EMORY, Va. – The Limestone University Football Team (8-3, 7-1 SAC) kept itself in the running for a spot in the NCAA Division II Playoffs as it earned a 47-29 win over Emory & Henry College (5-6, 3-5 SAC) Saturday afternoon in the final game of the regular season.
The contest also served as Senior Day for Emory & Henry, which honored nine of its players along with 11 members of the cheerleading & dance squads prior to kickoff.
The Basics
FINAL SCORE – Limestone 47, Emory & Henry 29
LOCATION – Emory, Virginia
VENUE – Nicewonder Field at Fred Selfe Stadium
RECORDS – Emory & Henry (5-6, 3-5 SAC); Limestone (8-3, 7-1 SAC)
How It Happened
After the two squads traded punts to start the game, Emory & Henry went down the field 52 yards in five plays to take a 7-0 lead as sophomore quarterback Charles Mutter, III (King George, Va. ) hit redshirt freshman wide receiver Cam Abshire (Roanoke, Va.) with a 33-yard pass down the right side.
The Saints quickly responded with a touchdown of their own. Facing 3rd-and-9 at his own 38, Dustin Noller found Jelani Baker for a 62-yard catch-and-run to knot the score with 5:40 to go in the opening period. Limestone made it 13-7 when Noller threw his second touchdown pass of the day, this time to Mikey Jones for 56 yards. The resulting point-after attempt was blocked but the return was unable to produce a defensive two-point conversion for the Wasps.
Early in the second, E&H went back ahead, 14-13. Redshirt freshman quarterback Cole Lambert (Abingdon, Va.) entered the game late and capped a drive with a one-yard dump pass to fifth-year tight end Zach Venhorst (Lynchburg, Va.).
Later in the frame, Limestone's Tre Stewart rushed through the middle and broke down the right side of the field for a 69-yard touchdown to make the score, 19-14, after another failed extra point. E&H answered immediately, going 75 yards in two plays. Senior running back J'Quan Anderson (Charlottesville, Va.) ran through the middle for 53 yards and on the next play caught a 22-yard touchdown pass from Lambert to put the Wasps back ahead, 21-19.
The Saints scored once more before the intermission as Noller again connected with Jones, this time for an 18-yard touchdown. Stewart rushed in for the two-point conversion and a 27-21 score.
Midway through the third quarter, Limestone extended its lead to 33-21. Noller completed an 11-play, 60-yard drive with a five-yard pass to Baker with 5:07 on the clock. Noller made it five touchdowns on the afternoon at the 14:51 mark of the fourth, linking up with D.J. Black for a 42-yard score, pushing the margin to 40-21.
Emory & Henry executed a 12-play, 83-yard drive to get within 11 with 8:56 left in the contest. Lambert found freshman wideout Parker Prioleau (Radford, Va.) with a 31-yard score on fourth down to give the Wasps life and close the gap to 40-29.
The Saints answered with a 12-play drive of their own, keeping the ball on the ground and draining more than seven minutes off the clock. Preston Lounds was the go-to back, accounting for 34 yards, including the five-yard plunge for the touchdown that would make the final score 47-29.
Emory & Henry Individual Leaders
Lambert finished the game 15-for-29 for 196 yards and three touchdowns while Mutter, III was 5-for-8 for 63 yards and a score before exiting.
Anderson ran 11 times for 51 yards as fifth-year back Mykah English (Roanoke, Va.) had 16 yards.
Abshire caught four passes for a team-high 88 yards and a score while sophomore wide receiver Jaylin Mitchell (Portsmouth, Va.) had 56 yards on four catches. Prioleau ended the day with two receptions for 45 yards and a score.
Junior linebacker Kaleb Lundy (Winston-Salem, N.C.) posted a game-best 14 tackles with sophomore defensive back Chendrick Cann (Pinellas Park, Fla.) adding 13 stops and a pass defended. Junior defensive back Addison Knicely (Mount Crawford, Va.) notched 11 tackles and an interception as redshirt freshman defensive lineman Ean Rhea (Glade Spring, Va.) going for four tackles and a pair of blocked kicks.
Limestone Individual Leaders
Noller threw for five touchdowns and 316 yards on 19-for-26 passing, hitting five different receivers on the afternoon. Baker led all players with nine receptions for 156 yards and two touchdowns while Jones' two scores came by way of five catches for 88 yards.
Stewart rushed 14 times for 125 yards and a touchdown while Lounds finished the game with 55 yards and a score on 13 carries.
Chandler Matthews made nine tackles including a pair for loss and added a quarterback hurry while Nick Alvarado finished the game with seven stops. Ty Cade posted an interception to go along with four tackles while Dadrian Lyman and John Gregory had five stops each.
A Deeper Look
Limestone totaled 538 yards of offense on 64 plays with E&H gaining 345 yards on the afternoon. The Saints had 316 yards through the air and 222 on the ground while the Wasps' output favored the passing game (359 yards).
LU was 8-for-11 (72.7%) on its third-down chances while Emory & Henry converted 46.7 percent (7-of-15) of its tries.
The time of possession battle was nearly even with the Wasps holding a slim lead, 30:17-29:43. Limestone was penalized 10 times for 77 yards as Emory & Henry committed four fouls for 50 yards.
Up Next
Emory & Henry will now await the announcement of the All-South Atlantic Conference Teams which will be voted on by the league's 12 head coaches.
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