49-14.

UPS scored all of their 35 points in the first half and were up 35-3 at halftime. The UPS Logger defense forced four costly turnovers which led to the Pioneers being out-gained 485-246 yards over the course of the game. The Pioneer defense forced a turnover in every game since Nov. 2016 until this game.

Heisman Hosoda ’20 scored from 36 yards out for his third straight game with a touchdown on a pass from Sawyer May ’21 in the 4th quarter. May could not continue his high level of play from earlier in the season, passing for 203 yards, one touchdown, two interceptions and completing 17 out of 44 of his passes. The interceptions were his first of the season and his collegiate career.

The Pioneers fared worse against Linfield, who are ranked 8th among Division III teams. Although May threw for 137 yards and two touchdowns, the Pioneers could not overcome the explosive Linfield offense who torched them for 436 yards of total offense. The Wildcats, who have been favored by Division III sports analysts since the beginning of the season, scored in every quarter on their way to handing LC their second consecutive loss.

After losing their last two games, the Pioneers fell to 2-3 on the season and 1-2 in conference play. The Pioneers next game is the Homecoming and family weekend game against Pacific University. The game kicks off at 1 p.m. at Griswold.