LOS ANGELES, Calif. (Oct. 4, 2008) – A two-week hiatus helped the Tigers recover and regroup for their conference opener, a game in which they shut out Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, 38-0, for the first time in 20 years en route to their third win of the season.

Occidental College amassed 440 yards of total offense, while the defense held the CMS offense to just 212 total yards.

Oxy scored early and often to take a 21-0 lead at halftime before tacking on 17 additional points in the second half, while the defense stepped up, accounting for four sacks for a loss of 29 yards.

The Tigers won the toss and opted to receive, marking the only kickoff CMS would see in the game. Chris Washington got things started with an 18-yard return to set up a five-play, 70-yard drive that included a 3-for-3 effort and a 25-yard run by senior quarterback Justin Goltz. Washington caught two passes for 31 yards, the second a 20-yard touchdown pass just over two minutes into the game.

Claremont-Mudd-Scripps' first possession ended with senior defensive back J.D. Ciasulli batting the ball down after Jim Hildensperger brought pressure, hurrying Stags quarterback Ryan Larsen.

On the ensuing Oxy possession Goltz again led the Tigers down the field finding three different receivers (C. Washington, Jordan Inabnit and Jordan Washington), adding a 36-yard rush to set up a Bryan Fiorito three-yard rushing TD capped off again by a PAT from Neil Martin to put the Tigers up 14-0 as time expired in the first quarter of action.

The first half scoring ended with an acrobatic leap into the end zone by Goltz after an 11-yard run. Oxy used 14 plays to travel 89 yards down the field for the score. Both C. Washington and Jason Lehman caught a pair of passes while Goltz also connected with Inabnit for an eight-yard completion.

Despite the Tigers holding possession of the ball for just 3:30 in the third quarter, they managed to post two more touchdowns.

The first was thanks to the fleet-footedness of senior running back Jason Haller, who looked to be in fine form during his first appearance in black and orange this season following a string of injuries. He carried the ball four times, with three double-digit gains (18, 29, and 21 yards), picking up 75 total yards on the drive.

A tough Oxy defense forced CMS to punt the ball again. C. Washington gave the Tigers good field possession with a 15-yard return to the 50-yard line, setting the team up for a four-play drive that lasted just 1:44 and resulted in Fiorito's second touchdown run of the game on a one-yard rush.

Sophomore Connor Smith got the first field goal attempt of his collegiate career and nailed a 25-yard kick to give the Tigers their final three points of the game.

Defensively, senior Anthony Ostland led all players with five solo stops as he tallied 9.0 total tackles while adding a huge sack for a loss of eight yards as he leveled Larsen early in the third quarter. Kyle Spaulding and Alex Ochoa each had a sack, pushing back the CMS offense eight and 10 yards, respectively. Freshman Kevin May and junior Jesse Fischer combined for the fourth Oxy sack of the game.

Junior Patrick Sarkissian was responsible for 8.0 total tackles, one for a loss, and broke up a play while Hildensperger and Daniel Tromello each finished with 5.0 total tackles in the game. Freshman Nate Sullivan was a nuisance in his first SCIAC game, making four solo stops. Spaulding also broke up a pair of plays.

Overall Oxy had two players with more than 100 all-purpose yards as Haller led all Tigers with 108 and C. Washington added 105. Lehman caught five passes for 85 yards while junior quarterback Scott Saunders connected with Neil Gordon three times for 47 yards, including a 25-yard completion, in the fourth quarter.

The Tiger QBs combined to go 18-for-23 without being picked off. Goltz was 14-for-18 for 162 yards (including a game-high 38-yard completion to Lehman) and one touchdown, adding another by foot, while Saunders was 4-for-5 passing.

Oxy's offensive game was on today as they converted their only fourth down chance and were 4-for-4 in the red zone after picking up 26 first downs. The Tigers ball carriers averaged 8.3 yards per play, 12.0 yards per completion and 7.5 yards per rush.

Joshua Mun again did the kicking for the Tigers, sending the ball deep in all seven of his kickoff chances. Senior punter Alex Groh booted the ball 47.0 yards, inside the 20, on his only opportunity.

Occidental improves to 3-0 on the season, notching their first SCIAC win of the season to sit atop the conference standings with the University of Redlands (3-0 overall) and Cal Lutheran University (2-1 overall).

Next week the Tigers will travel to Redlands to play the Bulldogs, who are currently ranked No. 17 by the National Football Coaches Association and No. 20 by D3football.com. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m.