ANDERSON, S.C. – Trailing by just one point heading into the final quarter of play, the Anderson University (3-7, 1-7 SAC) football team couldn't overcome a pair of Mars Hill (5-3, 5-2 SAC) touchdowns in the final 15 minutes of action, falling in their final home game of the season, 31-16.
Junior Tyler Wesley (St. Cloud, Fla.) threw for a pair of touchdowns on the night while accounting for 220 yards through the air and 5 net yards on the ground. Redshirt-freshman Bryson James (Cross Hill, S.C.) led the way for the Black and Gold in the rushing attack, accounting for 66 yards. Redshirt-freshmen Zaidon Gunn (Grovetown, Ga.) and Kenneth Brown (Myrtle Beach, S.C.) each hauled in a touchdown catch on the night with Gunn amassing 91 yards through the air and Brown accounting for 84.
Redshirt-junior Jerrod Woods (Leesburg, Ga.) led the Trojans on the defensive side of the ball, with 10 total tackles in the contest. Redshirt-freshman Josiah Jeffery (Greenwood, S.C.) turned in nine tackles while the Trojans as a team were able to hurry the Mars Hill QB seven times in the contest.
After a pair of fruitless drives from both teams, the Lions were able to put the first points on the board with a 26-yard field goal to go up 3-0. Neither team was able to add to that scoreline in the first quarter, but a pair of deep passes for Mars Hill boosted their lead to 10-0 halfway through the second quarter. It took just one play on the next drive for Anderson to put their mark on the scoreboard as Wesley found Gunn for a 75-yard strike, cutting the lead to 10-6, where it would stand at the halftime break.
The Trojans were able to come out in the second half and capitalize on their first possession as Wesley found Brown wide open in the endzone for their second score of the game to take the lead 13-10. Mars Hill did not let the Trojans hold the lead for long as they were able to score on their next drive, retaking the 17-13 advantage. Anderson put a field goal through the uprights from 26-yards out on their next drive to pull back to within one heading into the final quarter.
However, on the first play of the quarter Mars Hill was able to extend that lead back out to 24-16 and added another touchdown two drives later to secure their 31-16 victory.
Anderson wraps up its inaugural season next week as they travel to Lenoir-Rhyne for a 1:00 p.m. showdown with the Bears.
