ELLENSBURG, Wash. (Sept 19) – The Central Washington University football team made sure it would not start the season with three straight losses by scoring 40 points in the first half against Western Oregon University, winning Saturday's home opener 40-19 in front of 4,397 fans at Tomlinson Stadium.
 
The Wildcats have now notched their first win of the season and improve to 1-2 on the season.  The Wolves fall to 1-2 on the season.
 
The Wildcats scored in a variety of ways Saturday scoring four touchdowns in four different ways and recorded a safety.  The Wildcats had an interception return, and a punt return for a touchdown, while Kyle Self and Christian Gasca each caught touchdown passes from quarterback Justin Lane.  Running back Jordan Todd rounded out the first-half scoring frenzy with a 70-yard touchdown, his longest run of his career.
 
"After watching the film from our last two games I told the guys that if we execute and put our game together we have a chance to play nice game, and today was a very nice game for us." CWU Head Coach Ian Shoemaker said about the game.
 
Central Washington gained 300 yards of offense, 155 through the air and 145 on the ground.  Todd led the Wildcats with 111 yards rushing on 12 carries, followed by Quincy Carter with 39 yards on 13 carries.
 
Lane, making just his third start of his career, connected on 18 of his 28 pass attempts with a long of 34.  Gasca set career-highs in both pass receptions and receiving yards with six and 68 respectively, and scored his first touchdown of his career.
 
Jesse Zalk was up to his usual tricks on special teams gaining 108 yard on three punt returns with a long of 79 that was returned for a touchdown.  Zalk totaled 200 yards of total offense in the game.
 
Defensively the Wildcats had their best outing of the season, holding the Wolves to 331 yards of total offense.  Chaney had a team-high 10 tackles, followed closely by Kevin Haynes with nine.  The defense was constantly in the WOU backfield accumulating 7.5 tackles for loss and five sacks.  Carson Kass had two sacks on the day, and Winslow Kouassi added one and a half sacks.
 
Western Oregon scored on the games opening possession on an eight-play 76-yard drive ending with a five-yard run Philip Fenumiai.  Sean Elledge blocked the PAT for the Wildcats as the Wolves took an early 6-0 lead.
 
"After they came down and scored, I felt the most influential play for us was the blocked extra point," Shoemaker said. "That play showed that we weren't going to just lay down, we were going to give them a fight."
 
That's the last time the Wolves would score in the first half.  Chaney started off the Wildcats scoring spree with a 49-yard interception return for a touchdown to put the Wildcats up 7-6.  Central Washington forced a three-and-out on the Wolves next possession and Zalk took the punt return 79-yards eluding multiple defenders on his way to the end zone.
 
Heading into the second quarter the Wildcats held a 14-6 lead and within a minute Lane found Kyle Self in wide open in the corner of the end zone for a touchdown, capping a six-play 47-yard drive. 
 
Two and a half minutes later Todd took the first snap of the Wildcats possession 70 yards, setting a new career-high and giving CWU 28-6 lead.
 
 
After the Wolves sacked Lane on third down during Wildcats next drive, punter Jonathan Kuhn dropped a 42 yard punt down to the WOU six yard line.  On the Wolves very first play, the center snapped the ball over the quarterback's head and out the back of the end zone for a safety putting the Wildcat Advantage to 30-6.
 
 
Christian Gasca, who caught just one pass leading up to the game, caught six in the contest, one of which was a 34-yard touchdown with 6:59 left in the first half.
 
Kicker Sean McDonald put a stamp on the Wildcats big first half with a 29-yard field goal with 3:19 left.
 
Western Oregon scored a pair of touchdowns in an uneventful second half leading to the final 40-19 win for the Wildcats.
 
"Every week from here on out we have to prepare as if we have to win," Shoemaker added. "Western Oregon is a tough program that gives us a tough game year in and year out."
 
The Wildcats will stay home this week and play host to Simon Fraser University next Saturday, Sept. 26 at 1 p.m. in the second annual Battle for the Border game presented by the Washington National Guard.