Photo: Tony Leon/ActionWestPhotography.com

ORANGE, Calif. (Oct. 9, 2021) – Sophomore Juan Estrada (Bassett, Calif. / Bassett) stepped up for the Whittier College football team on Saturday night, giving the Poets a legitimate rushing threat at Chapman University in the team's first conference game of the season.

Estrada's 81 rushing yards are a new high mark for any Poet in the 2021 season. He began to find a rhythm for himself in the second half after catching a 15-yard pass from sophomore quarterback Sebastian Pimentel (Whittier, Calif. / California) two minutes into the third quarter. From there, the second-year converted running back piled up 67 yards on the ground in the second half while accounting for each of Whittier's touchdowns over the final half.

Estrada punched in both of his touchdowns from the one-yard line after a pair of nine-play drives of 63 and 65 yards respectively. On the former drive, a 29-yard pass from Pimentel to junior wideout Sean Aldana (Los Angeles, Calif. / Salesian) helped set up the finishing score, while Estrada earned 26 of his rushing yards on the ensuing possession. His 25 carries are also a season-high for the Poets, who committed to the run in a way that had not been seen yet prior to Saturday's game. Meanwhile, the Poets also played their most disciplined game of the season, committing nary a penalty over the full game. The defense also showed it could make plays in spots. Junior defensive back Sam Aseh (El Monte, Calif. / El Monte) thwarted a would-be 22-yard gain by the Panthers by stripping the ball carrier at the end of the play, giving the ball back to the Poets' offense in the second quarter.

Head Coach Mike Neale and the Poets will return home to Wallace "Chief" Newman Field at Memorial Stadium for the first time in over a month when they host SCIAC foe Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges (3-2, 0-1 SCIAC) on Saturday, Oct. 16 at 7 p.m.

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