Cal Lutheran quarterback Joe Farley threw for 317 yards and three touchdowns Saturday, Oct. 3. The Kingsmen's 18-point comeback fell two points short in a 24-22 loss at Claremont-Mudd-Scripps.

The defeat drops Cal Lutheran (2-2, 1-1 SCIAC) to 0-2 on the road this season and hands the Kingsmen their first conference loss. They host Azusa Pacific at 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 10, at William Rolland Stadium in Thousand Oaks.

Cal Lutheran trailed 21-3 late in the second quarter after CMS quarterback Robert Litscher hit Quintin Craig for a 44-yard touchdown in the first quarter, Evan Gerber returned a Farley interception 17 yards for a score, and Litscher found Noah Macapulay for a 40-yard touchdown, according to the CLU athletics game recap.

Farley answered before halftime. He led a 15-play, 65-yard drive and found receiver Tyler Woodworth for an eight-yard touchdown as time expired in the second quarter. Kicker Matthew Montegna's extra point cut the deficit to 21-10 at the break.

The Farley-to-Woodworth connection kept producing in the second half. On Cal Lutheran's opening drive of the third quarter, Woodworth hauled in a 38-yard touchdown to make it 21-16. CMS kicker Sean Lee pushed the lead back to 24-16 with a 47-yard field goal late in the third.

Cal Lutheran opened the fourth quarter with a 90-yard touchdown drive that chewed more than five minutes off the clock. Farley capped it with a 22-yard strike to Bradley Chavez, pulling the Kingsmen within 24-22 with 12:18 left.

Then came the blocked kick. After CMS drove inside the Cal Lutheran 10-yard line, defensive back Blake Hurley swatted away a 24-yard field-goal attempt. The Kingsmen took over at their own 20 and pushed to the 45, but Farley's fourth-down pass to RJ Edwards fell incomplete with 2:41 remaining. CMS running back Owen Walz converted two third downs to run out the clock.

Woodworth finished with nine catches for 152 yards and two scores. Chavez added two receptions for 36 yards and a touchdown. Cal Lutheran totaled 344 yards of offense and converted four of five fourth-down attempts.

Linebackers Neiman McCoy and Logan Bowers each recorded seven tackles. Drew Nees and Gannon Greenan each had a sack. Hurley added five tackles to go with his blocked kick.

Farley earned SCIAC Offensive Athlete of the Week honors after the Kingsmen's Sept. 26 win over Redlands, according to CLU athletics. The Kingsmen are 2-0 at home this season, with wins over Puget Sound (41-7) and Redlands (40-14).

Azusa Pacific (1-2) enters the Oct. 10 matchup after falling 44-9 to Redlands on Saturday, Oct. 3, according to the Azusa Pacific schedule.