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Bryce Verble
Bryce Verble
48
Winner St. Andrews (N.C.) SAU 1-0
43
Bluefield (Va.) BLUE 1-1
Winner
St. Andrews (N.C.) SAU
1-0
48
Final
43
Bluefield (Va.) BLUE
1-1
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
SAU St. Andrews (N.C.) 7 2 33 6 48
BLUE Bluefield (Va.) 14 6 7 16 43

Game Recap: Football |

Fireworks at Mitchell Stadium

BLUEFIELD – It was an exciting afternoon of Mid-South Conference football Saturday at Mitchell Stadium as the St. Andrews University Knights scored in the final minute of play to defeat the Bluefield College Rams 48-43. Bluefield took the lead late on a field goal only to see SAU drive the length of the field. The Rams challenged in the final seconds, but came up short.
SAU took the opening kickoff and drove downfield. The Rams held the on a fourth down just outside the red zone. The Rams, on a mixture of passes and runs, moved the ball downfield. The score came when Bryce Verble connected with Antonio Strickland from 19 yards out with 7:38 to play in the first. The extra point was blocked and nearly taken back by St. Andrews for two points.
On its second possession St. Andrews used the ground game to drive once again into Bluefield territory. Staying on the ground the Knights got a first and goal from the eight and tied the game on a four yard run by Trevor McNeil with 4:51 to go in the first. The extra point was good to give the visitors a 7-6 lead.
BC responded. After a fair catch on the kickoff the Rams started at their own 26 and on a mixture of runs and passes drove once again into the St. Andrews red zone.  Chris Sumrall carried from the 20 to the six to give Bluefield a first and goal. Verble scrambled and found Jaquan Ebron in the right corner of the end zone for the touchdown. The two-point conversion from Verble to Strickland to make it 14-7 with 28 seconds remaining in the first quarter.
St. Andrews opened the second quarter with a long pass that put the ball on the BC 15. A pair of losses, including a sack by DaMarcus Wimbush, pushed the ball back to the 35. A 41-yard field goal attempt by the Knights was short.
The Rams got the ball at midfield thanks to an SAU fumble and extended their lead to 20-7. The points came on a 14-yard pass from Verble to Strickland. The extra point was blocked and returned for two points by St. Andrews to make it 20-9 with 5:08 remaining in the first half. The Knights drove in the final minute of the half and got a first-and-goal with less than 30 seconds on the clock. An offensive pass interference penalty moved the ball back to the 24. A completion to the seven with 10 seconds remaining forced St. Andrews to use its final timeout. Zaire Lindsey picked off the pass in the end zone with 4.8 ticks left to keep the Knights off the board.
Verble connected on 18-of-20 passes for 183 yards in the first half to lead the Rams. Defensively, Bodan N'Dalla, Michael Everett, Charles Turner and Steven Mackall were strong, each with four first-half tackles.
St. Andrews, on its first possession of the second half, drove the field and drew closer to the lead. A three-yard run by McNeil and extra point made the score 20-16 with 8:56 to play in the third quarter. On BC's first play a pass was intercepted and the Knights took it to the three yard line. A quarterback keeper put St. Andrews back on top and the kick made it 23-20 with 8:37 on the third quarter clock.
SAU added to its lead, scoring on its third consecutive possession of the third quarter, with an 18-yard scoring strike. The kick bounded off the left upright and the score was 29-20 with 7:08 to play in the quarter. Minutes later, after a Bluefield fumble, St. Andrews scored on a 10-yard run to make it 35-20.
The Rams moved the ball for the first time in the second half and drove 65 yards, capped by a 30-yard touchdown pass from Verble to Ebron. Axel Johansson booted the PAT to make it 35-27 with 3:30 to play in the third quarter.
Again SAU responded with a quick scoring drive. An eight-yard run and PAT made the score 42-27 with 1:43 on the third quarter clock.
The Rams pounced on a loose ball at the St. Andrews 25, and an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty moved the ball to the 13. Verble then connected with Lowell Patron Jr., for the score. Johansson's extra point made it 42-34 with 10:33 remaining in the game.
The Rams did not quit. Verble hit Strickland with a 19-yard pass for a score to make it 42-40, with 7:15 to play in the game. The two-point conversion failed. BC forced a three-and-out and get the ball back on a punt at their own 32 with 5:24 to play. BC drove down the field with key receptions by Strickland and Ebron to keep the drive alive. Facing fourth down and two from the 11 with 2:13 on the clock, Johansson split the uprights with a 28-yard field goal, the first of his college career, to give the Rams a 43-42 lead. Johansson, a member of the Bluefield College soccer team, joined the football team this past week.
It was not over. SAU took the kick and drove the field. With 47 seconds left Andrew Fowler crossed the goal on a quarterback keeper to give the Knights a 48-43 lead. The two-point conversion failed. The excitement was not over, however. On the kickoff Patron returned the ball down the left sideline 68 yards to give Bluefield a first down at the St. Andrews 12. Unfortunately, the pass attempt on first down was intercepted.
School records were set in the game. Verble passed for 432 yards, a BC record, completing 37-of-53 passes with six touchdown tosses. Strickland had 16 catches, another school record, for 202 yards and three touchdowns. Ebron finished with 10 catches for 147 yards and a pair of TDs, while Patron had four receptions for 45 yards and a score.
Defensively, N'Dalla finished with nine tackles, Turner with eight, and Everett with seven.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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