Football

Belhaven Edges West Virginia Tech on Last Second Field Goal

Jackson, Miss-The Belhaven Blazers won in dramatic fashion Saturday Afternoon defeating West Virginia Tech University by a final of 29-27. Justin Miller hit a 44 yard field goal as time expired to give the Blazers their second win of season. With the victory Belhaven improves to 2-4 overall and 2-1 in the Mid-South Conference. West Virginia Tech drops to 0-6 overall and 0-4 in conference play.

The afternoon got off to a rough start as Jerred Wallace was intercepted by Ryan Chandler who then took it 79 yards to the house for a touchdown giving West Virginia Tech a 7-0 lead. Belhaven would answer back late in the first quarter as Kyle Henry ran it in from eight yards out to tie the score at 7 a piece.

The Golden Bears would then real off 14 unanswered points on a couple of touchdown passes by Freshman Quarterback Michael Scott. The first was to Dyrone Johnson for a 14 yard strike with about 11 minutes to go in the first half and a few minutes later Brandon Little hauled in a four yard pass to make it 21-7.

Belhaven would get on the board again at the 10:45 mark of the third quarter on a 26 yard field goal by Justin Miller. At that point, it was a 21-10 advantage for West Virginia Tech. Nine minutes later; Scott completed another touchdown pass, again to Brandon Little, from seven yards out. The extra point was missed which would prove to be crucial later in the game and the score at that point stood at 27-10.

Belhaven started the comeback with 12:21 to play as Jerred Wallace found Shaun Ector for a 50 yard touchdown pass which made it a two score contest. Seven minutes later Justin Miller hit his second field goal of the afternoon drilling it from 32 yards out cutting the West Virginia Tech lead to 27-20. With just over one minute to play in the game, Wallace completed his second of two touchdowns as Kevin Dizer hauled in the 20 yard pass. Justin Miller’s point after was blocked and Belhaven still trailed 27-26. 

The Blazers failed to recover the onside kick and at that point it seemed like the Golden Bears would run out the clock and secure the win. Belhaven would spend their final two timeouts and force West Virginia Tech into a long fourth down situation. Instead of punting the Blazers deep in their own end, the Golden Bears went for it on fourth down and failed to convert.

Belhaven then took over in great field position just outside Golden Bear territory. Two pass completions put the ball at the West Virginia Tech 27 yard line with four seconds to play. Justin Miller then came on and hit a 44 yard field as time expire giving the Blazers a 29-27 come from behind victory.        

The Blazers were led on offense by Quarterback Jerred Wallace who was 28-53 through the air for 355 yards and two touchdowns. Anthony Embry had nine receptions for 91 yards while Shaun Ector pulled in 5 passes for 83 yards and a touchdown. The Blazers racked up 415 yards of total offense with 355 coming through the air. Defensively, Eric Ortiz had an outstanding game with 8 tackles and Brian Edwards along with Jordan Snipes came away with interceptions. The defense forced three turnovers with the two interceptions and a fumble recovery.

Belhaven hits the road next week as they travel to Campbellsville University in Kentucky for another Mid-South Conference Matchup. All the action is set to get underway at 1:30 and you can catch the game on SuperSport 930 AM. 

BELHAVEN VS WVU-TECH: GAME PREVIEW

Today’s matchup with the Golden Bears is the first meeting between Belhaven and West Virginia Tech since the 2006 season when Belhaven came out of Montgomery with a 39-24 victory. The Golden Bears are led by first year head coach Scott Tinsley. West Virginia Tech is off to a rough start heading into today’s game with an 0-5 overall record and 0-2 mark in the Mid-South Conference.

Belhaven will play their second consecutive home game after getting their first win last week against Faulkner University 49-24. The Blazers scored all 49 points in the first half and the defense kept the pressure on Faulkner’s quarterback the entire game. The defense tallied eight sacks and 13 tackles for losses. The Blazers are 1-4 and 1-1 in the Mid-South Conference meaning that a win over the Golden Bears would get them above .500 in league play. 

THE WVU-TECH REPORT:

The Golden Bears bring a young football team into Newell field to face the Blazers. Freshman Quarterback Michael Scott has had an impressive start to his collegiate career throwing 17 touchdowns and averages of 282 yards passing a game. Last week in their loss to Union College, Scott tossed four touchdowns and passed for 253 yards. Josh Culbertson is WVU-Tech’s leading rusher with an average of 79 yards per game and has two touchdowns on the season. However, the passing attack is what really makes the Golden Bear offense go. WVU-Tech’s passing offense ranks 12^th in the NAIA for yards per game. 

Belhaven will face a 3-4 defense from the Golden Bears; however it doesn’t have a typical 3-4 make-up. The defensive line is small but quick and should pose some interesting one-on-one matchups for the Belhaven offensive line. The tackles are both less than 200 pounds and the nose guard weighs in at around 250. Strong Safety Jon Culbertson leads the team in tackles with 70, which on average is 14 per game. The defense is surrendering around 429 yards per game.

West Virginia Tech’s five losses have come to Lenoir-Rhyne 51-13, Urbana University 28-19, UV College at Wise 62-33, Campbellsville University 57-47 and Union College 45-27.

THE BELHAVEN REPORT:

 Belhaven is looking to ride the momentum from last week’s victory over Faulkner into this afternoon’s contest with the Golden Bears. Jerred Wallace got his first start at quarterback last week and made the best of it throwing for 279 yards and five touchdowns. The Blazers still need to do a better job of hanging on to the ball. Belhaven had four fumbles and two interceptions in last weeks game against Faulkner and six the previous week at Bethel. Against the Eagles, the Blazers were able to overcome the turnovers with good defensive pressure on the quarterback, five interceptions, and some big plays through the passing game. The biggest play on offense was Wallace’s 81 yard touchdown strike to Jarius Foster in the second quarter of action.

 For the second consecutive week, Reginald Lumpkin led the team in tackles with eight including five that were unassisted. Eric Ortiz along with Eric Duckworth added 2.5 sacks a piece for losses of 18 and 35 yards respectively. Duckworth also came up with a forced fumble and a deflected pass against Faulkner. The previously mentioned five interceptions were turned in by Baqui Thomas, Chaquille Lewis, Cameron Achord, Jonathan Reed, and Javian Johnson. As a team, the defense kept Faulkner off the board for the final 30 minutes of the second half.

 Today’s contest with West Virginia Tech is an opportunity for Belhaven build on what they established in last weeks game. Jerred Wallace will be making is second start of season and the coaching staff is hoping he can put together another solid performance today. Also, a victory would put Belhaven at 2-1 in the Mid-South, keeping them in the hunt in the conference race. Either way, the game could be a high scoring affair with Belhaven’s and WVU-Tech’s high powered offenses. The Blazers are averaging 23 points per game while the Golden Bears put 28 points on the board per contest.  

Belhaven Secures First Win, Outscores Faulkner 49-24

Jackson, MS-Offense was the name of the game Saturday afternoon at H.T. Newell field as the Blazers racked up 49 first half points in route to their first victory of the season 49-24. Belhaven is now 1-4 on the year and evens their Mid-South Conference mark at 1-1. Faulkner loses for the fifth time this season falling to 0-5 and 0-2 in conference play.

It didn’t look good early for Belhaven as on the opening kickoff Kevin Dizer fumbled the ball and Dominique Johnson of Faulkner recovered in Belhaven territory at the 38 yard line. Five plays later Jurell Williams would run it in from two yards out making is 7-0 Faulkner.

A few minutes later, Belhaven would get the first of their 49 first half points on a 27 yard touchdown pass from Jerred Wallace to Barry Johnson. It was the first of five touchdown passes for Wallace on the afternoon. The Blazers would miss the extra point making the score 7-6.

Belhaven would then grab the lead on a safety when Faulkner punter Jared Corder was brought down in the end zone and the score jumped up to an 8-7 margin. The Blazers would then get another quick touchdown when Jerred Wallace found Ricardo Bolton on a 33 yard strike. The extra point extended Belhaven’s lead to 15-7. With about 3 minutes to go in the first quarter, Belhaven got their only rushing touchdown of the day as Quinton Taylor carried it in from seven yards out to give Belhaven a 22-7 lead.

In a game that saw just about everything, the Eagles who had given up a safety earlier, picked up two points of their own when Belhaven was called for intentional grounding in the end zone making the score 22-9.

In the second quarter Wallace threw three touchdown passes finding Anthony Embry for 16 yards, and Barry Johnson for 28 yards. The biggest play of the game was Wallace’s 81 yard touchdown pass to Jarius Foster and at that point the score was 46-17. Justin Miller also connected on a pair of field goals in the second quarter from 47 yards and 30 yards at the end of the half to put Belhaven in control at the break 49-17.

The defense would make the lead stand up in the second half surrendering just one touchdown in the final 30 minutes of play. The Blazers had eight sacks as a team and 13 tackles for losses totaling 83 yards. Reginald Lumpkin led the team in tackles with eight and Eric Ortiz along with Eric Duckworth added 2.5 sacks a piece. The defense also picked off four passes with Baqui Thomas, Chaquille Lewis, Cameron Achord, and Javian Johnson being credited with the takeaways.

Offensively Belhaven was led by Jerred Wallace who completed 19-30 passes for 279 yards and five touchdowns. Ricardo Bolton had a nice game on the ground rushing for 78 yards on 9 carries. In the pass catching department, Embry had five receptions for one touchdown while Barry Johnson hauled in 3 catches for 43 yards and two touchdowns.

The Blazers are back in action next Saturday as they host West Virginia Tech at H.T. Newell Field. Kickoff is slated for 1:30. You can hear all the action on Supersport 930 AM.

Preview: Belhaven Football to Battle Faulkner Saturday

Jackson, MS-Saturday’s matchup with the Eagles will be the first ever meeting between Belhaven and Faulkner. Faulkner is in just their second season of football and first in Mid-South Conference play. The Eagles are led by second year head coach Jim Nichols. Nichols actually began his duties a year prior to the first season of games in order to help get the program off the ground. Last year, Faulkner finished 1-9 in their inaugural season beating Kentucky Christian 20-12 for the programs first win. The Eagles are 0-4 to begin the 2008 campaign.

Belhaven returns home after a bye week and loss on the road last Saturday against Bethel (TN) in a game that saw six costly turnovers by the Blazers. Belhaven trailed early in the second half 31-7, but made a strong come back to make the score 31-21. Unfortunately, the Blazers could not capitalize on a couple of other scoring opportunities in the fourth quarter or it may have been even closer. Belhaven enters Saturday’s contest with Faulkner at 0-4 overall and 0-1 in the Mid-South. 

THE FAULKNER REPORT:

The Eagles are a young football team especially on the offensive side of the ball. Faulkner’s starting offense features eight sophomores, two freshmen and only one senior. The Eagles are led by Sophomore Quarterback Phillip Moore who has thrown for 525 yards and two touchdowns this season. His favorite target on the year has been junior Frankie Padula, who has 14 receptions for 196 yards and one touchdown. He averages just under 50 yards receiving per game. Overall, the offense has struggled being outscored by opponents 148 to 20.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Hawks are paced by Junior Middle Linebacker Sean Thom who has turned in 61 tackles on the season. Junior Linebacker Jason Evans has also been a force on defense tallying 31 tackles in 2008. Overall, the defense is surrendering around 491 yards of offense per game. The Hawks are ranked 14^th in the NAIA in pass defense per game giving up just 143 yards per game through the air.

Faulkner’s four losses on the season were to Samford 62-0, Huntingdon College 21-7, Union College 23-13, and last week in their Mid-South Conference opener to Shorter College 42-0.

 THE BELHAVEN REPORT:

Belhaven is looking for win number one of this season Saturday against Faulkner. Each week the Blazers have shown improvement and are hoping that this week they can put it all together. Junior Quarterback Jerred Wallace helped lead the second half charge against Bethel last week completing 17 of 29 passes for 192 yards and 2 touchdowns. Damien Davis rushed the ball eight times for a total of 62 yards to lead the ground attack. Anthony Embry had an outstanding day catching the ball against Bethel hauling in 6 passes for 97 yards and a touchdown. It should be a good battle between the passing game of the Blazers and the 14^th ranked pass defense of the Eagles.

Defensively, Senior Linebacker Reginald Lumpkin had a big game against the Wildcats with 10 total tackles including a Quarterback sack. On the season, Lumpkin leads the team in total tackles with 33. The Blazer sack leaders are Senior Defensive End Eric Ortiz and Junior Defensive End Melvin Dyson with 3.5 sacks each. Cornerback Jonathan Reed has two interceptions on the year including one a week ago against Bethel. Blazer opponents are scoring 35 points per game and gaining around 410 yards of total offense per contest in 2008. However, last weeks effort in the second half against Bethel kept Belhaven in the game and gave the offense a chance to get back in it. The Blazers held the Wildcats scoreless for the final 25 minutes of the game.

Saturday’s game against Faulkner is another chance for Belhaven to notch their first Mid-South Conference win of the season. The previous week’s matchup with Bethel was the conference opener. The Blazers other three games were non-league contests against NCAA Division II West Alabama in week one 49-12 (L), Concordia Selma in week two 27-19 (L), and cross town rival Millsaps in the third week 34-14 (L).

Turnovers Cost Belhaven in Conference Opener

McKenzie, TN-Often times in the game of football, the team that has the fewest turnovers is going to win the game. That was just the case Saturday night as the Blazers turned the ball over six times and fell in their conference opener at Bethel College 31-21. Belhaven outgained the Wildcats in total offensive yardage 446 to 291 and the Blazers dominated in the passing game, with exception of four interceptions, 304 to 164 yards. The Blazers also had two fumbles and those combined with the interceptions could very well have made the difference in the game.

The first score of the contest came on an interception by Wade Vandergriff as he picked off Andrew Carcich and returned it eleven yards for the score with 12:29 remaining in the first quarter. The Blazers would answer back and tie the score at seven when Andrew Carcich found Kyle Henry open for a 14 yard touchdown strike at the 6:37 mark of the first quarter. Then the Wildcats would score the next 24 points and build a commanding 31-7 lead with 10:12 remaining to go in quarter number three.

Belhaven did not give up as Jerrod Wallace led the Blazers on a scoring drive culminating in a 52 yard touchdown pass to Anthony Embry and with the extra point that made the score 31-14. Just under four minutes later Belhaven found the end zone again on another Wallace touchdown pass, this time to Ricardo Bolton with 2:44 in the third, and just like that Belhaven was back in the game.

Belhaven had a chance to pull even closer late in the game, but kicker Justin Miller could not connect on a 37 yard field goal attempt and the score remained at 31-21 in favor of Bethel. From that point, Bethel began to go to work on the clock and a last ditch effort by the Blazers to get back in it fell short.

Offensively, the Blazers were led by Jerred Wallace who completed 17 of 29 passing attempts for 194 yards and two touchdowns. Damien Davis carried the ball eight times for 62 yards to lead the rushing attack. Anthony Embry had six receptions for 97 yards and a touchdown and Jeffrey Maxwell caught 7 passes for 55 yards. Ricardo Bolton and Kyle Henry each had touchdown receptions to account for the Blazers scoring.

Defensively, Reginald Lumpkin turned in ten tackles and a sack while Jonathan Gamberi and Baqui Thomas each recorded 1.5 sacks a piece. The defense did a nice job in the second half to keep Belhaven in the game keeping the Wildcats off the board for the 25 minutes of the game giving the offense a chance to get back in it. 

With the loss, Belhaven’s record now stands at 0-4 overall and 0-1 in Mid-South Conference Western Division play. The Blazers will return home for their match-up with conference foe Faulkner University next Saturday afternoon. The game is scheduled to get underway at 1:30 and you can hear all the action of next week’s game on Supersport 930 AM.

Belhaven falls to Millsaps in the fourth edition of the Riverside Rumble

Written by Kirk McDonnell

            The Belhaven Blazers and Millsaps Majors renewed their rivalry in the “Riverside Rumble” Saturday night with the Majors coming out on top 34-14. Millsaps, who is now 2-0 to begin the season, continued to ride the hot hand of quarterback Juan Joseph who threw for 219 yards and three touchdowns. The Blazers fought hard to keep the score close, but Millsaps put the game away with 20 unanswered points late in the second half as Belhaven’s record now stands at 0-3.

            The Blazers jumped out to an early lead on a two yard touchdown run by Ricardo Bolton with 6:28 to go in the first quarter. The extra point was added by Justin Miller to make it 7-0 Blazers. Millsaps would bounce right back on a Schuyler Huff two yard touchdown carry with 9:10 remaining in the first half to knot the score at seven apiece. Less than four minutes later, Joseph would hook up on a 52 yard touchdown strike to Michael Galatis to put Millsaps on top 14-7 and that’s the way things stood heading into halftime.

            On their opening possession of the second half, the Majors would drive the ball to Belhaven’s 6 yard line, but the defense mad a great stand and kept Millsap’s off the board thanks to a 23 yard field goal that sailed wide left off the foot of kicker Taylor Russolino. After each team failed to score on their next possession, the Blazers got things going as Quarterback Jerred Wallace hooked up with Shawn Ector for a 71 yard pass play which set up a two yard touchdown run by Damien Davis. The point after tied the score at 14 with 3:47 to go in the third quarter.

            Millsaps took the lead for good in the final moments of the third quarter as Joseph completed his second touchdown pass of the night finding Michael Galatis again for 31 yards. Huff would add another touchdown run with 9:16 to play in the game. With 6:47 to go in the fourth quarter, Joseph connected with Raymece Savage on a three yard touchdown strike to make the score 34-14.

            Belhaven was led in passing by Andrew Carcich who threw for 122 yards. Kevin Dizer caught five passes for 98 yards while Anthony Embry reeled in four catches for 73 yards. Shaun Ector also chipped in with a pair of receptions for 71 yards. 

            Reginald Lumpkin had an outstanding night defensively leading the Blazers in tackles with 10. Melvin Dyson was credited with 6 tackles and recovered a Millsaps fumble. Dyson also got his hands on the quarterback picking up a solo and assisted sack in the contest.

            With the loss, Belhaven falls to 0-3 to begin the season and will have a bye next week to get ready for conference play. The Blazers will travel to McKenzie Tennessee on September 27^th to open up Mid-South conference action against Bethel. Game time is set for 6:30 and you can catch all the action on Supersport 930 AM.