Benedict Loses Opener at Virginia Union 28-7

RICHMOND, Va. (BC SID) – Virginia Union capitalized on three Benedict College turnovers to take a 28-7 victory over the Tigers in the 2012 season opener for both teams in NCAA Division II football action Saturday night. The Panthers scored a pair of field goals and a touchdown after Benedict turnovers to spoil the Tigers’ season opener. Virginia Union also scored its first touchdown on a 36-yard pass on a fourth-down-and-eight play in the first quarter. “It was a tough loss for us. We made a lot of mistakes,” said Benedict coach James Woody. “The defense really played well for three quarters, but the offense couldn’t make plays. There were some times we really could have gotten back into the game, but again, mistakes really hurt us.” The fourth-down, 36-yard pass on a busted defensive assignment gave the Panthers an early 7-0 lead. On Benedict’s next offensive series, quarterback Marcus Graham threw a backward screen pass deep in Benedict territory that was dropped. The Tigers recovered the ball in the end zone to give Virginia Union a safety. In the second quarter, Graham threw a pass that was intercepted by Virginia Union’s Andre Kate, who returned the pick 23 yards to the Benedict 19-yard line. The Tiger defense didn’t allow the Panthers to advance any further, and Virginia Union’s Stephen Velasquez kicked a 35-yard field goal for a 12-0 lead with 4:37 left in the first half. The Tigers responded by changing quarterbacks on the next series, and Christopher Thomas quickly moved the Tigers down the field, completing long passes to Emmanuel Houston for 25 yards and then Chris Cooler in the left corner of the end zone for a 39-yard touchdown pass. Eduardo Hernandez’s kick was good to cut the lead to 12-7 with two minutes left in the first half. Virginia Union opened the second half by kicking to Benedict, but Houston fumbled at the end of an 18-yard return, giving the Panthers the ball in Benedict territory. Again, the Tiger defense stiffened and did not allow the Panthers a first down, but Velasquez kicked a 39-yard field goal for a 15-7 lead. The Panthers went on an 11-play, 67-yard drive that spanned the end of the third quarter into the start of the fourth quarter. Virginia Union’s all-conference running back Jerrell Washington did the bulk of the work during that drive, and capped off the drive with a six-yard touchdown run to put the Panthers ahead 22-7 with 13:46 left in the game. The Tigers got the ball on the ensuing kickoff and were moving the ball well until Christopher Crosby fumbled the ball after a reception from Graham. Two plays later, Washington burst through the line and raced 59 yards for the final touchdown. Washington finished with 94 yards on 13 carries. The Tigers had 211 yards of total offense, while Virginia Union had 237 yards. The Tigers gained 25 yards on the ground on 29 carries, compared to 83 yards on 30 carries for Virginia Union. DeMonta’ Searcy led the Tiger defense with nine total tackles and one sack. Joshua Bradley had seven tackles, two tackles for loss, and forced Virginia Union’s only fumble. The Tigers have a short turnaround, playing their home opener on Thursday night in a nationally-televised game against Bowie State.