Sept. 13, 2003

Final Stats

MONMOUTH, Ore. - Hampered by six turnovers, the Western Washington University football team suffered its second consecutive defeat, falling to Western Oregon University, 23-20, in overtime in college football action Saturday at McArthur Field.

The Wolves' Andrew Keippela kicked the decisive points on a 37-yard field goal after Michael Koenen (Jr., Ferndale) had missed from 43 yards in the Vikings' overtime possession. It was the second straight year the teams had gone to overtime, with Western Washington grabbing a 20-17 triumph in three overtimes last year.

The loss dropped the Vikings to 0-2 for the first time since 1988. The Wolves, who lost starting quarterback Denny Bies to an ankle injury midway through the second quarter, improved to 2-0, with both victories coming in overtime.

"I don't think I've ever been involved in game like that," said Western coach Rob Smith. "I can't believe the mistakes our football team made, and I'm responsible for that. What could go wrong did go wrong. This one stinks."

Western Oregon nearly won the game in regulation. Western Washington's Duncan Sherrard (So., Seattle/Roosevelt), who rushed for a game-high 122 yards, fumbled, giving the Wolves the ball on the Viking 39 with 4:21 left. The Wolves ran 11 plays, setting up a 22-yard field goal attempt by Keippela in the dying seconds. But true freshman Bryan Jarrett (Puyallup) broke through to block the kick, forcing overtime, one of three kicks blocked in the game by Western Washington.

The Vikings had tied the game at 20-20 with 7:30 left, as quarterback Steve Nichols (Jr., Stevenson) found Olson for a 26-yard touchdown on a pass tipped by two Western Oregon defenders.

Nichols completed 12-of-25 passes for 173 yards and two touchdowns, but was intercepted three times.

Western Oregon opened the scoring less than two minutes into the game. An interception by Chad Boyd on the game's first play from scrimmage gave the Wolves the ball at the Western Washington 15, and Michael Ramirez capped the four-play drive with a 6-yard run.

The Vikings responded immediately, going 66 yards in only four plays, Nichols hitting tight end Nick Yoney (So., Arlington) for a 15-yard touchdown.

The Wolves took the lead for good early in the second quarter on a 3-yard run by Tom Martin. The Vikings narrowed the score to 14-13 with 5:18 left in the half on a 27-yard run by Jake Carlyle (So., Olympia/Capital), but Koenen missed the extra point.

After a scoreless third quarter, Western Oregon extended its lead to 20-13 as wide receiver Brad Satrin caught an 11-yard pass from backup quarterback Ryan Thorson early in the fourth quarter. The conversion failed.

Thorson, a redshirt freshman seeing his first collegiate action, was 11-of-28 for 107 yards. Satrin had 11 receptions for the second straight game, totaling 111 yards.

The Vikings had a 323-286 edge in total offense, but because of the 6-1 difference in turnovers, Western Oregon had advantage of more than seven minutes in time of possession and ran 87 plays to 65 by the Vikings.

"We practiced well during the week, but then we went out there and from start to finish, self-destructed," Smith said. "That's as poor a football game as I can ever remember a Western team playing. It is not about wins and losses right now, it's about getting better."

Western is on the road again next Saturday (10 a.m. PT), meeting AFCA/NCAA II No.21-ranked University of Nebraska-Omaha, which is coming off a 62-21 victory over Minnesota State-Moorhead.

SCORING SUMMARYWestern Washington 7    6   0   7     0--- 20Western Oregon     7    7   0   6     3--- 23
WOU - Ramirez 6 run (Keippela kick)WWU - Yoney 15 pass from Nichols (Koenen kick)WOU - Martin 3 run (Keippela kick)WWU - Carlyle 27 run (kick failed)WOU - Satran 14 pass from Thorson (kick failed)WWU - Olson 26 pass from Nichols (Koenen kick)WOU - FG Keippela 37      Attendance: 2,500