Box Score
DUBUQUE, Iowa – Turnovers proved the difference for Pacific Saturday as Dubuque forced the Boxers to cough up the ball five times in a 16-10 loss to the Spartans in football action at Chalmers Field.
Pacific outgained Dubuque offensively, 360 yards to 321 yards, but defense ruled the day as neither team scored more than one touchdown. Pacific converted only 2 of 4 red-zone scoring opportunities as the Spartans forced five turnovers, including two inside the 20-yard line.
Despite the loss, head coach Keith Buckley said he was proud of the team on the first of back-to-back Midwest road trips. "For the second game in a row, we put ourselves in a position to win at the end and couldn't close it out. Finishing, in all aspects of our program, needs to be our focus moving forward. We look forward to getting another chance to come back to the Midwest and compete next week."
Warner Shaw (Jr., Waimea, Hawaii) completed 28 of 40 passes for 222 yards, but was intercepted four times. Caleb Roher (Sr., Gresham, Ore.) was Shaw's top target, catching six balls for 52 yards. Bobby Ladiges (Jr., Escalon, Calif.) rushed 11 times for 51 yards as the Boxers netted 138 yards on the ground.
Dubuque quarterback Zach Fry completed 18 of 30 for 213 yards and a touchdown. Tyler Rutenbeck caught nine balls for 137 yards and a touchdown. Alec Arvanitakis had 13 rushes for 85 yards.
After stopping Dubuque on their first series, Pacific drove into the red zone only to see the Spartans make the first of three key defensive stands inside the 20-yard line. After being stopped three times inside the nine-yard line, Moses Villareal-Gomez (Sr., Stockton, Calif.) stepped up to make a 29-yard field goal to give Pacific the 3-0 lead with 4:47 to go in the first quarter. Dubuque wasted little time striking back as Fry found Rutenbeck three plays into their next drive for a 64-yard touchdown pass that gave the Spartans the 7-3 lead.
It was the only time that Dubuque found the end zone the entire game, but not the last time they would put points on the board. Curtis Prull hit the only points on the second quarter with 1:57 left in the half, connecting on a 22-yard field goal that allowed the Spartans a 10-3 halftime lead. Prull added a 33-yard field goal with 3:07 left in the third quarter to make it a 13-3 lead.
Turnovers stunted a number of scoring opportunities that could have shifted momentum in the second half. Pacific had the ball at the Dubuque eight-yard line with 7:20 left in the third quarter, but a bad snap was recovered by Reggie Cole, Jr., which led to Prull's third quarter field goal.
The Boxers were at the Dubuque 31-yard line early in the fourth quarter, but Zachary Marotta got in the way of Shaw's pass, forcing Pacific's third turnover of the game. That led to Prull's third field goal of the game, a 22-yarded that gave the Spartans a 16-3 lead with 10:02 remaining.
A kickoff out of bounds and a 15-yard personal foul penalty allowed Pacific to start their next drive at the 50-yard line, which led to the Boxers' only touchdown of the game. After a 10-yard run by Kamana Pimental (So., Kaneohe, Hawaii) and a 10-yard completion from Shaw to Blake Anthony (Sr., Valencia, Calif.), Pimental completed the drive with a 20-yard run that brought the Boxers within 16-10 with 7:30 left.
The Pacific defense forced the Spartans three-and-out on their next drive and Brandon Harms (Sr., Canby, Ore.) returned the punt 30 yards, putting the Boxers at the Dubuque 30-yard line to set up a potential winning drive. A personal foul penalty and stiff Dubuque defense turned it into a 13-play drive that took over four minutes off the clock. In the end, the defense held as Oscar White made Dubuque's fourth interception of Shaw in the end zone. The Spartans' offense proceeded to run out the clock.
Chase Rogers (Sr., Lahaina, Hawaii) led the Pacific defense with six tackles, including one for loss. Jaquari People (Jr., Merced, Calif.), Trey Kodama (So., Pearl City, Hawaii), Josh Brinkworth (Sr., Elk Grove, Calif.) and Jack Perez (Jr., Petaluma, Calif.) each had five tackles. Darren Myles and Everett Schwer each had 12 tackles to lead Dubuque.
Pacific returns to the Midwest next weekend, this time heading to Chicago to face the University of Chicago on Saturday at 12:00 p.m. (CDT). A live audio webcast of the game will be available at GoBoxers.com.