Game Leaders
Team Stats
Passing Yards
Rushing Yards
Turnovers
Time of Poss.
ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. – Shenandoah University won its third straight game to start the 2015 football season with a 30-17 non-conference victory at N.C. Wesleyan Saturday afternoon.
Shenandoah (3-0) pitched a second half shutout against the Battling Bishops (0-3) in earning its third victory in nine lifetime meetings between the two schools.
With the scored at 17-17, SU took the lead for good at the 11:40 mark of the fourth as juniorCedrick Delaney blasted over from the 1 to complete an 11-play, 59-yard drive.
The touchdown carry, Delaney's 27 rush of the contest, proved to be his final one of the day.
The junior, who led all rushers with 174 on the ground, battled cramps all game long and was held out of the game with the Hornets in control.
Senior Kye Hopkins, who had 136 yards rushing on a game-high 29 carries, effectively clinched the win with a 1-yard TD run with 41 seconds remaining.
This TD run completed a six-play, 25-yard drive that was set up by a Michael Messick interception of a Dustin Midgett pass.
Messick was the beneficiary of cornerback Bayvon Young's tip of Midgett's pass – Young batted the ball 20 feet into the air and to the waiting Messick, who squeezed it for the Hornets third forced turnover of the game.
The drive that ended with Delaney's game-winning touchdown was extended on a perfectly executed fake punt on 4th and 11 from the SU 40.
Backup quarterback Travis Barton, Jr. hit Josh White in stride down the left sideline for 19 yards to set SU up with a 1st down at the Bishops 41.
Six plays later, five of which were Delaney rushes, the junior put Shenandoah on top to stay.
SU, which won the time of possession battle 34:29 to 25:31, held the ball for 12:27 in the decisive fourth quarter.
The Hornets ran 96 plays and had 499 yards in total offense during that 34:29.
The defensive struggle of the second half was in stark contrast to a first half in which the two teams split 34 points and neither was forced to punt one time.
Shenandoah scored the first 14 points of the game, on a Delaney 4-yard TD at 12:19 of the first and a Hayden Bauserman to Leonard Scott 30-yard TD pass 2:07 later, but saw NCWC answer with 17 straight points to take a 17-14 lead by the 13:01 mark of the second.
Jacob Newton knotted the game at 17-17 with a 28-yard field goal 28 seconds before halftime.
"We found a way to win today," Shenandoah head coach Scott Yoder said. "It was an ugly game and we had some things go against us, but we found a way.
"I thought the offensive line played great and the biggest play of the game was the fake punt. Now it is time to get ready for ODAC play."
Notes: Shenandoah wore its dark uniforms on the road for just third time in program history… SU is now 3-0 wearing dark on the road with wins over Greensboro in 2006 and Gallaudet in 2014 in addition to today's win at NCWC… Shenandoah is now 3-6 lifetime against NC Wesleyan, but has won the last two games in the series… The previous eight games were all USA South Conference affairs…