Huntingdon football rushes past North Carolina Wesleyan

MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The Huntingdon Hawks set the tone in the first quarter and never let up in a 59-35 win over North Carolina Wesleyan on Saturday.

The Hawks scored four touchdowns and rushed for 136 yards in the first quarter and put the game away in the second half. The 59 points are tied for the fifth most scored by the Hawks in a game.

"It was a good feeling for our team to get back out here and get a win," senior running back Garrett Fletcher said. "Our offensive line did a great job and gave us confidence to run the ball. We were able to move the ball early and we did a better job of finishing this game.

"We've had a tendency to not finish games the way we should this season and we've been trying to change our mindset. We want to start games strong, stay focused and finish."

Fletcher ended the game with 108 yards rushing and tied the school record for rushing touchdowns in a game with four. Courtney Moss set the record in a win over Louisiana College in 2010.

"I wasn't aware of the record until some people started talking about it," Fletcher said. "I thought I might get a chance to break the record, but that wasn't what the team needed me to do. It's still pretty cool to tie the record."

Fletcher scored all four touchdowns in the first 18 minutes of the game. His fourth touchdown gave the Hawks (5-2, 3-1 USA South) a 35-7 lead with 12:43 left in the first half.

"I'm proud of Fletcher. He's a program guy, who has been here, worked and been a selfless player," Huntingdon head coach Mike Turk said. "We needed him today and he came through for us. He got some opportunities today and he took advantage of them."

Fletcher and senior Austin Bennett, who rushed for 120 yards and scored a touchdown on a 67-yard run, became just the third pair of Huntingdon running backs to rush for 100 yards in the same game. Alex Baronich (183 yards) and Trevor Manuel (119 yards) were the first Huntingdon running backs to do so in a win over Westminster in 2009. Manuel (135) and Caleb McCants (120) also accomplished the feat against Maryville in 2010.

As a team, the Hawks rushed for 345 yards on 53 attempts, matching the sixth highest rushing total in program history. The Hawks also rushed for 345 yards in the 2010 win over Maryville.

Huntingdon, which was ranked No. 1 in Division III entering the game with 568.2 yards per game, finished with 593 yards of offense on 75 plays.

"We needed this win," Turk said. "I think we played better in some areas and we still have a long way to go in some other areas. But, I'm proud of the way we responded today and the way we played in the fourth quarter. We did the things we needed to do to get better.

"We played with more intensity in the second half. That's something we have been missing. We still have to do better, but I think we took a step in the right direction today."

Huntingdon opened the scoring a little more than a minute into the game when Jamichael Bibb scored on a 47-yard touchdown pass from Ryne Taylor. Following Fletcher's four first-half touchdowns and Bennett's touchdown run in the third quarter, Huntingdon closed the game with two touchdowns and a field goal.

David Ballard, who was 8-for-8 on extra points, kicked a 30-yard field goal in the third quarter, Taylor connected with Darius Dawsey for a 1-yard touchdown in the third quarter and John Iwaniec scored on a 3-yard run early in the fourth quarter.

Taylor finished with 194 yards on 11-of-14 passing and Bibb led the receivers with five catches for 88 yards.

Defensively, linebacker John-David Swiger totaled nine tackles to give him 69 for the season. Defensive back Anthony White added eight tackles and linebacker Jake Green finished with seven tackles.

Defensive lineman Drew Wheeler recorded two sacks and Craig Granger picked off his second pass of the season.

Huntingdon returns to action at Averett University on Nov. 2