LA VERNE,  CA — The University of La Verne Leopards football team had an opportunity to complete a comeback in the final minutes in it's SCIAC opener Saturday afternoon. But late turnovers ended their chances and the Leopards came up short, 27-20 in a closely fought battle a Pomona-Pitzer Sagehens.

The Leopards' defense did its part to give La Verne a chance to win. The unit held Pomona-Pitzer to just 106 yards on the ground and 161 through the air. 

Turnovers proved to be the ultimate deciding factor in the loss. The Leopards threw five interceptions and had a punt blocked that gave the Sagehens the early momentum.

Closing Minutes

The Leopards rallied back from two 17-point deficits to get within a possession of the Sagehens. On third and four, trailing 27-20 on Pomona-Pitzer's 11-yard line with 4:48 seconds left to play, La Verne quarterback Jordan Hernandez looked to connect with Makena Ramos-Kamaka on a five yard hitch to advance the chains. But Sagehens cornerback Alexander Wood jumped the route and picked the ball off to seal the game for the Sagehens. 

La Verne had one more chance after its defense forced a punt with two and a half minutes left to play. But another late pick sealed the win for the Sagehens.

Defensive Standouts

Linebacker Devin Martin displayed his defensive instincts, making it difficult for the Sagehen running backs to gain any momentum. He made a key play a second and nineteen, from the Pomona-Pitzer 16-yard line when he tackled Sagehen quarterback Grady Ruso for a loss of 3 yards. The next play he forced an incompletion with a quarterback hurry that led to a Pomona-Pitzer punt. Martin finished with six tackles and two and a half tackles for losses.  

Vicente Zepeda led La Verne with eight total tackles and added two tackles for losses. Josiah Finell contributed seven total tackles and one tackle for a loss. De Lante' Moore totaled six tackles, one and a half tackles for losses and half a sack.

The Leopards' defense held the Sagehens to 2-12 on third-down conversions.

The Saghens were led by Thomas Mconell's eight tackles and David Gorman's six total tackles. Elliot Graziano nd Ethan Norris both finished with one sack.

Offensive Standouts 

Hernandez stepped in for the Leopards, showcasing his dual-threat ability at quarterback. He accounted for 236 yards of total offense, 166 passing, and 70 rushing on 15 attempts while completing 64.3% of his passes.

The freshman from Hayward, CA scored his first career touchdown when he scampered for nine yards on a designed run with 1:12 remaining in the first half to give the Leopards a needed boost going into the break.

He added the Leopards offensive highlight of the night on their opening drive of the second half when he connected with Isaiah McNaught-Thornton on a slant route. McNaught-Thornton broke a tackle and raced 70 yards to the house to cut the deficit to 24-14.

Reigning SCIAC Athlete of the Week Jimmy Rumsey led the Leopards with four receptions four and 75 receiving yards. Elija Duckworth rushed for 70 yards.

Grady Russo led Pomona-Pitzer with one passing touchdown and 151 passing yards. Matthias Olson added a receiving touchdown and 76 receiving yards, and Brennan Dragomer rushed for 57 yards.

Notes 

• Sagehens' defense came away with five interceptions
• The Sagehens committed 12 penalties for 107 yards compared to La Verne's six penalties that only accumulated to 48 yards.
• Time of Possession: La Verne - 35:46, Pomona-Pitzer - 23:15 

Next Game 

The Leopards travel to University of Redlands for their second SCIAC matchup at Ted Runner Stadium on Saturday, October 5th at 7 p.m.