STEVENS POINT, Wis. – The UW-Stevens Point football team (1-3, 0-1) saw a 17-7 halftime lead disappear in a 24-17 defeat to visiting UW-Eau Claire (2-2, 1-0) in Saturday's league opener. An hour-and-45-minute weather delay pushed kickoff back, but after the game, the Pointers were a part of something bigger as the annual Pink Game raised $53,009 for Central Wisconsin Charities.
 
UWSP quarterback Jacob Leair (Cedarburg, Wis./Cedarburg) completed 21 passes on the day for 238 yards and a touchdown. Brycen Cashin (Plover, Wis./Pacelli) caught the touchdown and two others for 31 yards. Cashin also led the rushing attack with 19 carries for 79 yards and a touchdown.
 
Defensively, the Pointes held UWEC to 44 net yards on the ground. Caleb DeJong (Merrill, Wis./Merrill) and Tyriq Sims (Chicago, Ill./Hubbard) each had a sack. DeJong led the squad with nine tackles. Jack Luedtke (Plymouth, Wis./Plymouth) had an interception for UWSP.
 
UWEC took a 7-0 lead on the Blugolds' second drive of the game. It was a five=play, 77-yard drive capped by a 19-yard pass.
 
The Pointers answered on the ensuing drive. Leair completed consecutive passes to Jeffery Williams (Brodhead, Wis./Brodhead) to move the chains. He hit Miles Gallagher (Racine, Wis./William Horlick) and Matt Getgen (Wisconsin Dells, Wis./Wisconsin Dells) to get UWSP into enemy territory. He capped the eight-play drive with a 21-yard touchdown connection with Cashin to tie the game.
 
In the second quarter, it was UWSP's ground game that produced a touchdown drive. Leair hit Getgen for 34 yards to start the drive. Cashin then had back-to-back 13-yard carries to get UWSP to the red zone. Then on third down, Cashin found the end zone on a 12-yard rush for the 14-7 lead.
 
Following Luedtke's pick, the Pointers took over in UWEC territory. A 15-yard connection with Tyler Lemke (Chicago, Ill./St. Patrick) again put the Pointers in the red zone. But the drive was stalled and Aleks Sauer-Milli (Whitefish Bay, Wis./Whitefish Bay) kicked a 33-yard field to give UWSP a 17-7 lead at the half.
 
UWSP's first drive of the second half saw the Pointers methodically march down the field. But UWEC halted the drive at their own 13 and blocked the field goal attempt.
 
The Blugolds got a field goal in between a pair of three-and-out drives by UWSP and the Pointers held a 17-10 lead heading to the fourth.
 
On the first drive of the fourth quarter, the Blugolds found the end zone. But an unsportsmanlike penalty pushed the extra point attempt back and it was missed as the Pointers clung to a 17-16 lead.
 
Later in the fourth, the Blugolds again found the end zone to take the lead with 2:22 remaining. The two-point attempt was good giving UWEC a 24-17 lead.
 
The Pointers had a late chance to tie the game. On the final drive of the game, UWSP got 24- and 11-yard completions to move to the UWEC 36. Leair heaved a pass to the end zone as time expired, but the pass fell incomplete.
 
UWSP will hit the road for consecutive league games, beginning on Saturday (Oct. 7) with a 1:00 p.m. kickoff at UW-Platteville.