Box Score

SEATTLE (Oct. 17) -- Senior Garrett Rolsma (University Place/Curtis HS) kicked a 44-yard field goal with 32 seconds remaining to cap a run of 23 unanswered points in the second half as third-ranked Central Washington came back to defeat Western Oregon, 23-21, in front of 5,374 fans at Battle in Seattle VII at Qwest Field.

The Wildcats improved to 8-0 overall and 3-0 in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play, winning their 14th consecutive regular-season game. The Wolves fell to 3-4 overall and 2-2 in the GNAC.

Rolsma's field goal, which was one yard shy of his career-long of 45, was the third field goal of the game and capped Central's comeback from a three-touchdown deficit at halftime. He also had kicks of 32 and 22 in the third and fourth quarter as part of an 11-point day.

The Wildcats dug themselves a first-half deficit but began their comeback on the first possession of the second half after senior Cole Morgan (Seattle/Ballard HS) marched Central on a six-play, 71-yard drive by completing four of six passes on the series including a 45-yard touchdown pass to sophomore Justin Helwege (Sammamish/Eastlake HS) that cut the deficit to 21-7.

After holding Western Oregon to a three-and-out possession on which they gained just three yards, Rolsma capped an eight-play, 35-yard drive -- all of which were pass attempts by Morgan -- with his 32-yard field goal. The Wildcats held the Wolves on their next series, but Morgan was picked off by John Breza to give WOU possession at the Central 13. On the ensuing play, senior Jerome Williams (Seattle/Ballard HS) returned the favor, picking off Josh Riddell one yard deep in his end zone and weaving his way through Wolves players en route to the second-longest interception return in school history, officially netting 100 yards.

With just a four-point deficit entering the fourth quarter, Central controlled the football with a 17-play, 76-yard drive that consumed seven minutes, 29 seconds and resulted in Rolsma's 22-yard field goal that made it a 21-20 score.

The Wildcat defense held Western Oregon without a first down again on the Wolves' next possession, but Central was unable to capitalize with a go-ahead score, as Morgan took CWU to the WOU 25 before being intercepted by Caleb Singleton with 3:53 remaining.

True to form, Central's defense held the Wolves without a positive yard from scrimmage on their three plays, and a 29-yard punt gave the Wildcats the football at their own 47 with 2:27 remaining. That set the stage for Rolsma, the school's record-setting kicker, who drilled a 44-yard attempt in the final minute to cap the comeback and send the Crimson and Black faithful into pandemonium.

Facing its first deficit of the game, Western Oregon completed a 29-yard pass from Riddell to Shaun Kauleinamoku that gave the Wolves possession at Central's 28 with 18 seconds remaining. However, consecutive incompletions took the clock to 11 seconds remaining, and with no timeouts and third down against them, WOU set up for a potential game-winning field goal. However, a delay of game penalty turned a 45-yard attempt into a 50-yard try that fell short and sealed the Wildcats' win.

Central found itself behind by 21 at halftime after Western Oregon scored a pair of rushing touchdowns by DJ Jackson with one in each quarter, and the Wolves' Gavin Romanick intercepted CWU redshirt freshman Ryan Robertson (Sammamish/Eastlake HS) at the WOU 40 and ran it back for a touchdown on the first play after Jackson's second score, and the margin was 21-0 with 9:02 remaining in the second quarter.

The Wildcats finished with a 366-244 edge in total offense, including a 238-112 margin in the second half. Central also converted 8 of 18 third-downs including 5 of 9 after the intermission.

Morgan completed 12 of 29 passes for a career-high 219 yards in the final two quarters as Central totaled a season-high 316 passing yards. The Wildcats only logged 50 rushing yards on 28 attempts, although Western Oregon only netted 79 rushing yards on 27 carries.

CWU senior Johnny Spevak (Edgewood/Puyallup HS) had six receptions for 104 yards, while Reggie Westmoreland (Stockton, Calif./Edison HS) finished with career-highs of six grabs for 71 yards.

Defensively, senior Prince Hall (Moreno Valley, Calif.) led a pair of Wildcat linebackers with 10 or more tackles, totaling 13 for the second consecutive week. Junior Adam Bighill (Montesano) had 10 stops, and senior Buddy Wood (Chattaroy/Riverside HS) finished with seven tackles, including 2 1/2 for losses.

Riddell was 18 of 32 for 165 yards for Western Oregon, with Sean Fullerton leading the Wolves' receivers with eight catches for 83 yards. Jackson had 40 total rushing yards but just eight in the second half.

Singleton led WOU with 12 tackles, while co-captain Andrew Jackson finished with 10 stops.

Central Washington returns home to Tomlinson Stadium next Saturday (Oct. 24) for its annual Homecoming and Senior Day against Humboldt State starting at 1 p.m.

QUICK NOTES: Williams' 100-yard interception return is the longest since Pat Maki's school-record 102-yard return in 1972. Statistically, a 100-yard return is the longest that can be credited due to a college football statistical rule change ... Rolsma had three field goals in a game for the fourth time in his career and now has 298 career points, 14 shy of the school record and 10 fewer than Spevak for second on the all-time list ... Central won after facing a halftime deficit of 21 or more points for the first time since a win at Western Washington during the 2005 season. The Wildcats trailed that game 28-7 at the half before winning 31-28 ... Central has now outscored opponents by a 66-3 margin in the third quarter of games this season and has outpointed its foes by a 102-32 count in the second half of contests ... The Wildcats trailed after three quarters of play for the first time this season and just the fourth time in the past two years (2-2 record) ... CWU now has a 6-1 all-time record at Qwest Field and won its 11th straight head-to-head meeting with Western Oregon.