Whittier College football lost its third game in a row, 35-21 against visiting Chapman University on October 11.  The Poets allowed 262 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns to Panther running back Mike Christensen as their record falls to 1-3 overall on the season.

The Poets fell behind early as the Panthers (3-1) scored the first 14 points of the game.  They started the scoring on their first possession with a 13-play, 66-yard drive that ate nearly six minutes of the first quarter clock.  The drive ended with a one-yard scramble to pay dirt from Chapman quarterback Eric Marty (7-0, CU). 

On the ensuing Poets possession, quarterback Matt Castaneda '11 was picked off by Panthers' free safety Garrett Earls, giving Chapman the ball deep in Whittier territory.  Two plays later, Christensen scored his first touchdown of the day on a two-yard run (14-0, CU).

The Poets got on the board with their next possession, a six-play, 66-yard drive capped by a 17-yard pass from Casteneda to Josh Ollison '11 with 4:23 left in the first quarter.  The extra point that followed was blocked (14-6, CU).  The Panthers struck once more in the first quarter with a 25-yard run by Christensen for his second score of the night (21-6, CU).

The only scoring drive of the second quarter came from the Panthers, who capitalized on their second interception of the night.  A ten-play, 66-yard drive ensued that resulted in yet another Christensen touchdown run, this time from nine yards out (28-6, CU).

Defense controlled the game to open up the second half with the teams trading turnovers and three-and-outs in the third quarter's first four possessions.  The Poets finally broke through at the 2:07 mark of the third with Ollison's second touchdown of the game, a 30-yard reception from Taylor Fallon '12 who replaced an injured Castaneda (28-14, CU).

The Poets then recovered an on-side kick and looked to cut the Chapman lead to one score.  The Panther defense held strong however, forcing a three-and-out and Whittier punt.  Chapman marched down the field once again and took the game into the fourth quarter, orchestrating an eight-play, 79-yard drive capped by a Christensen three-yard touchdown run, his fourth of the day (35-14, CU).

The Poets needed just 1:13 on the following possession to get back within two scores when Anthony Pomponio '09 scampered 32 yards to pay dirt with 10:31 left in regulation (35-21, CU). 

Whittier caught a break on the next Panther possession when Brandon Boehm '09 forced a fumble that was recovered by Nick Longoria '12 with just over eight minutes to play.  The Poets drove inside the ten-yard line, but were forced to go for it on fourth-and-goal and failed.  The Panthers, on the back of Christensen, ran out the remaining 6:20 with a 13-play drive to ensure the 35-21 victory.

Ollison led the Poet offense with a pair of touchdowns, catching five passes for 116 yards.  Pomponio, who is currently ranked 19^th in Division III with 135 rushing yards per game, had his fourth 100-yard rushing game.  He finished with 19 carries for 107 yards and one touchdown and also had four receptions for 37 yards.  Fallon came into the game in the second half and went 12-for-17 for 176 yards and one touchdown.  2007 All-SCIAC receiver Shawn Briggs '09 caught four passes for 48 yards.

On the defensive end, Steffen Santos '09 led the Poets with 7.5 tackles, three for a loss, and two sacks.  Boehm, Brandon Wilcox '10 and Sean MacNeil '09 all finished with 5.5 tackles.  Brandon Johnson '10 had the lone Poet interception.

The Poets stay at home next week, when they take on SCIAC rival University of Redlands for Homecoming.  Kick-off is scheduled for 3:05pm and can be heard live on Stretch Internet Worldwide.  Visit the University of Redlands website for more details.