Box Score

Mars Hill, N.C.----The Mars Hill University football team scored 22 unanswered fourth-quarter points Saturday, rallying for a 56-42 victory over Wingate University at the Ammons Family Athletic Center and Meares Stadium on the MHU campus. Lion redshirt freshman quarterback Trent Miller set a school record with six touchdown passes as the two teams combined for 1124 total yards (MHU 628, WU 496).
 
With the victory, Mars Hill improves to 3-7 overall and 1-5 in the SAC. Wingate is 4-5 overall and 3-3 in the SAC. The Bulldogs return home next Saturday, hosting number 25 Carson-Newman for Senior Day. Kick-off is slated for 1:30 p.m. at Irwin Belk Stadium and John R. Martin Field. The Mars Hill Lions visit Tusculum the same day at the same time.
 
Miller completed 26-of-37 passes for 476 yards. The first-year starter had three TD passes in the first half and three scoring strikes in the second half. Lion junior wide receiver Dimitri Holmes caught 15 passes for 242 yards and three touchdowns. Junior wide receiver Cameron Shuford snagged two TD passes in the first half and scored a game-tying (42-42), two-point conversion in the fourth quarter.
 
Wingate redshirt senior quarterback Robbie Nallenweg (Asheville, N.C.) completed 34-of-54 passes for 460 yards and three scores. Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Jiwan Funderburk (Pageland, S.C.) caught 11 passes for 114 yards, while freshman wide receiver Jordan Berry (Irmo, S.C.) had six receptions for 130 yards and one TD. Bulldog junior running back Josh Covington (Charlotte, N.C.) had three rushing touchdowns, tying a Wingate school record.
 
The Bulldogs scored 21 consecutive points in less than eight minutes to take a 42-34 lead with 14:50 to play in the contest. Berry finished the flurry with a 52-yard TD reception from Nallenweg, concluding an eight-play, 81-yard drive (3:06 elapsed on the game clock). Wingate redshirt junior placekicker/punter Patrick Smith (Hickory, N.C.) added the sixth of his six extra points with 10 seconds elapsed in the fourth quarter, making the score 42-34 Bulldogs.
 
Miller and Holmes sandwiched back-to-back scoring connections around a Wingate three-and-out to give the hosts the lead for keeps. Miller's first scoring strike covered 47 yards at the 11:48 mark. Shuford added the two-point conversion to tie the game 42-42 and end a six-play, 87-yard march.
 
The final Miller-to-Holmes pay dirt play covered four yards after an eight-play, 65-yard drive (3:30 elapsed). MHU sophomore placekicker Victor Yurco nailed the PAT to make the score 49-42 Lions with 6:13 remaining in regulation.
 
Three plays later, Mars Hill senior linebacker Johnell Tate intercepted Nallenweg at the Wingate nine-yard line. Tate returned the ball seven yards to the Bulldog two-yard line. On the next play, redshirt freshman fullback Jamel Hall scored an insurance touchdown on a two-yard plunge. Yurco's extra point concluded the scoring.
 
Wingate trailed 27-21 at the break. After Wingate could not move the ball on its first third quarter possession, Miller took his troops 78 yards on six plays (2:55 elapsed) for his first TD pass to Holmes. The 19-yard scoring play and the subsequent Yurco extra point gave the Lions a 34-21 lead with 11:17 left in the third frame.
 
Covington scored two of his rushing touchdowns (two yards, three yards) on back-to-back Wingate possessions to give visitors a 35-34 edge with 6:10 to go in the third. The first TD ended a 10-play drive, while the second score followed a 46-yard Nallenweg-to-Berry pass play.
 
Shuford had a touchdown reception in each quarter as Mars Hill built its first half lead. His 66-yard catch-and-run from Miller gave the hosts a 19-7 lead at the 8:24 plateau of the second quarter. Covington scored his first TD and Nallenweg found sophomore wide receiver Tim Nalesnik (Cary, N.C.) with a four-yard TD pass to give the Bulldogs a 21-19 edge with 3:48 left in the second stanza.
 
Miller concluded the first half scoring when he hit redshirt sophomore running back Jeremy Hughes with a 42-yard touchdown pass with 69 ticks left on the second quarter clock. The two teams combined for 597 total yards in the first 30 minutes (MHU 363, WU 234).
 
MHU junior running back and SAC leading rusher Shakiel Davis rushed 12 times for 67 yards and one score before exiting the game due to injury. Fifty-six of his 67 yards came on the game's first TD at the 13:47 mark of the first quarter. Wingate tied the score on the next possession, as Nallenweg hit redshirt junior tight end Brandon Ellington (Wilmington, N.C.) with a 15-yard TD pass.
 
Mars Hill senior defensive back Robert Green, II had 16 tackles and one pass break-up. Senior defensive back Sammy Siasia had 12 tackles with eight solo stops, while redshirt junior defensive back Marvin James posted 10 tackles and three pass break-ups. The Lion defense had eight tackles for loss and six quarterback sacks.
 
Wingate senior defensive back Timmy Rogers (Sumter, S.C.) had 10 tackles to lead the Bulldogs. Redshirt junior defensive back Jon Jimenez (Scottsdale, Ariz.) had nine tackles and a 41-yard interception return. Bulldog redshirt junior defensive end Steven Jacobs (Pembroke, N.C.) had two tackles for loss, one QB sack and two QB hurries.

The 56 points equal the most points for either victorious team in the series, while the 98 combined points is a new series record. Wingate scored 56 points in a 56-35 road victory over Mars Hill on Nov. 7, 2009. The MHU Lions have won three consecutive games in the series after Wingate won four of five contests (2006-10). Mars Hill is one of two teams (Lenoir-Rhyne is the other) Wingate has played every year since the institution revitalized football in 1986.