Football mows down Lane 43-3 in home win

By Latavia Riggins
Asst. Web Editor
Oct 1, 2009

Photos by Charlie Pohlman

Braves running back Rashon Kennedy (above) rushes for a first down in the Braves game against Lane.

The University of North Carolina at Pembroke’s football team comes back from the first loss of the season with a 43-3 win over Lane on Sept. 26 at Grace P. Johnson Stadium. The win brings the Braves’ record to 4-1 overall for the season.

The Black and Gold began the first half with a slow start gaining 124 offensive yards in the first two quarters of play.

In the second half the Braves were able to step up to gain 342 total yards with 161 coming in the form of rushing.

Lane was held to under 200 total offensive yards for the second time in three weeks, gaining only 192 yards for the evening.

The Braves were able to score their first touchdown with over nine minutes left in the first quarter, with a 31-yard run by sophomore Travis Daniels.

Photo by Charlie Pohlman

The UNCP mascot rallies the home crowd in the Braves 43-3 blowout of Lane.

Daniels rushed 11 times for the evening gaining 124 yards and two touchdowns.

With over 14 minutes left in the second quarter Lane captured their only score for the night with a 25-yard field goal kick by Froylan Sanchez, bringing the score to 6-3 in favor of the Braves.

The Black and Gold ended the first half with an 18-point lead with a 54-yard touchdown pass from junior Cory Smith to sophomore Jamal Williams with about two minutes remaining.

Junior Rashon Kennedy was able to post the only score of the third quarter with a one-yard run with a little over seven minutes of play remaining.

The fourth quarter yielded 15 added points for the Braves including a pair of two-yard runs by sophomore Thomas Dove.

Senior Matthew Fortson dominated for UNCP’s defense for the third time for the season. Fortson collected seven total tackles with a forced fumble and a pass breakup.

Photo by Charlie Pohlman

UNCP quarterback Cory Smith looks off defenders before a pass in the Braves throttling of Lane.

Sophomore Ben Kurti gained his career first interception to go along with one and a half sacks for the night. Kurti also secured five tackles for the Black and Gold.

The Black and Gold will complete the home portion of its 2009 season on Oct. 3 in the school’s Homecoming celebration. UNCP will take on Webber International at 2 p.m. at Grace P. Johnson Stadium.