Tigers to take on Leos on Homecoming weekend

LOS ANGELES, Calif. (Oct. 8, 2009) – Since 2003 each time the Tigers and Leopards have battled on the gridiron, Occidental College has been victorious and the black and orange also hold an all-time 31-17-1 advantage over the University of La Verne.

Team Notes:
Last weekend Occidental maintained possession of the football for 33:26 and accumulated 460 yards of offense (150 on the ground and 310 through the air). Occidental was 2-for-3 in the red zone and picked up 23 first downs. The black and orange converted 7-for-16 third down conversion chances and limited the Chapman running game to 61 total yards.

La Verne was handed a 38-14 road loss to Pomona-Pitzer last weekend. The Leos remain winless on the season at 0-5, with an 0-3 SCIAC record entering the weekend. Overall ULV gained 259 yards of offense, with 222 coming through the air as the Leopards gained just 61 yards on the ground. As a team ULV collected 19 first downs, converted 4-of-13 third down conversions and 2-of-4 fourth down conversions. They were 3-for-4 in the red zone.

Offense:
Late in the first quarter Scott Saunders (26-for-47 for 310 yards) connected with Jordan Washington for a 42-yard TD completion after Washington used some fancy footwork and incredible athleticism to avoid the Panthers’ defenders. In the fourth quarter the Tigers added to the score when Saunders connected with Jordan Inabnit for the longest completion of his career, at 71 yards. The senior receiver avoided a pair of tackles in the middle of the field and twisted his way to the Chapman 15 yard line, which set up a three yard rush by Jason Haller. Occidental opted for the two-point conversion and Saunders nailed a wide open Washington to give the Tigers 20 points. Inabnit caught seven passes for 141 yards and Jason Lehman caught eight.

ULV quarterback Anthony Andre was 17-for-35 last weekend. His favorite target of the afternoon was Cedric Ho who nabbed 10 catches for 120 yards and one touchdown. The other offensive score was a completion to Erek Brown. Wesley Dean kicked both PATs for the Leopards. Andre was picked off twice and sacked seven times.

Defense:
Defensively senior Trace Wallace led the attack with nine tackles (seven solo) while breaking up three plays. Alex Wertheimer and Kyle Spaulding finished with seven tackles apiece and Wertheimer added four quarterback hurries while breaking up two plays. Hildensperger and Jesse Fischer combined for the only Occidental sack of the game. Stanton pushed his season interception total to five with two more tonight, returning one for 29 yards. Jim Hildensperger came up with a huge blocked PAT as well as a combined sack with Jesse Fischer as each player had three tackles in the game.

The ULV defense was led by Branamier Courtney who tallied nine tackles (seven solo) and ran back an interception 22 yards. Donald Mull also nabbed an interception and returned it 21 yards. Travy’on Samuel finished with eight tackles and combined with Dylan Keith for a sack while Jorge Villagonez contributed a sack of his own.

Special Teams:
Neil Martin got the scoring started with a 22-yard field goal adding one PAT. During seven opportunities for Alex Groh a trio of them sailed 50 yards or more with 52, 54 and 56 yard punts, while four landed inside the 20 yard line. Nick Saraceni recovered Hildensperger’s blocked PAT attempt in the first quarter to give the Tigers a safety. In addition, he had a pair of kick returns that totaled 42 yards while Washington returned six combined punts and kicks for 77 yards to go along with 91 receiving yards to lead the charge with 168 all purpose yards.

ULV punter, Brown, had four chances and averaged 38.8 yards per punt against the Sagehens. Pui Lok Choi ran back four kickoffs for a total of 92 yards, which included a 45 yard return and Kenneth Chapman returned a kickoff for 24 yards.

For those who are unable to make it out to the game you can watch the game live at KADYtv.com and listen as Craig Dunkin, Tim Walsh and Kevin Walsh call the game for you at oxybroadcast.com. Kickoff is slated for 3:00 p.m.