Box Score PETERSBURG, VA- The Chowan University football team suffered a 49-21 setback on the road against Virginia State University on Saturday afternoon. The Hawks move to 5-4 overall and 3-3 in CIAA play with the loss while the Trojans improve to 7-2 on the year and 4-2 in league play with the victory. Saturday's setback marked the second in as many outings for the Hawks.
Virginia State improves to 5-1 in the series against Chowan.
The Trojans rolled up 522 offensive yards in the contest while holding the Hawks to 303 offensive yards on the day.
Randall Dixon completed 10-18 pass attempts for 126 yards while
Jordan Watkins completed 6-10 pass attempts for 99 yards and one touchdown for Chowan.
Tyree Lee tallied 14 carries for 68 yards with one touchdown with
Reginald Williams adding two carries for 21 yards with one score.
Kaine Lombard hauled in six passes for 63 yards.
Tyrone Carter and
Ryan Nolan both recorded 73 receiving yards on Saturday with five receptions and three receptions, respectively.
Vicente' Stafford led all players in the game with nine solo tackles.
Demetrius Newberry added eight solo stops for the Hawks with one tackle for loss (two yards).
Trenton Cannon led Virginia State on the ground with 13 carries for 162 yards and three touchdowns. Kavon Bellamy notched 24 carries for 109 yards and one score. Tarian Ayres completed 14-25 pass attempts for 176 yards and two touchdowns. Josh Harris collected six receptions for 101 yards and two scores.
Defensively for the Trojans, Brandon Lynch notched seven solo tackles for Virginia State. Bryant Frazier followed with five solo stops with four tackles for loss (12 yards), one forced fumble, and three sacks (11 yards).
A Chowan fumble led to a five-play, 44 yard touchdown drive for Virginia State with 1:40 remaining in the first quarter. Cannon capped the drive with a 20-yard touchdown run and Matthew Hillquist made good on the point after attempt to give the Trojans a 7-0 lead. Down but not out, the Hawks regrouped on their next drive. With the ball on the Chowan 35-yardline, Dixon's 31 yard pass to Lombard followed by a 13 yard pass to Carter set up Lee for a 21 yard touchdown run.
Christopher Donovan's point after attempt was successful, allowing the Hawks to knot the score 7-7 before the end of the first quarter.
The Trojans took advantage of 21 unanswered points in the second quarter to take a commanding 28-7 lead heading into the halftime break. With 5:46 on the clock in the third quarter, Williams' 16 yard touchdown run ended the scoring drought for the Hawks. Donovan's point after attempt was successful, but Chowan stilled trailed 28-14. Virginia State built their lead to 35-14 by the end of the third quarter after a 19 yard touchdown run by Ayres and Hillquist's point after attempt.
The Trojans opened the fourth quarter with back-to-back scoring drives. Trailing 49-14, Chowan responded with a six-play, 53-yard touchdown drive before the end of the contest. Watkins connected with Lombard on a nine yard touchdown pass and Donovan's point after attempt was good, but the damage was done as the Hawks suffered the 49-21 setback.
The Hawks conclude the 2016 season on their home field on November 5
th. Chowan plays host to Lincoln University (PA) in CIAA Northern Division play. Saturday's contest will serve as Chowan's annual Hall of Fame game. Kick-off is slated for 1pm.
