Late Cal Lutheran Rally Falls Short in 33-30 Loss

Leave it to the Poets to show Cal Lutheran the Wasteland.

The Kingsmen lost to host Whittier, 33-30, Saturday night in a season-ending Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference contest. It was the third consecutive loss for Cal Lutheran (3-6, 2-4 in SCIAC play).

“This game was kind of a mirror of our season, a composite,” Cal Lutheran Coach Joe Harper said. “A very competitive game, down to the wire, but we didn’t quite have enough to do it.”

Unlike the previous two blowout losses to La Verne and Redlands, the Kingsmen made this one close.

With CLU trailing, 33-17, in the fourth quarter, quarterback Adam Hacker connected with wide receiver Len Bradley on touchdown passes of nine and seven yards to pull to within 33-30 with 10 minutes to play.

They had a last gasp when Poet running back George Marquecho fumbled at the Cal Lutheran six-yard line and the Kingsmen recovered with 3 minutes 48 seconds to play. The Cal Lutheran sideline rejoiced.

“It was almost like we won the game,” Bradley said.

But the Kingsmen could drive only 27 yards before losing the ball on downs, and Whittier (3-6, 2-4) ran out the final 1:55.

As the Kingsmen knelt at midfield in a circle for their traditional postgame speech by Harper, watching the Whittier players laughing and screaming and clowning for a joyous team picture, they were left to ponder a disappointing season.

“We ended it on a bad note,” junior safety John Wilson said. “The defense kind of collapsed the last three games. After the Menlo game (a 19-7 win Oct. 24), it just kind of went in the pot.”

Bradley, a senior, caught six passes for 67 yards and the two scores. He finished with 49 receptions (tied for seventh on the Cal Lutheran single-season list) for 753 yards (eighth on single-season list.)

Senior running back Cassidy O’Sullivan rushed for 159 yards in 20 carries to give him 887 yards, fourth on the school’s single-season list.

Hacker completed 20 of 29 passes for 227 yards and three touchdowns, giving him 2,096 yards for the season. Senior Scott Wheeler caught five passes for 79 yards.

Cal Lutheran built a 10-0 lead in the opening quarter on Wheeler’s seven-yard scoring reception and a 44-yard field goal by Ben Schuldheisz, but Whittier retaliated with four consecutive touchdowns.