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Azusa Pacific University Athletics

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Wallwork, Laki1 - FB [2026]
17
Whittier WHC 0-2
35
Winner Azusa Pacific APU 1-1
Whittier WHC
0-2
17
Final
35
Azusa Pacific APU
1-1
Winner
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
WHC Whittier 0 3 7 7 17
APU Azusa Pacific 0 14 14 7 35

Game Recap: Football |

This Kid Is No Lackey

GLENDORA, Calif. – Freshman Laki Wallwork looked every bit a seasoned veteran in his collegiate football debut, completing every pass he attempted, rushing for 3 touchdowns and accounting for 135 of the Cougars' 390 yards of total offense while leading Azusa Pacific to a 35-17 homecoming victory over Whittier College on Saturday evening at Citrus Stadium.

The 5-foot-11, 170-pound rookie from Peoria, Ariz., used nifty footwork and deft decision-making on rollouts to spark an offense that had been dormant in the Cougars' season-opening loss at La Verne.

Wallwork, who was also making his first start, scored the program's first touchdown in nearly 7 years on a 4-yard sprint up the middle, giving Azusa Pacific a 7-0 lead with 5 minutes remaining in the first half. Four minutes later, he ran nearly the same play, eluding Poet defenders through the middle for an 8-yard touchdown that sent APU into halftime with a 14-3 lead.

After the 2 teams traded third-quarter touchdowns, Wallwork kept the Poets at bay with an 18-yard run around right end. He twisted back toward the middle of the field before finding the end zone to push the Cougar lead to 28-10.

Azusa Pacific closed the scoring on Demarion Wright's 18-yard touchdown run around left end with just over 2 minutes remaining, clinching the Cougar victory.

The win was Azusa Pacific's first on the gridiron since Sept. 28, 2019, a 38-12 victory at Simon Fraser, and the first for Head Coach AJ Parnell.

Parnell entered the game with a plan to lean on his sizable offensive line and establish the running game.

Azusa Pacific ran the ball 50 times for 340 yards, with the offensive line protecting Wallwork and consistently creating room against the Poets' front. The Cougars were tackled for loss just once and averaged nearly 7 yards per carry.

Wide receiver Tyron Bates rushed for a game-high 86 yards on 12 carries, while Wallwork finished with 85 yards on 10 attempts. Sean O'Rourke added 39 yards on 4 carries, highlighted by a 26-yard end-around touchdown that gave the Cougars a 21-3 lead midway through the third quarter.

The Cougar defense frustrated Whittier throughout the night, intercepting Poet quarterback James Mertz 3 times. Aldo Owleny's diving interception of a Mertz pass gave APU possession at the Whittier 39-yard line. Four plays later, O'Rourke sprinted untouched down the sideline for his first touchdown as a Cougar.

Azusa Pacific also sacked Mertz twice, with Jedi Gbaja-Biamila recording both take-downs of Mertz, and limited Whittier's ground game to just 71 yards on 28 carries.

With the victory, Azusa Pacific improves to 1-1 and will have next week off before returning home to host the University of Redlands on Oct. 3 at Citrus Stadium.
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