Records Fall as Football Loses Season Finale

GREENEVILLE, Tenn. – Mars Hill's football team lost their season finale at Tusculum College, 49-42. Dimitri Holmes and Trent Miller broke school records in the contest.

Mars Hill freshman signal caller Trent Miller passed for 439 yards and three touchdowns including a pair of TD tosses to Dimitri Holmes.  The 439 passing yards set a new single game record for the Lions. The old record was held by Luis Cruz against Wingate in 2010 when he threw for 351 yards. Holmes finished the game with 10 catches for 243 yards as he ends the year setting program records in single-season receiving yards (1,591 – 2^nd in SAC history), TD receptions (15), career receiving yards (3,449 – 3^rd in SAC history) and career TD receptions (32).

Mars Hill senior Sammy Siasia led all tacklers with 20 stops, including five for loss and a pair of sacks as he wrapped an amazing season where he finished with 155 tackles.  Robert Green, II added 17 tackles, while Troy Harris accounted for five tackles, including three for loss and two sacks.

Tusculum College quarterback Bo Cordell passed for 569 yards and five touchdowns while leading the Pioneers to 21 unanswered points to rally to a 49-42 South Atlantic Conference victory over cross-mountain rival Mars Hill University Saturday afternoon at Pioneer Field.

Tusculum (4-7, 2-5 SAC) snaps a five-game losing streak and ends a three-game skid against the Lions (3-8, 1-6 SAC).

TC scored the final 21 points of the contest including Fernando Smith's one-yard touchdown run with 3:10 remaining for the game-winning score.  MHU would move into Tusculum territory on the ensuing possession, but the TC defense held the Lions to three straight incomplete passes, including fourth and 10 from the TC 43 with 2:04 left as the visitors turned the ball over on downs.

TC freshman Isaac Robinson rattled off runs of 17 and 15 yards for a pair of first downs as the Pioneers ran out the clock for the win. 

The two teams combined for over 1,200 total offensive yards as the Pioneers accumulated 665 yards, while the Lions posted 545 (439 pass/106 rush) on the day. 

On Saturday, Cordell went 34-for-56 as three of his receivers finished with over 100 yards each.  Justin Houston tallied 11 catches for 161 yards and a touchdown, while Deon Hicks recorded six grabs for 120 yards and three touchdowns, including two in the second half to spark TC's 21-0 run.  Tight end Wesley Powell posted seven receptions for a career-high 110 yards.

Tusculum senior Brian Alexander finished with a team-best 10 tackles in his final game in a Pioneer uniform.  He ends his collegiate career with a school-record 366 tackles. TC senior John Perry added eight tackles, including a pair of sacks and two pass break-ups in his final TC game, while senior Josh Davis tallied seven hits with a sack and a break-up in his TC finale.

The teams combined for 49 points in the opening quarter as both squads scored touchdowns on their first three possessions. The Lions struck first when Miller connected on a 25-yard TD pass to Holmes.  TC answered on its first offensive play as Cordell completed an 84-pass to Johnathan Diliberto as he sprinted into the end zone to tie the game at 7-7 at the 10:40 mark of the first quarter.  It tied for the third longest pass play in school history.

MHU's Foluke Gordon-Lamar scored on a 10-yard run two minutes later as the Lions regained the lead.  TC followed with a nine-play, 74-yard drive which was capped off by Cordell's 28-yard TD strike to Houston at the 6:30 mark of the first quarter.

Mars Hill regained the lead at 21-14 as Jamel Hall scored on a four-yard TD run.  The scoring drive was highlighted by Miller's 61-yard completion to Holmes to set up Hall's touchdown run.

The Pioneers followed with a three-play drive of its own.  Cordell completed a 33-yard pass to senior Jordan Rhinehart to the MHU 30 for his first career completion.  A 29-yard strike Powell moved the ball to the MHU one-yard line.  Cordell called his own number from there as he sprinted in for the TD run to knot the contest at 21-21.

Mars Hill went three and out on its next possession thanks to a 10-yard sack on second down by John Perry.

Tusculum scored on its fourth straight possession as Cordell completed a 12-yard TD to Hicks as the Pioneers took its first lead of the day at 28-21 with 42 seconds remaining in the quarter.

Mars Hill regained the lead with a pair of Jamel Hall touchdowns in the second quarter.  On fourth down and two yards to go, Miller found Hall in the left corner of the end zone for a 24-yard TD to tie the game at 28-28 with 7:43 left in the half. 

MHU's Marvin James intercepted Cordell later in the quarter and hall capped an eight-play, 65-yard drive with his third TD of the afternoon, this one coming on a two-yard run with 54 seconds remaining in the half as the Lions took a 35-28 lead into the locker room.

Tusculum would be forced to punt on the opening possession of the second half as punter Logan Haynes pinned the Lions at their own four-yard line.  Miller dropped back to pass and found Holmes up the far sideline for a 96-yard TD completed to Holmes for the second longest-pass play in school history and third longest in SAC history.

Trailing 42-28, the Pioneers tied the game with touchdowns on its next two possessions.  Cordell completed TD tosses to Hicks covering 53 and 26 yards as the home team tied the contest at 42-42 at the 5:36 mark of the third quarter.

Neither team could muster any scoring until late in the final quarter as the Pioneers took over at the TC 23 with 4:50 left.  Cordell put Tusculum in business with a 35-yard pass to Powell, followed by a 38-yard completion to Corliss Stone to move the ball to the MHU 4.  Smith would punch in the game-winning score from a yard out.