'Panther Express' still unbeaten after 62-point effort

CLAREMONT, Calif. – The Panther Express kept right on moving Saturday, this time traveling through Pomona-Pitzer Colleges and racking up another 62 points in the process. The Chapman University football team continued its unbeaten start with a 62-21 win over the Sagehens at Merritt Field.

Chapman (4-0) scored on all but one possession in the game and totaled another 579 yards of offense to enjoy its third lopsided win in four games this season. However, one thing looked different about the Panthers' offense than in the previous three games as Chapman opted to showcase its passing attack.

Chapman, which was among the most efficient passing teams in the country entering the game, was only averaging 20 pass plays and just over 200 yards per game. But on Saturday afternoon four different Panthers quarterbacks combined to go 28 of 34 for 361 yards passing and five touchdowns. They were led by junior QB Michael Lahey who passed for over 300 yards for the first time in his career, going 24 of 30 for 312 yards and three TDs.

Five different Panther receivers got into the end zone, including sophomore WR Sean Myers who led the team with 92 yards receiving on five catches. His touchdown, a 40-yard pass from Lahey with 11:39 left in the second quarter, put Chapman up 26-7.

Lahey's third scoring pass of the day connected with junior WR Spencer Jordan from 9 yards out to put the game out of reach for good at 41-21 with 4:10 left in the third. The Sagehens had made it a two-possession game on their previous drive to cut Chapman's lead to 34-21, but Jordan's was the first of four unanswered touchdowns as the Panthers won going away. Jordan led Chapman with six receptions and leads the team this season with 171 yards and two touchdowns.

Half of Chapman's plays were via the run and the Panthers gained 218 yards on the ground. The Panthers were led by senior RB Austin Maranville who had 63 yards on 10 carries. Junior RB Cody Chapple got into the end zone for the second straight game, putting Chapman on the board on its first drive with a 1-yard run.

The Panther offense remains perfect this season in the red zone (27 of 27) and has yet to trail in a game. Chapman had entered the game ranked No. 3 in the nation in scoring and is now averaging 57.2 points after four contests.

Chapman's defense, which surrendered 40 points a week earlier was improved on Saturday. The Panthers allowed just one second half touchdown and held Pomona-Pitzer to just 3 of 14 on third downs. Junior LB Greg Johnson again led Chapman on defense with 14 tackles, including two for a loss and one quarterback sack.

At 4-0, Chapman is off to its best start since 1996 when the Panthers began the season 5-0. It is just the third time in school history Chapman has been unbeaten after four games (1994: 3-0-1).

The Panthers will put their unbeaten record on the line next week in another SCIAC matchup when they travel to Occidental College. The Tigers are 2-2 overall (1-1 SCIAC) after a 38-30 win over Claremont-Mudd-Scripps College on Saturday.

by Doug Aiken
Sports Information Director

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