Wesley Downs Division I Charleston Southern
Release written and posted by Wesley College Sports Information
CHARLESTON, S.C. - Wesley College rushed for 334 yards, including 100-yard efforts by Askia Jahad (Williamstown, N.J./Williamstown) and Steven Koudossou (Waldorf, Md./Westlake) in a 33-20 win over Charleston Southern.
The win for the Wolverines was the second this season by an NCAA Division III institution over a Football Championship Subdivision scholarship program (formerly Division I-AA).
Wesley scored first by way of a 98 yard drive, the final 77 of which came on an end around by Koudossou with 9:39 to go in the first period.
Jahad put the Wolverines ahead 13-0 with an 18-yard run run that capped a 95-yard drive with less than two minutes to go in the opening quarter. The junior rushed for 40 of his career high 151 yards on the series.
The second quarter saw the Buccaneers cut into the lead. An interception by CSU's Matt Hardy set up a 29-yard field goal that made it 13-3 with 8:44 left in the half.
Later in the period, a Charleston Southern punt pinned the Wolverines deep in their own territory. After punting from the Wesley eight, Charles James took a short kick 34 yards for a touchdown to make it 13-10, a score that held into halftime.
Jahad opened the third quarter with a 19-yard run, then finished Wesley's 60-yard scoring drive with his second touchdown run of the afternoon with a 20-yard scamper to paydirt.
Wesley's next series went 73 yards on six plays, all rushes. The Wolverines gained at least four yards on each play of the drive, including Shane McSweeny's (Bensalem, Pa./Bensalem) 15-yard touchdown run that made it 26-10 with 7:26 left in the third period.
The Buccaneers' Andy Brown kicked a 32-yard field goal to in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter to make it a two possession game, 26-13 in favor of the Wolverines.
Wesley, however, answered right back with a 12-play, 58-yard march that ate nearly seven and a half minutes off the game clock. The drive consisted of nine rushes, but it was the third pass of the series that put the game out of reach. A 14-yard touchdown pass from McSweeny to Sean McAndrew (Lanoka Harbor, N.J./Lacey Township) made it 33-13 with just five minutes to play.
Charleston Southern followed with perhaps it's best offensive series of the game, but it came too little, too late. Malcolm Dixon finished a 13-play, 80-yard touchdown drive with a five-yard pass to Kirby Broome to cut it to 33-20 with 1:45 on the game clock.
Faced with fourth and one on their next possession, McSweeney converted with a two-yard rush, enabling the Wolverines to run out the clock.
Jahad rushed for 153 yards on 23 carries and scored twice, while Koudossou, a wide receiver, carried the ball for 108 yards on just two rushes. The Wolverines rushed for 334 yards, while the Buccaneers gained just 319 yards of total offense on the day.
McSweeny finished 12-of-15 for 126 yards and one touchdown and was a intercepted once. McAndrew caught five passes for 54 yards.
Chris Mayes (Waldorf, Md./Westlake) led the defense with eight tackles, including three for loss and a sack. Mike Asiedu (Yonkers, N.Y./Gorton) also made eight stops in the contest. In the secondary, Leon Jones (Lindenwold, N.J./Lindenwold) had an interception and Dominique Herald (Newark, N.J./Pennington School) notched a sack.
Dixon led Charleston Southern in rushing with 71 yards on 17 carries, but went just 15-of-34 passing for 178 yards. Kevin Glears was his primary target with five catches for 76 yards.
Three players reached double figures in tackles for the Buccaneers. Mike Chocholousek and Chris Kuzdale each had 11 stops, while O'Brian Campbell made 10 tackles. Will Hunt had both sacks for Charleston Southern.
The win was Wesley's second straight over a Division I FCS opponent after defeating Iona 23-12 in 2007, but its first over a scholarship FCS program in school history.
The Wolverines return home on October 8 to host Frostburg State on Homecoming Weekend at Wesley College. Kickoff at Scott D. Miller Stadium is set for 1:00 PM.
