Wingate, N.C.----Wingate University sophomore running back Lawrence Pittman (Charlotte, N.C.) had 34 carries for 149 yards and one touchdown, boosting the Bulldogs to a 17-12 NCAA Division II victory over Limestone College Saturday. The Bulldog defense held the Saints to one third-quarter touchdown in the victory.
 
Hurricane Joaquin has made its presence felt in the Carolinas all week long and it was no different in Saturday's game at Irwin Belk Stadium. On a very chilly, windy and wet fall afternoon, the Bulldogs overcame multiple mistakes in the first quarter in order to finish strong and come out victorious in a tight contest.
 
The Bulldogs offense committed three turnovers in the first quarter alone, with two fumbles and one interception that was returned for a touchdown. Head coach Joe Reich was very impressed with the poise and composure of his team to still come out with the win, despite the early mistakes.
 
"That's a sign of a mature team," Reich says. "…a team that can make some mistakes early, but still have enough to overcome it. The team knows we didn't play our best, but anytime you can come out with the win in a college football game against a well-coached team is a big thing. I was happy that we were resilient enough to overcome some adversity and get it done."
 
The early adversity was uncharacteristic for the Wingate offense as Pittman coughed up two fumbles on back-to-back drives. The Mallard Creek High School product still finished the game with a career-high in carries at 34. Pittman has been a productive, consistently good back all season and Coach Reich was pleased with the composure he kept throughout the game to still make an impact.
 
"I was very impressed," Reich says. "He (Pittman) came out and had a couple of early fumbles, but he was very resilient." Reich also mentioned the focused attitude that Pittman possesses every game. "One thing about Lawrence is he always looks the same." Reich says. "Whether he is happy or sad, he's got that 'stone face' and that's the way he looks. He was able to stay in that mode all game and ended up having a good performance."
 
The Wingate offense collected solid games from some notable players. Redshirt senior running back Mycah Gaylord (High Point, N.C.) grinded out some tough, key yards for the Bulldog offense with 11 carries for 29 yards. Junior wide receiver Jordan Berry (Irmo, S.C.) had three receptions for 32 yards, along with some crucial first down catches. The Bulldogs finished with 253 yards of total offense, with 213 yards from the ground game.
 
For both teams, it was evident though pre-game until the end of the fourth quarter that the running game was going to make the difference in the outcome based on the brutal weather conditions. Wingate defensive coordinator Rashaan Jordan knew his defense was going to need to make significant adjustments to their game. "The biggest thing was we wanted to get them to understand about the footing," Jordan says. "That's the biggest thing when you get into really bad weather. You have to plant your feet differently and make sure every step you take is really secure. Other than that, we knew this was going to be more of a running game than passing game for them (Limestone). We knew they were going to run the ball a lot with redshirt sophomore quarterback Bo Whitney (Union, S.C.)." The Saints signal-caller rushed 16 times for 127 yards
 
The Wingate defense has been stellar in its first five games of the season. Coming into this afternoon's game, the defense posted a shutout in three straight games and again today had another impressive performance. Coach Jordan mentioned how vital the performance on defense was going to be in order to keep the whole team in the game and earn the victory.
 
"We really like to try to tell them that it's about mental, physical and emotional toughness," Jordan says. "On defense, there is no limit to the number of points that can be put on the board. We really preached to them that this is your opportunity to play. When you came to college to play football, the only way to play is to be on the field. You need to be excited about that, so that if you do get into these tight games, it's not all about what happens on the other side of the ball. You realize our (defense) gives us the chance to help the team be successful."
 
Redshirt junior defensive end Andre Foulks (York, S.C.) had a huge performance this afternoon with a career-high 10 total tackles. Redshirt freshman linebacker Robert Wallace (Covington, Ga.) and redshirt freshman defensive back Kameron Johnson (Durham, N.C.) collected eight tackles each.
 
The Wingate Bulldogs are now the only remaining undefeated college football team in the state of North Carolina; FBS, FCS, D2, D3 and NAIA combined. Reich says that the attitude of his team is still mature and they treat this game as just another win. "It's still business as usual," Reich says. "Certainly we have some confidence coming out of the Catawba game. This team is mature enough to know that we didn't play our best today and we need to improve. This team understands that and we'll get back to work at practice this week."
 
Pittman spoke after his big game and discussed the overall vibe of the locker room after extending their undefeated streak. "We all have a positive attitude," Pittman says. "We know that if we keep putting in the work, keep doing a great job in practice and continue to get better every day, then we will have a lot of success."
 
Pittman also spoke about his two fumbles after the game and how his team needed to keep grinding in order to come out with the win. "We knew that we were going to have to run the ball a lot this game," Pittman says. "We put the ball on the ground, but we just kept pushing it and got better as the game went on."
 
Wingate football will hit the road next Saturday and travel west to Greeneville, Tenn. to take on the Tusculum College Pioneers. The undefeated Bulldogs will seek to continue their success in a key South Atlantic Conference game. Kick-off will commence at 2:30 p.m. Limestone returns home to entertain Catawba for homecoming the same day. Kick-off is slated for 7 p.m.
 
(Wingate University sports information/sports network student assistant Jackson Kaplan contributed this article. A freshman from Raleigh, Kaplan is a Sport Management major at Wingate. The former Millbrook High School baseball player is the son of Harrison and Dona Kaplan.)