Salisbury, N.C. —- The Catawba College football team scored the final 24 points of their South Atlantic Conference matchup with UVA Wise, overcoming a 14-point deficit to defeat the Cavaliers 44-34 at Shuford Stadium on Saturday night.
TEAM STATISTICS
- Catawba gained 648 total yards to UVA Wise's 482
- The Cavaliers totaled 307 rushing yards to the Catawba Indians' 276 yards on the ground
- Catawba racked up 372 passing yards to 175 for Wise
- The Catawba Indians picked up 32 first downs, two short of the program record; UVA Wise had 17
- Catawba dominated time of possession, holding the ball for over 41 minutes of game time
- The Catawba Indians converted 4 of 8 third downs while holding UVA Wise to 3-for-9 on third down
- The Cavaliers were stopped on the lone 4th down attempt of the game
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
- Preston Brown matched a career high with 372 passing yards and three touchdowns on an efficient 25-for-29 passing; he added 36 yards on the ground with two more scores
- Amari McArthur racked up a career-high 138 yards receiving with two touchdowns on five catches
- Bo Pryor added a team-high nine catches for 117 yards
- RJ Jackson hauled in a touchdown with five catches for 69 yards receiving
- Bennett Galloway rushed for a team-best 138 yards with a touchdown on the ground on 18 carries
- Kevin Lalin was another 100-yard rusher with 106 yards on 12 totes
- Jy Favor totaled a team-high with six tackles; Favor, Rickey Jones and Nehemiah Washington each picked up a tackle for loss
- Nigel Gay recorded two pass breakups
HOW IT HAPPENED
FIRST QUARTER
- Catawba's defense forced a three-and-out and marched 83 yards in nine plays, capped by a two-yard Galloway plunge; the PAT was no good
- UVA Wise struck for a 52-yard touchdown to take the lead 7-6
- The Cavaliers' Daniel Thomas rushed for 73 yards to set up Jake Corkren's 11-yard touchdown run to lead 14-6
SECOND QUARTER
- Catawba responded with a 60-yard catch and run from Brown to McArthur for a touchdown to keep pace with the Wise offense
- The Catawba Indian defense stood tall and forced a three-and-out, setting up an all-rush, five-play drive finished off with Brown's four-yard keeper to go back in front 20-14
- A 22-yard catch on 3rd & 9 extended the UVA Wise drive and they took advantage, finishing with a six-yard TD scamper from Thomas, but the PAT hit the post, locking the score up at 20
- Brown was intercepted by Dacorian Jones-Montgomery, who returned the ball 33 yards for a pick-six, leading the Cavs back on top, 27-20
- Thomas' 62-yard touchdown run helped put UVA Wise up 34-20 with less than four minutes in the opening half
- Jackson broke free for a 39-yard touchdown to finish the scoring in a wild opening half with the Cavs leading 34-27
THIRD QUARTER
- Catawba got the ball to start the second half and immediately drove the ball in Wise territory, but the drive stalled and Catawba's 45-yard field goal attempt was no good
- The Cavaliers pinned Catawba on its own two-yard line on a punt, but the Catawba Indians drove 98 yards in 10 plays, capped by Brown's five-yard keeper, to tie the game at 34 with less than three minutes to go in the third quarter
- The Catawba defense stood tall once again, forcing another UVA Wise punt
FOURTH QUARTER
- Catawba reached 1st & Goal at the UVA Wise two-yard line, but was unable to punch it in and a recovered fumble forced them to settle for a 30-yard field goal from Bryson Sims
- In a reminiscent drive, UVA Wise got the ball on the Catawba two-yard line due to a penalty, but Catawba stuffed the Cavs, including Dru Dotter's pass breakup on third down and Wise's 18-yard field goal try was no good
- Brown's pass to McArthur went for 41 yards and a touchdown to bring Catawba its first double-digit lead of the game at 44-34
- UVA Wise drove the ball into the Catawba red zone, but the Catawba Indians forced the turnover on downs to seal the victory
GAME NOTES
- Catawba's first-ever win over UVA Wise (4th matchup)
- The Catawba Indians' first game of 600 yards of total offense under Coach Haines
- Catawba has had a 100-yard rusher in eight of their last 12 games; two 100-yard rushers in two of their last four games
- Brown ranks second in the SAC in passing yards and tied with the most passing touchdowns with seven; Galloway ranks second in rush yards, Lalin ranks fifth
UP NEXT
- Catawba returns to the road next Saturday, traveling to Newberry for a 7 p.m. kickoff to continue South Atlantic Conference action
