Box Score BOX SCORE

SALEM, Ore. – Southern Oregon's tough start to the season continued Saturday afternoon as the Raiders fell to Willamette 31-9 at McCulloch Stadium.

The loss drops SOU's record to 0-3 heading into next weekend's home opener, when the Raiders will host Webber International at 1 p.m. on Sept. 24 at Raider Stadium. Willamette picks up its first win of the season to improve to 1-2 overall.

It was a slow start for both teams as Kyle Derby's 19-yard field goal for Willamette marked the only points of the opening quarter. The Raiders took a brief 7-3 lead early in the second quarter when Marshawn Friloux (Bellflower, Calif./Bellflower)'s eight-yard run gave SOU its only touchdown of the game. The run capped a six-play, 46-yard scoring drive for the Raiders, taking less than two minutes off the clock as SOU scored with 13:19 to play in the second quarter.

Willamette responded quickly, scoring a touchdown less than one minute later on Brian Widing's 67-yard pass to Jake Knecht to retake the lead. The Raiders final points of the contest came a few minutes later, following a 66-yard Tyler Crowley (Palo Cedro, Calif./Bishop Quinn) punt down to the Willamette one-yard line. On second down, the Raiders pressured Widing into an intentional grounding call in the endzone to give SOU the safety and make it a 10-9 contest.

An SOU turnover late in the first half gave the Bearcats a scoring opportunity before halftime, as the Raiders fumbled a punt return and Willamette recovered at the SOU 45-yard line. Following a 44-yard pass from Widing to Knecht, the Willamette quarterback rushed the final yard to pick up the touchdown in the final minute of the second quarter, giving WU a 17-9 advantage.

Southern Oregon's best second-half drive ended at the Willamette 20-yard line when the Raiders turned the ball over on downs. The Raiders had seen success with rushes and passes to their running backs during that drive, with Brandon Baldwin (Palo Cedro, Calif./Foothill) picking up 45 receiving yards on two catches and Manny Barragan (Yreka, Calif./Yreka) picking up 13 yards on one catch and four yards on a rush. The 10-play, 69-yard drive fizzled at the WU when kicker Crowley being tackled for no gain on fourth down.

Willamette scored its final two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to pull away from the Raiders. A Bearcat drive started on the SOU 12-yard line after WU blocked a Crowley punt attempt at the SOU 20-yardline and returned the ball eight yards. Six plays later, Jake Turner took a screen pass from Widing four yards for the score and a 24-9 WU advantage. The Bearcats'final score came on a one-play drive, as Knecht took a reverse run 80 yards for the touchdown.

Southern Oregon passed for 249 yards in the game while holding Willamette to 227 yards through the air, but the Bearcats picked up 192 rushing yards to SOU's 95 yards on the ground. Turnovers plagued SOU, as the Raiders fumbled five times, losing three, and also threw one interception in the contest.

Baldwin led SOU with 69 yards rushing on 13 attempts, while Knecht's 80-yard run made him the lead runner for Willamette with only one carry. Willamette used 12 different runners to tally 192 yards on 48 carries, with Matt Williams' 13 carries leading the team.

Austin Dodge (Vancouver, Wash./Skyview) started for the Raiders at quarterback, completing 25 of 46 passes for 249 yards with one interception. Widing finished the game 13-of-19 for 227 yards and a pair of touchdowns to go with his TD run. Mike Olson (Colfax, Calif./Colfax) led the SOU receiving effort with five catches for 87 yards, while Knecht posted a game-high 130 yards receiving on four receptions.

Michael Springer (El Dorado, Calif./Union Mine), Drew Nobles (Palo Cedro, Calif./Bishop Quinn) and Ra Sjeon Hines (Antioch, Calif./Antioch) each finished with 13 tackles to tie for the game high, with Springer adding three tackles for loss and a forced fumble while assisting on the Raiders' only sack of the contest.