FOREST GROVE, Ore. – Lewis & Clark rushed for 244 yards, its most since the season opener, and tallied 28 consecutive points to defeat the Pacific Boxers, 28-21, on Saturday at Hanson Stadium. The victory snapped a four-game losing streak and secured the Pioneers their sixth victory of the season, the team's most since 2011.
 
Brett Elliott became the first head coach since Chris Sulages to win six games in a season and only the second since Tom Smythe's team won seven games in 1991.
 
THE BASICS
 
Lewis & Clark 28, Pacific 21
(Lewis & Clark 6-4, Northwest Conference 3-4) 
(Pacific 3-7, NWC 2-5)
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
 
In his second consecutive start and third overall this season, graduate student Sam Simril passed for 206 yards and two touchdowns. The day started poorly for Simril, however, when Pacific defensive back Kaden Huppin jumped a sideline route and intercepted Simril on Lewis & Clark's second possession of the game. Huppin returned the pick 40 yards for the game's first score and gave the Boxers a 7-0 lead.
 
The play produced the last points Pacific would score until the fourth quarter. 
 
Lewis & Clark scored on its next possession on a 50-yard touchdown pass to Sytyn Lasconia, the first-year wide receiver's 11th TD reception of the year and Simril's longest completion of the season. Lasconia ran 30 yards after the catch to cash in a seven-play, 83-yard drive that featured five running plays.
 
The Pios caught a break on the ensuing kickoff. Trevor Koo's boot ricocheted off a Pacific return teamer and bounced back toward the Lewis & Clark kick unit. The moment was short lived, though. Lewis & Clark went 3-and-out, as did the Boxers on the following series.
 
Senior running back Jordan Lahusky finished the game with a career-best 141 rushing yards and scored his first rushing touchdown since September 13 when he ran in from three yards out to cap a 10-play, 79-yard drive early in the second quarter. 
 
Lewis & Clark averaged 5.4 yards per carry for the game and held the Boxers to 2.9 per attempt. Pacific's Brody Bantolina entered the game leading the NWC in rushing yards, but was held to 93 yards on Saturday, his lowest total since running for 13 at Linfield on Oct. 11.
 
The final two series of the first half proved critical for the Pioneers. Pacific drove from its own 32 to the Pios red zone after Bantolina's 10-yard run on 4th-and-3. With goal-to-go, Lewis & Clark used two timeouts and limited the Boxers to two short runs and a narrow incompletion in the back of the end zone to force a field goal attempt. Isaac Ahmed missed the 21-yard attempt wide right, and the Pios took the ball back with 2:04 remaining. 
 
Lewis & Clark used gains of 14 and 11 by Lahusky and a 14-yard competition to Lasconia to move the ball to the Pacific 24. On 3rd-and-3, Simril led Rio Cruz for a diving, 24-yard touchdown reception across the goal line with 11 seconds left in the half, which gave the Pioneers a 21-7 lead heading to the locker room.
 
The teams opened the second half exchanging punts. Pacific quarterback Keaton Smith fell onto the football after a bad exchange during the Boxers' series, stalling the drive. It was one of three fumbles committed by the home team.
 
On the next Pios possession, Simril found Lasconia three times and Isaac Glover ran for his longest carry of the day, 16 yards, eventually setting up a 4th-and-goal from the Pacific 1. Simril quick snapped the ball and snuck in to give Lewis & Clark a 28-7 lead on the final play of the third quarter.
 
Glover ended the game with 89 yards on 15 carries. 
 
Pacific rallied in the fourth with back-to-back scoring drives that each ended with TD passes to Josiah Chaffin. The first was a 10-yard connection that ended an 8-play, 75-yard series that moved Pacific within 14 points with 11:09 remaining in the game. After their defense forced a 3-and-out, the Boxers offense went 42 yards in five plays with Smith finding Chaffin for a 41-yard reception. 
 
Leading 28-21 with 6:26 remaining, Lewis & Clark picked up five first downs and forced the Boxers to use their final timeouts to close out the victory with a 14-play drive.
 
BY THE NUMBERS
 

• Daryl Scott led the Pios with 9 tackles and the game's only sack
• Andrew Baum added two tackles for loss and seven total tackles
• JT Chavez added two quarterback hurries and 0.5 TFL, while Logan Wacker picked up the other half TFL
• Lasconia had six receptions for the third time in four games, a stretch that saw him finish with 28 catches, 396 yards and 7 touchdowns
• Pacific's leading receiver, Riley Camarillo, was limited to one catch for six yards
• Simril went 20-for-28 and finished with at least 200 passing yards and multiple touchdown passes in all three of his starts this season
• Dante Washington caught four passes for 27 yards, matching season highs in both categories
• Mateo Maehara wore Dez Holton's No. 13 in the game; Holton was lost to a season-ending injury the week before against Pacific Lutheran

WHAT'S NEXT 
 
Lewis & Clark expects to return the majority of their roster for the 2026 season for Elliott's second season.