DANVILLE, Va. — Averett University football grinded through a season-opening battle in the first game in the Matt Quinn era on Saturday night at Daly Field Frank R. Campbell Stadium, but the visiting North Carolina Wesleyan Battling Bishops pulled away late for a 27-13 victory.
Averett (0-1) flipped the script in many regards compared to last year's opening contest in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, as the Cougars finished the evening with more first downs and time of possession compared to N.C. Wesleyan (1-0), 21-16 and 31:30 to 25:39, respectively.
Averett's defense came out strong, as it forced N.C. Wesleyan to punt from its own 41-yard line on the first possession. The Cougars went three-and-out on their own first offensive drive, then the visitors chewed up more than four minutes of possession that concluded with former USA South Offensive Player of the Year Nahjir Seagraves punching it in from the 1-yard line for the game's opening score.
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The Cougars' next scoring drive streamlined from quarter to quarter as Averett went 50 yards on nine plays. Sophomore quarterback Saunders found first-year wideout Tre'Sean Suber for the touchdown on a 16-yard pass with 6:06 remaining in the half. N.C. Wesleyan's lead was cut to 14-7 heading into the locker rooms.
A slog of a third quarter was played out as both squads refused to let the other inch ahead. The two combined for only six first downs, but the Averett defense was steady. Despite the lead in multiple offensive statistics from the Battling Bishops' end, not a single drive resulted in points from the visitors.
N.C. Wesleyan seemed to have its next drive into the fourth nearly end in its own end zone, until quarterback Braden Selvage heaved a pass out of harm's way to receiver Isaiah Jackson, and he flipped the field to the Averett 42-yard line. That play catapulted the visitors to an eventual 36-yard reception by the aforementioned Jackson to extend the Battling Bishops' lead to two touchdowns.
The visitors tacked on a pair of field goals before Averett concluded the game with its own score. Saunders threw his second touchdown, this time to sophomore A.J. Williams, to cap a five-play, 47-yard drive.
Saunders completed 18 of 33 passes for 162 yards and two passing touchdowns, with 16 yards on the ground additionally. Freshman Zymarcus Stover turned in a debut to remember, as he led all Averett receivers with 70 yards on eight receptions. Redshirt sophomore Amontrae Scott had two catches for 40 yards.
Freshman Tyrek Samuel topped the home backs in rushing with 71 yards on the ground on 10 carries. On defense, freshman linebacker Charles Hatcher III was a force with 10 tackles, while sophomore linebacker Kent Ray and freshman linebacker Daniel Gee each tallied five tackles.
As a collective, Averett totaled 304 offensive yards. The special teams unit overshadowed the visitors with 140 kick return yards.
