Scharer Lead Wildcats to Victory over Puget Sound, 42-17

Trevor Scharer completed 18 of 27 passes for 270 yards. Josh Vierra caught two of Scharer's touchdowns tosses and Tyler Kaluza caught the other as Linfield extended its streak of games with at least one TD pass to 51.

Former McKay HS star Trevor Scharer Photo: Linfield College

TACOMA, Wash. - Three touchdown passes by former McKay star Trevor Scharer and two kickoff returns for touchdowns sparked Linfield to a closer-than-it-looked 42-17 Northwest Conference victory over Puget Sound Saturday at Baker Stadium.

The six-time defending champion Wildcats (2-2, 2-0 NWC) won their 25th consecutive league game, beating the Loggers (3-2, 0-2 NWC) for the 17th straight time.

Scharer completed 18 of 27 passes for 270 yards. Josh Vierra caught two of Scharer's touchdowns tosses and Tyler Kaluza caught the other as Linfield extended its streak of games with at least one TD pass to 51.

Linfield scored on its opening possession, marching five plays and 61 yards to paydirt. Scharer hit Vierra for a 24-yard score and the Wildcats led 7-0 with 12:09 left in the first quarter.

The Loggers answered, marching inside Linfield territory where they got three points on a 22-yard field goal by Justin Dougherty. Linfield needed little time to find the end zone again as Drew Ragan scooped up a short kickoff and returned it 78 yards up the left sideline for a touchdown.

Loggers quarterback Kavin Williams scored on a 3-yard run to pull UPS to within 14-10 with 11:17 left in the second quarter. Again, the Wildcats relied on a long kickoff return to keep the Loggers at arm's length. Travis Masters returned his second kickoff for a touchdown this season, racing 97 yards for a 21-10 Wildcats' advantage.

Williams scored again on another run, this time from 46 yards away, and the Loggers trailed just 21-17 heading into the halftime locker room. UPS outgained Linfield 258-151 in the first half, including 134-61 through the air.

It was a different story in the second half as Linfield held the Loggers without a touchdown the rest of the way. The Wildcats defense made the necessary adjustments to limit the UPS attack, holding the hosts to just 134 yards during the final two quarters.

"We knew we had to bring some better intensity in the second half," said Vierra, who finished with three catches for 59 yards. "We had to come back out and play some Linfield football, and that's what we did."

The Wildcats scored three TDs in the final 21 minutes. Kaluza caught a 15-yard touchdown from Scharer with 6:26 gone in the third quarter, then the Wildcats added to their cushion with a 1-yard run by Jon Montalvo four minutes later to make it 35-17. Vierra rounded out the scoring with a 33-yard reception with a little more than four minutes left to play. Scott Birkhofer booted his sixth extra point of the game, giving the Wildcats an insurmountable lead.

Williams finished as the game's leading rusher, gaining 109 yards on 21 carries. He also passed for 221 yards, completing 13 of 28, but was held without a touchdown pass. Rory Lee, the NWC's leading rusher, was held to 29 yards on 11 carries.

Kaluza caught five passes for 117 yards to lead the Linfield receiving corps. Montalvo gained 67 yards on 14 carries as Linfield rushed for 111 yards.

Brian Mehl finished with 10 tackles to lead the Wildcats' defensive charge. Andrew Bean had four tackles, including two for loss.

NEXT: Linfield returns home to Maxwell Field for a nonconference matchup Saturday against the Southern Oregon Raiders. The Loggers hit the road after three consecutive home dates to play the Willamette Bearcats. Both games will be played under the lights starting at 6:00 PM.

'CAT TALES: The Wildcats now need xx wins in their remaining five games to extend their all-divisions record of consecutive winning seasons to 51. . . starting running back Pete Cruickshank and defensive end Jeff Denney missed the UPS game with undisclosed injuries. . . in their place, Jon Montalvo and Chad Fogelsong made their first career starts. . . Saturday's game marked the first time in program history that Linfield has returned two kickoff returns for touchdowns . . . the announced attendance was 2,118.

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