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Raiders stun No. 5 Azusa, 31-0 Mail Tribune/Drew Fleming By Kris Henry ASHLAND � The Southern Oregon Preservation Society was in full effect Saturday at Raider Stadium. Gathering up wayward Cougars and tagging them as a matter of routine, Southern Oregon started its 2000 football campaign in stunning style with a 31-0 spanking of fifth-ranked Azusa Pacific. Acting more impenetrable than a 15-foot retaining wall topped with barbed wire, Southern Oregon�s defense and special teams kept the Cougars pinned back on their own side of the field for all but three series in posting the shutout. "We come in ready to throw goose eggs every week," said SOU linebacker Nick Daniken, a Crater High product. "If something bad happens, we bounce back and go from there." The only bouncing Daniken and crew had to do Saturday was off each other as they swarmed the Cougars. "We�re all beating each other to make the play," said the sophomore. "We have so many great athletes on the defense. If one guy misses, there�s two or three other guys waiting there to make the play." The 12th-ranked Raiders limited Azusa Pacific to 59 yards on 58 offensive plays, including minus-9 yards in the second half. SOU�s defense also posted five sacks, 11 tackles for a loss and two interceptions against the 1998 NAIA national champions and 1999 semifinalists. "We just kept them on their heels for most of the game today, and that�s a very good football team," said SOU coach Jeff Olson. "That�s a team that is used to winning. We �t really give them much of a chance today. "They had one sustained drive, but otherwise they were digging out of their own side of the field the whole game." The Raider offense stumbled early with a fumble on its first possession but was put in prime position moments later after a 32-yard punt return by All-American Jenner Yriarte. Quarterback Dan Walters hooked up with Toby Taylor twice for 31 yards before Walters rolled right and hit tight end Adam Clinton for a 13-yard touchdown. Neither team managed much breathing room until Azusa began a drive on its own 25 and deftly marched to Southern Oregon�s 18 midway through the second quarter. Undaunted, the Raiders stood firm as Daniken tackled tailback Jesse Aust in the backfield and Yriarte broke up two deep passes to stymie the Cougars. Junior lineman James Powers forced a fumble to set the tone in opening the second half for SOU, with Nels Hage recovering the ball on Azusa�s 14. Five plays later, Don Guy converted the turnover into points with a 26-yard field goal to give the Raiders a 10-0 lead. After Guy�s kickoff pinned the Cougars back on the 10-yard line, SOU stuffed fullback Adam Shelly on first down and then Daniken stepped in front of a pass by quarterback Luke Winslow. Daniken appeared destined for the end zone but got caught in a pack of Cougars at the 2, fumbled and recovered his own miscue at the 1-foot line. "My eyes got a little wide," said Daniken. "Then I kind of got turned around and didn�t know where I was at." Redshirt freshman tailback Dusty McGrorty punched the ball into the end zone on the ensuing play and Guy�s extra point gave the Raiders a cushion at 17-0. Southern Oregon tacked on another touchdown in the opening minute of the third quarter when Walters connected with Danny Negra for a 7-yard TD. After defensive back Mackey Deloney squashed Azusa�s next drive with an interception, the Raiders put the final nail in the Cougar coffin with a 47-yard drive led by backup quarterback Elijah Jordan. The sophomore from Ashland teamed with Negra on two big pass plays before finding tight end Nate VanderKley for an 8-yard touchdown with about nine minutes remaining in the game. Despite the offensive resurgence in the second half, it was clear the Raider defense set the tone for one of the program�s best wins in the five years under Olson. "The offense sputtered a little in the first half but our defense kept us in it," said Walters, who completed 15 of 27 passes for 139 yards and two touchdowns. "That�s good to know those guys are over there. What it comes down to is a field-position game because we know our defense can hold any offense." Still, the Raiders were a little taken aback at how they completely dominated a team like Azusa, which was 22-5 the past two seasons. "Coming into this season, we knew we still had to prove ourselves," said Walters. "We were sold short of the playoffs last year, and we still had a bad feeling in our stomachs. We had to come out and prove something today, and I think we did that." Southern Oregon next travels to face nemesis Linfield College in McMinnville, which had its seven-game win streak over SOU snapped last season in a 40-10 romp by the Raiders. With that streak broken and the confidence gained by Saturday�s rout, Southern Oregon enters its second week of play ready for another big showdown. "This is going to give us a big boost going into next week�s game," said Daniken. "We showed that we can play with the top teams in the nation. We�re just going to go up there and try to do the same thing we did last year." S. Oregon 31, Azusa Pacific 0 At Raider Stadium No. 5 Azusa Pacific 0 0 0 0 � 0 No. 12 Southern Oregon 7 0 10 14 � 31 SOU � Clinton 13 pass from Walters (Guy kick) SOU � Guy 26 FG SOU � McGrorty 1 run (Guy kick) SOU � Negra 7 pass from Walters (Guy kick) SOU �VanderKley 8 pass from Jordan (Guy kick) TEAM STATISTICS AP SOU First Downs 3 11 Rushes-yards 32-14 36-57 Passing yards 45 186 Comp-Att-Int 9-26-2 18-31-0 Total yards 59 243 Punts 10-34.6 7-30.4 Fumbles-lost 3-2 3-2 Penalties-yards 4-39 7-48 INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING Azusa Pacific � Aust 7-20, Travis 10-18, Gray 3-9, Shelly 1-1, Valos 1-(minus-7), Willis 1-(minus-9), Winslow 9-(minus-18). Southern Oregon � McGrorty 20-64, Wilson 2-6, Jordan 1-5, Ueoka 1-2, Ross 2-1, Sorensen 3-0, Stoddard 2-(minus-1), Maxam 1-(minus-7), Walters 4-(minus-13). PASSING Azusa Pacific � Winslow 7-22-2 for 46, Valos 2-4-0 for minus-1. Southern Oregon � Walters 15-27-0 for 139, Jordan 3-4-0 for 47. RECEIVING Azusa Pacific � Willis 3-31, Canales 2-8, Tortora 2-7, Travis 1-(minus-6), Carlsen 1-5. Southern Oregon � Taylor 6-72, Clinton 3-24, Negra 3-46, McGrorty 2-12, Munoz 2-13, VanderKley 1-8, DeLeon 1-11. Obituaries | Sports | Business | Classifieds | Tempo | Prime Times | So Oregon Sites | Outdoor Journal | Subscribe | Contact | Movies | Advertise | Real Estate Showcase | Archive | Editorials | Letters to the editor | Religion | Wake-up Call | NIE | Cyber Chef | Job Network | So Oregon Weather | WSJ Northwest | Forums | AP Wire | AP Money | F.A.Q. | Awards Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. The Community Newspaper Subsidiary of Dow Jones & Co, Inc Copyright �The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA