Football Falls at Newberry

NEWBERRY, S.C. – The Lions' football team lost on the road at Newberry College, 24-10 Saturday night at Setzler Field. Mars Hill fell to 1-3 overall and 0-1 in the SAC. The Wolves remain undefeated at 4-0 overall and 2-0 in the league.

Boxscore...

Turnovers plagued the Lions in the loss. MHU had three passes picked off and lost a fumble deep inside Newberry territory. Shaikel Davis had another stellar game rushing for 154 yards on 31 carries averaging five yards per rush. Davis leads the SAC in rushing and is ranked eighth in the nation in that category. Jeremy Hughes caught five passes for 64 yards and one touchdown for 18 yards. Quarterback Zach Lappin was 16-30 for 184 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions. Dimitri Hughes caught five passes for 61 yards. Sammy Siasia once again led the Lion defense in tackles with nine (8 solo). Troy Harris followed with seven tackles, 1.5 sacks and three tackles-for-loss. Christiaan Davis added four tackles, two sacks and the same number of tackles-for-loss. The Lions had 361 yards of total offense opposed to the Wolves with 271.

WT Murden threw for 182 yards completing 10-14 passes to pace Newberry. Corey Washington caught two passes for 55 yards while Romelo Doctor rushed for 42 yards. Edmond Robinson led the Wolves defense with seven tackles, a sack, a tackle-for-loss and a force fumble. Brice Green picked off two MHU passes in the contest. He added a couple of tackles.

WT Murden scored the first points of the game with 9:34 left in the first quarter when he dove in from a yard out. Kyle Clark's PAT kick was good and the Wolves led 7-0.

Mars Hill had a chance to tie the game at the 11:12 mark of the second quarter but they lost a fumble on Newberry's five yard line. The Wolves answered four minutes later (7:23) when Murden hit Corey Washington on a 49-yard touchdown pass. Clark's PAT attempt was good and Newberry led 14-0.

Zach Lappin found Jeremy Hughes on an 18-yard touchdown strike with 4:11 left in the half to trim the Wolves advantage to 14-7 after Victor Yurco's PAT kick split the uprights. Clark ended the scoring in the first half of play hitting a 40-yard field goal as time expired to give Newberry a 17-7 lead as the teams went to the locker rooms at the break.

Romelo Doctor ran in from two yards out with 12:14 left in the third frame to cap off a three-play, thirty yard drive, to give Newberry a 24-7 lead after another successful PAT kick from Clark. The Wolves obtained the ball on the Lions' 30 yard line after a 36 yard punt and an 18-yard return by Jason Livingstone.

Mars Hill took their next possession and drove to Newberry's two yard line but a penalty and a sack forced the Lions to attempt a 25-yard field goal. Yurco's kick was true and the Lions trailed 24-10 with 4:48 left in the third quarter. That was all the scoring the game would see.

Mars Hill will host SAC rival Carson-Newman next Saturday in the Lions' annual Homecoming game. Kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m.