ELLENSBURG, Wash. (Oct. 15) – The Central Washington University football team overcame the sodden terrain of Tomlinson Stadium Saturday afternoon, as the Wildcats shut out Western Oregon University 35-0 in a homecoming matchup.
 
The Wildcats improve to 5-2 on the season and 4-1 in Great Northwest Athletic Conference, while the Wolves fall to 3-4, 2-3 in the GNAC.
 
Despite the greasy conditions, the Wildcats were able to build a 21-0 first half lead, and capped the game with a 98 yard interception return by Tyren Sams to push CWU to the final 35-0 win and extend its winning streak to five games.
 
The highlight of the day happened on WOU's opening drive of the second half when senior defensive lineman Tovar Sanchez recorded his second sack of the game and became the school's all-time leader in career sacks.  Sanchez had three sacks on the day to bring his career total to 26.0, and his season total to 8.0.
  
The story of the game was the CWU defense that held Western Oregon to just 107 yards of offense, with 64 of it coming on one single drive in the fourth quarter.  The Wildcats allowed just 36 rushing yards on 39 attempts, and held the WOU passing game to just 71 yards on nine completions.
 
Kevin Haynes tallied 13 tackles in the game, leading all players.  Haynes totaled 4.0 tackles for loss, with 1.5 sacks.  The Wildcats had 13 tackles for loss in the game with Jackson Huerta and Sean Ellege each being credited with 1.5.
 
Offensively the Wildcats gained 353 yards, which is well below its season average, but considering the marsh-like conditions, the yardage was impressive.  Quarterback Justin Lane connected on 14 of 24 passes for 269 yards and two touchdowns.  JoJo Hillel handled a fair amount of the redzone opportunities for the Wildcats and for the fourth-straight game he was responsible for a touchdown, hitting Brian O'Donnell who corralled the pass with one hand for the score.
 
Justin Peterson led the Wildcats in receiving yards with 74, coming on just one reception in the second half.  Christian Gasca caught two balls for 71 yards and a touchdown, while Kyle Self hauled in four catches for 40 yards and a score.
 
The Wildcats will get a week off before they travel to Azusa Pacific on Oct. 29, in a game that will play a big role in deciding who win the Great Northwest Athletic Conference title.
 
QUOTEABLE
 
"We had to make adjustments in our game plan because of the conditions.  It was difficult to get out wide and stretch the field horizontally, so we had to tweak a few things and our guys made big plays.  We haven't defeated Western Oregon twice in a year since I have been here, so this win feels really good."
 
"Coach Power had a great game plan for this game and the players executed it well.  When you hold a team to just over 100 yards of offense, you are obviously doing something right.  Our defense takes a lot of pride in what they do, and that was evident today."
 
-- CWU Head Coach Ian Shoemaker

NOTES

• Offensive lineman James Moore got more involved in the offense, catching a screen pass and rumbling 20 yards down to the two-yard line.

 

• The 13 tackles for loss is the fourth highest total in school history

 

• Tyren Sam's 98 yard touchdown return was the third longest in school history, and his first collegiate interception.

 

• Sanchez now holds three school records, most sacks, most tackles for loss, and most yards lost from tackles for loss