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The Pacific football team outscored Puget Sound 21-6 in the second half to overcome a seven-point halftime deficit en route to a 35-27 win on Saturday afternoon.
The Boxers (2-2, 2-1 NWC) managed to outgain the Loggers, 417 to 315 in total offense and a pair of Pacific senior running backs Brandon Boyd (Gilroy, Calif.) and Kevin McGee (San Francisco, Calif.) each scored a pair of touchdowns in the win. Boyd ran the ball 31 times for 137 yards to go along with two touchdowns for his third 100-yard game and third multi-touchdown game of the season. For McGee, who was celebrating his 21st birthday, had seven rushes for 49 yards and a touchdown to go along with three catches for 27 yards and another touchdown.
Defensively for Pacific, senior Xavier Harvey (Sacramento, Calif.) had a team-high eight tackles and shared in a sack. The last time that Pacific trailed at the half and scored at least 21 points in a half was when they rallied for a 41-23 win over Occidental on Sept. 26, 2015.
The Loggers (2-3, 1-2 NWC) built a 21-14 halftime lead on the strength of two second quarter touchdowns. Puget Sound quarterback Tanner Diebold completed 12 of 37 passes for 17e yards and a touchdown; plus Vance Wood ran 12 times for 67 yards and two touchdowns in the loss.
Puget Sound tied the game at 14 when Wood scored his second touchdown of the half with 9:29 left to go in the first half. Then, on the ensuing Pacific drive, the Loggers picked off a pass to set up a short field. Four plays later, Diebold connected with Collin Heimback on a 19-yuard touchdown pass.
Trailing by seven to start the second half, the Boxers took the opening kickoff down for a touchdown to tie the game at 21 on a 10 play, 57-yard drive. 34 of the 57 yards came on the legs and strength of Boyd. Later in the quarter, with the game tied at 21, Pacific regained the lead on a one-yard plunge by Boyd on 3rd and goal. The running of Boyd and McGee as well as back-to-back completions by J.T. Greenough (Tigard, Ore.) extended the drive.
Pacific stretched the lead to 35-21 with its next drive when Austin Cardoza (Exeter, Calif.) broke up the middle for a four-yard touchdown with 11:55 left in the game. Again, the Boxers converted a pair of third-down opportunities in the march to the end zone. The Loggers came down the field and cut the deficit to 35-27 as freshman Dustin Gapusan (Mililani, Hawaii) blocked the extra-point attempt. After a Boxer fumble, the Loggers tried to capitalize before senior cornerback Max Look intercepted a Diebold pass in the end zone. The Boxer defense kept the Loggers out of the end zone as they ended a pair of drives on the downs. To end the visitors comeback hopes, the Boxers called on Boyd to pick up a crucial first down in the closing seconds. The senior did just that on a pair of carries.
Next, Pacific will travel to Lewis & Clark on Saturday, Oct. 20 at 1 p.m. at Griswold Stadium.
- Photo Essay by Pacific Sports Information Office
- BoxerBuzz - Post-Game Interviews with head coach Keith Buckley and Boxers' Tyler Kaiiluli, Max Look and Kevin McGee
- Photos