During this Saturday’s homecoming game, the Bulldog football team fought for their win against the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Stags. After a pair of late-game touchdowns by CMS, the Redlands defense was able to block their opponents and defeated the Stags 23-17.
Fans expecting to see touchdowns from the high-scoring Bulldog offense were disappointed in the first quarter, as Redlands was only able to score three points through a field goal by freshman Alex Raya. However, a solid performance by the Bulldog’s defense forced a punt and an interception by sophomore DJ Hollingshead. The Bulldogs prevented the Stags from scoring in the first quarter, holding their 3-0 lead going into the second.
A missed field goal by the Stags gave Redlands a great chance to capitalize early in the second quarter, but the opportunity vanished as running back Devin Appleton fumbled on the first play of the new drive. The Stags then gained enough yards to set up their kicker for another field goal attempt. He made this one, which tied the game at three a piece.
The Redlands defense left their mark soon after, when junior defensive lineman Tristan Corwin strip-sacked CMS’ quarterback of the ball, which was recovered by junior Trevor Raras in the endzone. This touchdown brought the Bulldogs to a 10-3 lead. The Bulldogs were able to score another touchdown before the end of the half on a pass by junior quarterback Mitch Kidd. The Bulldogs had a 17-3 lead going into halftime.
As it was in the first quarter, the third quarter was highlighted by solid defense on both sides and another field goal by Raya. He made his third and final field goal of the night in the fourth quarter, giving Redlands a commanding 23-3 lead.
Though Claremont hadn’t moved much offensively up to that point, they were able to score a pair of touchdowns in the last quarter, putting pressure on the Bulldogs. However, the Stags ran out of time as Redlands was able to stall and shut down CMS’ comeback.
The Bulldogs have now won five consecutive games and are still undefeated in SCIAC play. Their next test comes this Saturday, when they face the Pomona-Pitzer Colleges in a tough away matchup.
[photo courtesy of Willow Higgins]
