McMINNVILLE --- The George Fox football team traveled to face No. 19 Linfield College in its final game of the 2019 season on Saturday, Nov. 16, and came away with a hard-fought 24-17 loss in regulation.

Recap

The Bruins lost the coin toss and started with the ball, but it was Linfield that struck first. After  each team succeeded in forcing a three and out from the opposing offense, the Wildcats finally gained traction on their third drive after picking off Jaden Sheffey at the Wildcat 42 yard line.

The 'Cats marched 60 yards for a score to make it 7-0 midway through the first following the turnover, and the 'Cats put up three more points to open the second with a field goal for a 10-0 advantage. The Bruins' defense did a good job to stall the drive after a screen pass was snuffed by Lucas Schwin and Caleb Dalzell followed that with a sack to end the touchdown threat.

On the Bruins' next drive, Evan Nelson set up the offense with great field position after a 32-yard kick return to the Bruins' 43 yard line. The Bruins used a double pass from Sheffey to Anthony Garcia and then from Garcia to Nelson for a 47-yard gain, and after a Wildcat stand on third down, Ethan Hoffman hit a 22-yarder to put George Fox on the board with a 10-3 score and seven minutes left in the half.

The Wildcats answered with a 70-yard drive spanning three minutes to take a 17-3 lead, but the Bruins had the final word in the half. Sheffey hit Leon Johnson III, Nelson, and Kenny May for games of 21, 11, and 20 yards, respectively, as the Bruins marched down the field with under two minutes left in the half. A final 31-yard completion to May gave the Bruins their first touchdown of the day and some momentum heading into the break trailing 17-10.

The third quarter was largely quiet with the lone exception being a blocked Linfield field goal try. Dalzell swatted the 46-yard try and Chris McCoy fielded the attempt, returning the ball 22 yards to the 47. The Bruins were forced to punt on the ensuing possession, however.

The Wildcats put up the next score midway through the fourth with a 43-yard drive after mixing runs and pass completions together for a 24-10 lead with seven minutes left to play. The Bruins answered late with a touchdown drive of their own after Haiden Schaan engineered a 72-yard drive with tosses to Justin Trimble II and Johnson before finally taking the ball in himself from two yards out.

The Bruins attempted an onside kick with just under a minute left looking for one last drive, but Linfield sniffed it out and ended the game with a four-play drive of rushes and kneel-downs to kill the clock for a 24-17 win.

Top Performers

Sheffey went 5-9 for 83 yards and a touchdown before exiting the game, and Schann was 9-14 for 80 yards and rushed for a score. Nelson and May led the Bruins in their final game at Fox with 58 yards apiece of recieivng yards, and fellow senior Trimble was just behind with 51 yards on six catches.

On defense, Brandon Piete led the team with 12 tackles and a 26-yard interception return. Daniel Campos added eight tackles in his last game as a Bruin, and Dalzell recorded six tackles, a sack, and two blocks on punts and field goal tries.

What It Means

The Bruins end their 2019 campaign with a 5-5 overall record and a 4-3 mark against Northwest Conference opponents.