California puts end to three-game skid

Justin Forsett rushed for 132 yards and two touchdowns, and California ended its three-game losing streak with a stellar defensive effort in a 20-17 victory over Washington State on Saturday night.

Forsett had a 44-yard scoring run with 2:42 to play for the Golden Bears, 6-3 overall and 3-3 in the Pacific 10 Conference, and receiver Lavelle Hawkins clinched it by recovering an onside kick after Charles Dillon’s 18-yard scoring catch and Washington State’s two-point conversion with 19 seconds left.

Cal lost its No. 2 ranking, fell out of the top 25 and erased its championship hopes with losses to Oregon State, UCLA and Arizona State during a dispiriting three-week skid in October.

The losses didn’t discourage the Bears defense, which frustrated quarterback Alex Brink and kept the Cougars (3-6, 1-5) out of the end zone until Dillon’s desperate touchdown reception.

Tight end Jed Collins then caught a two-point conversion pass that was upheld by video review, but Hawkins easily grabbed the onside kick.

Brink passed for 306 yards -- 168 in the fourth quarter -- for Washington State, which lost for the fifth time in six games.

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Washington 27, Stanford 9 -- Louis Rankin ran for 255 yards and a touchdown in the best performance by a Washington running back in 11 years, helping the visiting Huskies avenge a humiliating loss to the Cardinal last year and win their first Pac-10 game this season.

Rankin carried the ball 36 times as Washington (3-6, 1-5) relied on its ground game, finishing with a season-high 388 yards to end a six-game losing streak.

Rankin’s total was the most for a Huskies back since Corey Dillon ran for 259 yards against Oregon in 1996 and fourth most since 1947. Jake Locker also ran for two scores and set the Washington single-season rushing record for a quarterback.

A year ago, Stanford went to Washington winless and pulled off a 20-3 upset that cost the Huskies a chance at a bowl bid. This time, Washington played the role of spoiler, all but ending any hopes for the Cardinal (3-6, 2-5) to make a bowl game.