CMS Football Falls on the Road at Cal Lutheran

CLAREMONT, Calif. - A shorthanded Claremont-Mudd-Scripps football team kept the game close at Cal Lutheran in the first half, but the Kingsmen struck for two touchdowns on their first three offensive plays to start the second half and went on to earn a 37-7 win over the Stags on Saturday evening.

The Stags, who played without its top three running backs in seniors Garrett Cheadle and Christian Curcio and junior Justin Leonard due to injury, fall to 2-3 overall and 0-2 in the SCIAC, while Cal Lutheran improves to 3-2 overall and 2-0 in the league. 

CMS had a big effort from sophomore wide receiver Brian Loudermilk Jr., who moved to running back and carried the ball 10 times for 103 yards in the losing effort.   

Cal Lutheran kicked a field goal on its first offensive possession, and the Stags tried to answer back, with sophomore quarterback Zach Fogel completing a 23-yard pass to the Cal Lutheran nine-yard line. However, three straight passes fell incomplete, and the Stags were unable to come away with any points. 

After CMS was pinned deep in its own end and forced to punt, Cal Lutheran took advantage of a short field, taking over on the Stag 41-yard line, and completing a touchdown on its first play of the drive. Sophomore Benjamin Cooney blocked the extra point attempt, leaving the score 9-0. 

On its final drive of the first half, the Stags looked to break on to the scoreboard, driving the ball to the Cal Lutheran 12-yard line, where it had a 2nd-and-1 in the final minute of the half. The Kingsmen defense came up big, though, stopping CMS on short yardage for three plays in a row, with William Kelly making a tackle for no gain on 4th-and-1 to end the drive, and end the half with Cal Lutheran leading 9-0. 

The momentum carried over into the second half, as The Kingsmen had a 51-yard pass on its first play from scrimmage after halftime, setting up a 26-yard touchdown pass from Cesar DeLeon to Joc Smith, making it a 16-0 game just 40 seconds into the third quarter. After the Stags went three-and-out, Cal Lutheran's Cameron Jones had a 31-yard punt return to put the ball on the CMS 35-yard line, and Jackson Taylor rushed in from 35 yards out to give Cal Lutheran two touchdowns on three plays from scrimmage after halftime and a 23-0 lead.  

For the third time in the game, CMS was able to drive into the Cal Lutheran red zone, but the drive stalled at the Kingsmen 16-yard line. Six plays later, De Leon completed another long touchdown pass, this one 70 yards to Jaquan Thomas, to make it a 30-0 game in the opening minute of the fourth quarter. 

First-year quarterback Hank Harvego scored his first collegiate touchdown for the Stags on a two-yard carry in the fourth quarter. First-year defensive back Connor Cryan set the drive up by recovering a fumble off a punt to give CMS the ball on the Cal Lutheran 16-yard line, and after an interference penalty placed the ball on the two, Harvego carried it in to account for the CMS points. 

First-year running back John Willard had 15 carries for 42 yards and four catches for 30 yards, while sophomore wide receiver Jack Grasberger caught two passes for 60 yards. First-year defensive back Jack Holden had seven tackles to lead the defense, while sophomore linebacker Dylan Porter had six. 

CMS will be back in action at home next Saturday when it takes on Redlands at Zinda Field, beginning at 1 p.m.