Hawks Down Fayetteville State in Season Opener
The Chowan University football team kicked-off the 2015 season with a 41-31 road victory over the Fayetteville State University Broncos on Saturday evening. With the win, the Hawks tie the series against the Broncos (3-3) with Chowan claiming victories in three of the last four outings against Fayetteville State.
The Broncos tallied 414 total offensive yards in the contest in comparison to 331 by the Hawks. Chowan totaled 82 yards on the ground while Randall Dixon completed 27-33 pass attempts in his debut for the Hawks resulting in 249 passing yards for the Blue and White. He threw four touchdown passes in the win. Fayetteville State's Derek Bryant threw for 361 yards, completing 31-47 passes. The Broncos were held to 53 yards rushing in the setback.
Tyree Lee led the effort on the ground for the Hawks. He tallied 27 carries in the victory for a total of 91 yards with one touchdown. Dixon connected with seven different receivers in the contest, including Kaine Lombard seven times for 71 yards for two touchdowns and Lee five times for 50 yards and two touchdowns.
For Fayetteville State, Andre Montgomery paced the Broncos with 13 carries for 27 yards and two touchdowns. Tavon Gatlin caught 10 of Bryant's passes for 151 yards and two touchdowns while Chris Hubert notched nine receptions for 96 yards.
Defensively, the Hawks were led by Cornell Duncan and Vincente` Stafford. Duncan tallied eight tackles (six solo, two assisted) with two tackles for loss and one forced fumble. Stafford added seven tackles (six solo, one assisted) with one tackle for loss and one interception (25 yards).
Eric Henderson paced the Broncos on defense with eight tackles (seven solo, one assisted) while Perry Thomas had eight tackles (five solo, three assisted) with two tackles for loss (15 yards) and one sack (11 yards).
After a scoreless first quarter, Stafford provided the Hawks' with an offensive spark when he intercepted Bryant's pass returned it 25 yards for Chowan's first touchdown of the game. Nick Hahula's point after attempt was good, giving the Hawks a 7-0 lead with 14:49 on the clock. The Broncos answered on the next drive when Bryant connected with Gatlin on a 64 yard pass, capping a three play, 70 yard drive. David Lamb made good on the point after attempt to knot the score 7-7.
Lee scored the next two touchdowns for the Chowan Blue and White while Hahula made good on both point after attempts to push the Hawks ahead 21-7. Dixon connected with Lee on a 17 yard pass to complete a 10 play, 75 yard drive for Lee's first score of the game. On the next drive, Roderick Lyndey's fumble recovery restored possession to the Hawks and later resulted in Lee's three yard touchdown run. The Broncos would use a field goal by Lamb to make the score 21-10 heading into halftime.
Chowan opened the third quarter with a 14 play, 64 yard drive resulting in an eight yard touchdown run by Lombard and successful point after attempt. The Hawks' defense held the Broncos scoreless through the remainder of the third quarter, carrying a 28-10 advantage heading into the fourth quarter.
Dixon found Lee at the start of the fourth quarter, this time on a seven yard pass to push the Hawks ahead 34-10. Fayetteville State and Chowan exchanged scores on the next two drives, making the score 41-17. The Broncos refused to go away quietly, scoring 14 unanswered points before suffering the 41-31 setback. The offensive surge proved to be too little too late as Chowan secured the 41-31 victory.
The Hawks will hit the road for the second time in as many weeks on September 12th when Chowan takes on Campbell University. The contest will mark the second of three straight road games for the Blue and White, and the first of two games against NCAA Division I opponents this season. Kick-off is slated for 6:00pm.
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