ORANGE, Calif. – The No. 17 Chapman University football team stayed perfect on the season with a 23-21 win over visiting George Fox on Saturday in Ernie Chapman Stadium. The Panthers never trailed and withstood a second half surge from the Bruins to win their 13th regular season game in a row.
Chapman ran for 173 yards in the game and outgained the Bruins 416-335. The Chapman defense also came away with two key interceptions – one early, one late – and had three QB sacks.
Once again, the Panthers spread out the running attack and had seven different players carry the ball at least once. Junior Marcos Reyes carried the ball 14 times for 54 yards to lead the rushing attack while seniors Jonston MacIntyre and Tanner Mendoza found he end zone on the ground.
Senior Nico Ragas caught a 55-yard touchdown pass to lead nine receivers with at least one catch. Seniors Spencer Corona and Will Mudie each hauled in five passes for 46 and 41 yards, respectively.
Sophomore Alexander Terriquez and Simon Hall led the Panthers with eight tackles a piece while senior Dillon Keefe had three sacks, a pass breakup and his fourth forced fumble of the season.
The Panthers faced adversity early when their opening drive finished with a blocked punt that put George Fox on Chapman's 25-yard line for the Bruins' first drive. After three plays and 11 yards, Haiden Shaan took a shot at the end zone but senior Chris Tsirtsis stepped in front for an interception. He took the interception back 72 yards before he was dragged down at the George Fox 27.
Junior Ken Baierl kicked a 20-yard field goal to put Chapman up 3-0 early. After a three-and-out, the Panthers took over and needed just four plays to go 70 yards for a 9-0 lead. Ragas' 55-yard catch-and-run touchdown capped off the drive.
The Panther defense continued to stifle the George Fox offense, limiting the Bruins to just 46 yards in the first half. Chapman added on to its lead with a 1-yard push from MacIntyre across the goal line to make it 16-0 at the half.
The Bruin offense came to life in the second half and immediately marched 86 yards on eight plays to get their first score of the night. Ethan Kassebaum went sideline to sideline on a 50-yard catch-and-run to cap the drive and put GFU on the board.
After getting stopped at the 1-yard line to end the first half, the Chapman offense tried to get going again in the second half. However, the Panthers turned the ball over on downs after an 11-play drive, went three-and-out and turned the ball over for the first time this season with an interception.
Shaan kept George Fox moving after the interception and brought the Bruins within two with a three-yard TD pass in the fourth quarter. Chapman responded with a nine-play, 60-yard drive that took 4:35 off the clock and finished with a nine-yard TD run from Mendoza.
With George Fox driving again, Keefe knocked a Shaan pass up in the air and into the waiting arms of his teammate Kade Jordan. The Panthers went three-and-out on the ensuing drive and the Bruins needed just 1:49 to drive 67 yards for the score to make it 23-21.
With just over a minute left on the clock, Chapman needed just a first down to secure the victory. On third and four, Ragas took the handoff to the right side and lunged across the 35-yard line for the victory-clinching first down.
Chapman heads back out on the road next week to take on familiar SCIAC foe Claremont-Mudd-Scripps in a non-conference matchup. Kickoff in Claremont will be at 1 p.m.