Lions Run Past Bears, 49-0

HICKORY, N.C. – Mars Hill defeated South Atlantic Conference opponent Lenoir-Rhyne 49-0 Saturday afternoon at Moretz Stadium. The Lions improved to 3-5 overall and 1-3 in the SAC. The Bears fell to 2-6 on the year and an even 2-2 in the league.

Malik Prescott led Mars Hill rushing for his career and team season high 244 yards on 24 carries and two touchdowns. Prescott averaged 10.2 yards per carry. Austin Brown threw for 90 yards completing 5-8 passes and three scores. Keshaun Taylor caught four passes for 43 yards and one touchdown while Craig Rucker caught two passes for 60 yards and two touchdowns. Carl Mattox led the Lions' defense with five tackles followed by Jerjuan Edwards with three tackles, two for loss. Chris Mosely also tallied three tackles and added an interception. As a team, MHU set season highs today in rushes (54), yards rushing (373), yards per carry (6.9), yards per play (7.1) and points (49). The Lions' defense forced four Bear turnovers, three interceptions and one fumble recovery.

Darnell Jackson rushed for 59 yards on 10 carries to lead the Bears offensively. Patrick Rendleman caught five passes for 41 yards. Sherrod Williams led Lenoir-Rhyne's defense with nine tackles (5 solo). Clayton Horn added seven stops (4 solo).

Malik Prescott dove in from a yard out to cap off a six-play, 69-yard drive that consumed 1:19 to give the Lions a 7-0 lead with 5:07 left in the first quarter. Reggie Battle extended the Lions' lead to 14-0 when he ran in from three yards out with 7:58 left in the second period. The drive consisted of 15 plays spanning 58 yards that took 5:17 off the clock.

Austin Brown then found Keshaun Taylor for a 25-yard touchdown pass to give the Lions a 21-0 lead with 1:35 left in the second quarter. Mars Hill drove 71 yards on nine plays to complete the touchdown. The drive consumed 4:08. The teams carried that score into the locker room at the intermission.

The Lions wasted little time extending their advantage to 28-0 after they scored on their opening drive of the second half. Brown connected with Craig Rucker on a 54-yard scoring strike with 13:43 left in third stanza. The drive, covering 80 yards took only three plays and 1:10 off the clock. On the Lions' second possession of the third quarter, Prescott took the ball on the first play of the drive and scampered 74 yards for his second touchdown of the day. That score gave Mars Hill a 35-0 advantage with 12:10 left in the third quarter.

Rucker and Brown teamed up again with 14:11 left in the fourth quarter on a six-yard scoring pass play to give the Lions a 42-0 lead. The drive spanned 75 yards on nine plays and deleted 4:21 off the game clock. A 76-yard interception return by Robert Morgan, Jr., with 2:48 left in regulation ended the scoring in the contest and made the final score 49-0 in favor of the Lions.

Mars Hill will host SAC rival Tusculum next Saturday, October 29. Kickoff in the Ammons Family Athletic Center and Meares Stadium is set for 1 p.m.