WISE, Va. – The Erskine College football team (0-8, 0-6 SAC) was defeated by the University of Virginia Wise (2-6, 1-5 SAC) by a score of 34-23 at Carl Smith Stadium on Saturday. Craig Pender tossed a pair of first-quarter touchdowns to help the Fleet race out to an early 14-0 lead, but Wise battled back and escaped with an 11-point win.
 
THE BASICS
Final | UVA Wise 34, Erskine 23
Records | Erskine 0-8 (0-6 SAC), UVA Wise (2-6, 1-5 SAC)
Location | Wise, Va. (Carl Smith Stadium)
 
INSIDE THE BOXSCORE

• Craig Pender completed 11 of his 20 passes for 134 yards and two touchdowns. Erskine had both passing TDs in the game, but were narrowly outgained through the air, 163 to 134.
• Erskine totaled 116 yards on the ground, led by DeArius Hazel's game-high 76 rushing yards and a touchdown. But, Wise outgained the Fleet on the ground, rushing for 256 yards and four touchdowns.
• Se'Maj Johnson was the Fleet's leading receiver despite having just one catch. Johnson's only reception was a 44-yard touchdown to open the scoring, while Austin Damron also hauled in a first-quarter touchdown.
• Landon Zeigler was the Fleet's leading tackler with 14 tackles, while Malachi Hill forced a pair of fumbles and Joshua Kamoto had his first interception of the season.

HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter:
After a Wise personal foul on the opening kickoff gave the Fleet good field position, Craig Pender wasted no time getting Erskine on the board, as he connected with Se'Maj Johnson for a 44-yard touchdown on the third play from scrimmage to give Erskine a 7-0 lead on the road. The Fleet defense forced a three-and-out on its first possession, and then Pender and company embarked on a long, 13-play drive that spanned nearly eight minutes. DeArius Hazel ran the ball five straight times to march the Fleet into the redzone before Pender found Austin Damron for his first touchdown of the year and Erskine had jumped on Wise early, leading 14-0. Wise responded with a touchdown of their own in the final seconds of the quarter to cut the Fleet lead in half.

Second Quarter:
Both defenses dominated in what was a scoreless second quarter for both teams, in part due to a 4th-down stop by the Fleet after the Cavaliers moved the ball inside the Erskine 30-yard line early on in the quarter. Wise took back over with the ball with just 50 seconds remaining in the half, but looked to be threatening to cut into the lead more or even tie the game. However, Johnmond Howard sacked the Wise QB and pried the ball free, which Jeremy Bland pounced on to preserve a 14-7 Fleet lead at the break.

Third Quarter:
However, UVA Wise started the second half with a long kickoff return and their offense cashed in on a short field to tie the game at 14. After Erskine's offense went three-and-out on its first drive of the second half, Joshua Kamoto picked off the Wise QB, which set up a Dylan Beauford 47-yard field goal to put Erskine back in front, 17-14 with 6:25 to go in the quarter. But, the Cavaliers responded with a 9-play scoring drive that ended in a 1-yard touchdown to give the hosts their first lead of the day, 21-17. Wise picked off the next play from scrimmage and ran it back for a touchdown and suddenly the Fleet were looking up at 10-point deficit heading into the fourth.

Fourth Quarter:
UVA Wise went on another extensive drive to begin the fourth quarter and capped it with a touchdown as their lead ballooned to 34-17 with less than 10 minutes remaining. The Erskine offense responded well, needing points, as an 11-yard touchdown run from Hazel on 4th-and-1 gave the Fleet life in the final minutes. However, the Cavaliers chewed off nearly five minutes on their next drive, all but ending a chance at an Erskine rally as the Fleet came up just short on the road, 34-23.

WHAT'S NEXT?
Erskine returns home and continues conference play against Tusculum University (4-4, 4-2 SAC) on Saturday at 1 p.m.
 
Follow the Flying Fleet all season long to get schedule updates, scores, highlights, photo galleries, game notes and more at www.erskinesports.com.
 
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