Wingate, N.C.----The Wingate University defense limited UNC Pembroke to 120 yards total offense (with only 25 on the ground) en route to 21-3 NCAA Division II football victory over the visiting UNCP Braves Saturday at Irwin Belk Stadium and John R. Martin Field on the Wingate campus (NCAA statistics book).

The host Bulldogs (3-1 overall) bounced back in a big way after allowing 563 yards to defending South Atlantic Conference champion Lenoir-Rhyne last week in Wingate. As a result, the Bulldogs snapped a two-game losing streak to the Braves (1-3 overall). Wingate leads the series between the two schools 5-3.

"We received a super performance from our defense (today)," Wingate head coach Joe Reich says. "We played great the first two weeks…and had a hiccup last week. It is nice to get back in the saddle. We put the defense on its back with two interceptions and a lost fumble…but they came back tough every time."

Wingate redshirt sophomore quarterback Kyle Johnson (Hickory, N.C.) completed 19-of-29 passes for 243 yards and two touchdowns for the Bulldogs. Sophomore wide receiver Jordan Berry (Irmo, S.C.) caught eight passes for 136 yards, the highest yardage total for a Wingate receiver this season. Berry was one of two receivers to score a touchdown. WU senior running back Nestor Lantigua (Wellington, Fla.) rushed 21 times for 95 yards and one TD.

"When our running game is working on all cylinders, it takes the pressure off everyone else," Reich says. "Today, we felt confident our offense could score points. Our passing game was too inconsistent today, but Nestor stepped up and played a great game."

Each team missed a good opportunity to get some points in a scoreless first quarter. A 48-yard pass from Johnson to Berry on the game's first play from scrimmage gave Wingate the ball at the UNCP 27. The Bulldogs had to settle for a 40-yard field goal attempt by redshirt senior place kicker Patrick Smith (Hickory, N.C.), which sailed wide right. 

Late in the quarter, Braves' senior defensive back Brandon Fulton (Irmo, S.C.) returned an interception of a pass by Johnson 91 yards for a score, but it was nullified due to a holding penalty. 

UNCP opened the scoring with a 25-yard field goal by junior place kicker Connor Haskins (Lumberton, N.C.) with 9:44 left in the second quarter, set up by a short Wingate punt and a personal foul penalty against the Bulldogs. 

Wingate responded with a 67-yard touchdown drive. The match ended in a 25-yard TD pass from Johnson to redshirt junior wide receiver Jiwan Funderburk (Pageland, S.C.), who made a leaping catch going out of bounds in the corner of the end zone. 

The Funderburk score gave the Bulldogs a 7-3 lead, which they took to halftime after Haskins missed a 35-yard field goal attempt for UNC Pembroke on the last play of the half. An interception (one of two by Pembroke against Johnson) and a 48-yard return by senior linebacker Darcus Elliott (Pittsboro, N.C.) had given the Braves the ball at the Wingate 15. 

Wingate extended its lead to 14-3 with its longest drive of the game in the third quarter. Highlighted by a 36-yard pass from Johnson to Berry, Wingate drove 84 yards in eight plays. Lantigua got the touchdown on a 3-yard run with five minutes left in the quarter. 

The Bulldogs return to South Atlantic Conference play at 6 p.m. next Saturday against the Newberry Wolves in Newberry, S.C. UNC Pembroke begins a three-game home stand the same day, hosting North Alabama at 4 p.m.

(Special thanks to Dr. Keith Cannon for contributing this story. Cannon is the John B. Ashcraft Professor of Journalism and the chairperson of the Department of Communication at Wingate University.)