Offense fires on all cylinders as CMS pulls out 5OT, 49-46 win at Whittier

WHITTIER, Calif. – In a wild back-and-forth game that saw eight lead changes and four ties, the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps football team pulled out a 49-46 win at Whittier on Saturday night in five overtimes at Memorial Stadium. With the win, CMS is now 2-4 on the season while Whittier dropped to 0-6. CMS played turnover-free football for the second game in a row which played a big part in the win.

The game-winning score for the second time this season came on a field goal by freshman kicker Matthew Aven, this time in the fifth overtime to give CMS a 49-46 lead. Whittier then took position with the chance to tie or pull out the win, but the CMS defense held and kicker Alex Jungsten missed wide left to give CMS the win. Aven connected on three field goals for CMS in the game.

CMS led for much of the first three quarters of the game and were up 23-19 at the end of the third quarter. With 13:31 left in the fourth quarter, Whittier jumped ahead 26-23 on a 10-yard touchdown pass from junior QB T.J. Jordan to junior WR Diante Jackson. Jordan threw for 297 yards and four touchdowns while Jackson had 172 yards on nine catches for Whittier.

The Poets held its 26-23 lead until Aven tied the game on a 24-yard field goal with eight second remaining in regulation. CMS took over after a punt and went down the field over 16 plays to set up the game-tying field goal.

In the first overtime, CMS had the first possession and scored a touchdown on a 6-yard pass from freshman QB Trey Reynolds to senior WR Kris Otterholt to push the CMS lead to 33-26. The duo connected for two touchdowns in the overtime periods. Reynolds threw for 239 yards and five touchdowns in the game to go along with 81 rushing yards while Otterholt had a team-high 81 yards receiving and two touchdowns on eight catches.

After CMS jumped ahead 33-26, Whittier answered with a touchdown of its own to even the score at 33 to send the game into the second overtime. In the second and third overtimes, both teams scored touchdowns which made the score 46-46 and sent the game into the fourth overtime. The fourth overtime saw both CMS and Whittier miss field goals which set up the eventual game-winner by Aven in the fifth overtime.

Otterholt (2), freshman TE Patrick Dixon (2), sophomore RB Steven Kohr (1) and sophomore WR Tyler Stanek (1) accounted for the six CMS touchdowns in the game. On the defensive side of the ball, sophomore LB A.J. Herrera had a game-high 19 tackles while senior DB Joey Liekweg (10) and junior LB Max Winsberg (10) each were in double figures in tackles. Winsberg also added a forced fumble.

Next up for CMS is a home game vs. SCIAC-leader Redlands on Saturday, Nov. 2 at 1 p.m. on Zinda Field.

Box score: http://cmsathletics.org/sports/fball/2013-14/boxscores/20131026_ivye.xml

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