Football | 9/17/2011 4:28:00 PM

Box Score [Box score]

MONMOUTH, Ore. - The Wolves will be walking around a little lighter these days as they finally got the monkey off their backs with a 14-7 win against Central Washington on Saturday, Sept. 17.

Western Oregon (2-1, 2-0 Great Northwest Athletic Conference) used a stingy defense and powerful running game to defeat Central Washington (0-3, 0-2 GNAC) for the first time in 15 games.

Cody VonAppen rushed for 117 yards to lead the Wolves' ground attack which outgained the Wildcats 165 to 44. He helped orchestrate an option package which seemed to keep CWU on its heels for much of the game.

On the other side of the ball, the Wildcats were never in-sync as the Wolves defense continued to swarm the ball to the tune of five turnovers. Bryce Peila had two interceptions and Scotland Foss added an interception and a fumble recovery.

It was Foss' fumble recovery which set up the first score for Western Oregon. After Gavin Drake forced a fumble which Foss fell on at the Wildcats' 24 yard line, VonAppen had a 17 yard rush to get the Wolves to the seven yard line then Evan Mozzochi connected with Tyrell Williams on a fade route to put WOU in front 7-0.

Next it was Bryce Peila's turn to set up the offense for a touchdown. He picked off Central's Ryan Robertson and returned it 50 yards to the five yard line. Two plays later Kenneth Haynes squeezed through an opening on the line to give the Wolves a 14-0 lead with less than two minutes remaining in the half.

The game would remain that way until the 1:43 mark in the third quarter when the Wildcats capped off a 13-play, 96-yard with a four-yard touchdown pass from Robertson to Leon LaDeaux. Robertson would finish the game with a career-high 322 yards passing, but was also picked three times.

Two of those interceptions came in the final two minutes of the fourth quarter with CWU in Wolves' territory. After Robertson completed a 68-yard pass down the sideline to Anthony Spain to get the Wildcats to the Wolves' 24 with 1:49 remaining, it was time for Peila's second interception. Robertson looked for his receiver on fade route in the corner of the endzone but Peila read the pattern and cut underneath the route for his second interception of the game.

Although it looked like Peila's interception had sealed the game, Central Washington would get one more chance to score after forcing the Wolves to a three-and-out. CWU got the ball back at their own 45 yardline and pushed the ball into Wolves' territory before Foss ended the Wildcats' hopes of a comeback with a diving interception across the middle.

The seven points allowed the Central Washington was the Wildcats' lowest scoring output since 2006. The Wolves' defense also came up with three sacks, including one by Peila. Isaiah Buchanan led the Wolves with 11 tackles and Foss added nine. Peila had 70 return yards off interceptions in the contest.

"Bryce Peila's two picks were crucial and Foss' pick was huge at the end," said Western Oregon head coach Arne Ferguson. "Our defensive line also did a very good job early. They made them one dimensional and our defensive backs then did a very nice job controlling the game."

Mozzochi paced the Wolves with 113 yards passing and a touchdown. Trevor Gates had over half the receiving yard for Western Oregon as he hauled in six passes for 64 yards. Mozzochi and VonAppen split time in the backfield for the first time this season, giving the Wolves options on the ground and in the air.

"Coach (Brian) Harris does a very nice job with our quarterbacks," explained Ferguson. "We have been looking at this for a while and we wanted to add this in when the opportunity presented itself."

"Our team is still building and honestly we don't know how good we are yet," Ferguson added.

This was the Wolves first victory over Central Washington since Oct. 14, 2001. Central Washington has now started the season 0-3 for the first time since 1980.

"Central is a very good team who played two very quality teams coming into this game," said Ferguson. "To be at home and get a win against this type of opponent that has been that successful over the last 10 years is a great accomplishment. I am very proud of our guys."

The Western Oregon Wolves will now be on the road until Oct. 15th. Their next game will be Sept. 24 when they take on another GNAC opponent, Dixie State, in St. George, Utah.