Whitworth to host first round game in NCAA D-III playoffs

by From news services
| November 14, 2018 12:00 AM

SPOKANE — Whitworth University will host Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges in the first round of the NCAA Division III playoffs on Saturday at the Pine Bowl. Kickoff will be at noon.

The NCAA released its bracket for the 32-team field on Sunday.

Whitworth earned its fourth trip to the NCAA playoffs by earning the automatic bid from the Northwest Conference.

The Pirates finished 9-0 overall and 7-0 in the NWC, becoming only the fifth football team in school history to finish its regular season undefeated.

Claremont-Mudd-Scripps went 7-3 overall and 6-1 in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletics Conference (SCIAC), sharing the league title with Redlands.

But the Stags claimed the automatic bid based on a head-to-head victory over the Bulldogs earlier this season.

Whitworth is returning to the playoffs for the first time since 2015. The Pirates have not hosted a game since 2006 when the Bucs hosted the first two rounds in the Pine Bowl.

C-M-S will be making its first appearance in the NCAA playoffs. Whitworth and C-M-S have never played in football.