SALISBURY, N.C. -- Ferrum College's football team opened NCAA Division II competition tonight on the road at Catawba College. The Panthers came up on the short end of a 45-13 score, with placekicker
Jon Davis connecting on a pair of field goals and one PAT tonight at Shuford Stadium.
RECORDS
Catawba 1-0
Ferrum 0-1
THE BASICS
Bennett Galloway capped a nine-play, 68-yard drive with a two-yard plunge into the end zone on Catawba's opening drive for a 7-0 lead. The Panthers drove 56 yards in 11 plays on it's first possession, settling for a 36-yard Davis field goal at 5:01 of the first quarter to make it a 7-3 game.
Galloway found the end zone again, this time on a 12-yard run at 4:03 of the first quarter to lift the Indians to a 14-3 lead. Preston Brown hit Kevin Lalin with a 12-yard scoring strike at 11:35 of the second quarter, then Brown connected with Bo Pryor for a 42-yard touchdown pass with less than a minute left in the first half for a 28-3 lead.
Davis then split the uprights from 44 yards out with no time left on the clock left to end the second quarter and the Indians' lead was down to 35-6 at the break.
The third quarter was scoreless until Ferrum offensive lineman
Trey Reiter fell on a loose ball in the end zone for a touchdown and Davis' PAT trimmed the lead to 35-13 at the 7:57 mark.
Bryson Sims had a 26-yard field goal for Catawba at 14:58 of the fourth quarter, then Dee Mitchell closed out scoring when he rumbled 35 yards down the left sideline for a touchdown to account for the 45-13 final score.
Catawba totaled 495 yards in total offense to Ferrum's 249 yards. The Indians converted seven of nine third-down attempts (78%) and controlled the ball for 31:30 on the clock.
Tonight's game marks just the second time Ferrum and Catawba have met on the gridiron. The first-ever football game between the two schools was in 1963, with the Panthers winning 14-0.
KEY STATS
Catawba: Lalin 15 att, 132 yds; Galloway 15 att, 62 yds, 2 TD; Brown 11-11 passing, 232 yds, 3 TD; Pryor 2 rec, 82 yds, 2 TD; Evam Simons 8 tackles
Ferrum:
Jahylen Lee 14 att, 62 yds;
Eli Foutz 11 att, 50 yds, 12-19 passing, 108 yds;
Omarza Gray 2 rec, 47 yds, 4 KR, 120 yds;
Ian Ashworth 9 tackles
UP NEXT
Coach Kevin Sherman's team will be back on the gridiron Saturday, September 6, at Division I Virginia Military Institute. Kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m. in Lexington, Virginia.
