LOS ANGELES — Josh Richards talked about determination. His coach, Ben McEnroe, focused on preparation.

Ultimately, what they were both talking about was a performance inspiring a great deal of jubilation: an emphatic 43-25 win at Occidental on Saturday that puts the Cal Lutheran football team on the verge of its first postseason appearance in 25 years, and the first in 17 seasons as a Division III program.

But the Kingsmen (4-3, 4-0 in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) weren't thinking too much about that on Saturday night; they were too busy enjoying what it meant to hand Occidental its first regular-season loss in 33 games, and the effort that made it possible.

Richards, the senior defensive lineman from Issaquah, Wash., had a monster game — four sacks, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and a 16-yard interception return for his second touchdown this season — as part of a defensive effort that forced six turnovers and logged 10 sacks of Occidental quarterbacks Justin Goltz and Danny Southwick. To him, the effort was team-wide, and had its foundations in the 44-30 loss at Chapman a week earlier.

"Last week's loss was real disappointing, so we came together," he said. "We knew this was a really big week. "It was getting the Occidental monkey off our back. We wanted to play how we knew how to play. Everybody just came out and prepared mentally for this."

That preparation, physical as well as mental was, to McEnroe, the foundation for CLU's first win against Occidental since 2002. In the interim, even with last year's 28-27 loss, the Tigers had outscored them 127-67. Richards, he said, was a perfect example.

"He had a great week of practice," said McEnroe. "We couldn't block him in individual drills.

"This game was all about our senior class. They had never beaten these guys, and those kids took ownership in our preparation. And Josh was one of those team leaders that stepped up and said, We're not going to lose to these guys again.' We met with some of those team leaders on Monday and said, We're going to coach you better than we did against Chapman. We're going to put you on our shoulders; you take the rest of the team and put them on your shoulders.' Those leaders are the guys that stepped up huge for us tonight."

In his second start since the injury to Jericho Toilolo, R.J. Benedict was clearly more comfortable and efficient at quarterback. completing 20 of 33 passes for 314 yards with three touchdowns.

"I know it sounds redundant," said McEnroe, "but R.J. had such a better week of practice. I think from the (first) snap, he was more dialed in."

Benedict, though, disagreed that he'd stepped up his game.

"I personally didn't," he said. "We all did as a team.

"Our whole offensive group, defensive group and special teams — we all worked as one and played a hell of a lot better this week. And it definitely showed."

While it would be difficult to pick a single play as decisive, one of the biggest, without question, was a 20-yard touchdown pass from Benedict to Jesse Matlock with just 4.5 seconds left in the first half. That cashed in an Occidental turnover — one of six by the Tigers, four of which led to 27 CLU points — and extended CLU's halftime lead to 23-3, thanks to a phenomenal one-handed grab by Matlock as he was interfered with by an Occidental defender. (A flag was thrown but, of course, the foul rendered moot by the TD.) "That was a huge moral booster," said Benedict. "It was probably one of the best catches I've seen in a long time if not the best."

Said Matlock, "At that point, the defense had pretty much carried us. They needed something — we (the offense) needed to give something back to them."

Matlock was one of the seniors in that leadership group coaches met with on Monday, McEnroe said.

"We talked to him a lot about big players stepping up in big games," said McEnroe. "I know it sounds cliché. That was a phenomenal football play, but there were plays like that all over the field all night long."

Said Matlock, "We've had a lot of adversity in the last year, and especially in the last couple of weeks with injuries. If anything, I think it's just brought us all together. I've never seen us play like this as a unit, as a team."

As a result, CLU — thanks to SCIAC tiebreaking rules — can clinch the conference's playoff berth this Saturday at Pomona-Pitzer, a team they've beaten in three of four meetings since the Sagehens rejoined the conference for football in 2003.

The importance of that game was the only thing tempering the celebration at Occidental for at least some CLU players.

"It feels good," said Matlock. "We've got to win out, though. This is a big win for us, but by no means have we really earned anything yet."

Pomona is 2-5, in the SCIAC, but McEnroe cautioned, "Pomona is a team that always plays everybody tough. Coach (Roger) Caron, to me, is one of the best coaches in the conference. His players are ready to play every week. It's going to be a battle."