October 25, 2008

HICKORY, N.C. - Mars Hill College's Football Team (6-3, 3-2) took advantage of five lost fumbles in defeating Lenoir-Rhyne University (3-6, 1-4), 37-24, in a South Atlantic Conference game Saturday night at Moretz Stadium.

Mars Hill, which trailed by scores of 14-0 in the second quarter and 17-7 at halftime, scored 30 points after intermission in picking up its third straight win.

Lion quarterback Ricky Spradling (Roan Mountain, Tenn.) passed for 278 yards and three touchdowns while receiver John Brown (Homestead, Fla.) scored two key touchdowns in the second half en route to the win.

L-R junior quarterback Justin Sanders (Monroe, N.C.) ran one in from eight yards out and completed a 33-yard touchdown to redshirt freshman tight end Nick Stutts (Statesville, N.C.) in the first half as the Bears took a 17-7 lead into intermission.

However, three consecutive fumbles by the Bears to start the third quarter helped the Lions take a 20-17 advantage culminated by Spradling's two-yard touchdown pass to Chad Fekany (Orlando, Fla.).

Lenoir-Rhyne answered, though, with a five-play, 74-yard drive finished off by junior tailback Joey Robinson's (Tampa, Fla.) 10-yard run into the end zone to take back the lead at 24-20 on the last play of the third quarter.

Mars Hill responded on the ensuing kickoff when John Brown (Homestead, Fla.) returned it 87 yards for the score on the first play of the fourth quarter to make a 27-24 advantage in the Lions' favor.

Brown added a 60-yard touchdown reception on Mars Hill's next drive and Michael Pinkerton (Bogart, Ga.) finished off the scoring with his third field goal of the game, a 25-yarder with 6:29 left.

Brown would finish with 127 yards receiving on six catches while Tyrea Allen (Murphy, N.C.) added a game-high 149 receiving yards on six catches and a touchdown as well (a 75-yarder in the second quarter) for Mars Hill.

Sanders finished with a team-high 95 yards on the ground as the Bears rolled up 264 yard rushing despite the setback.  Sanders also added 98 yards through the air.

Mars Hill's defense was spearheaded by Keadran Pinckney (North S,C.) with 14 tackles while Stan Galbraith (Birmingham, Ala.) recovered three fumbles to go along with eight tackles.

Lenoir-Rhyne travels to Newberry, S.C., to face Newberry next Saturday night beginning at 7 p.m., while Mars Hill returns home to face Tusculum on Saturday beginning at 1:30 p.m.

Boxscore...

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