NEWBERRY, S.C. - After a tightly played game through three quarters, the 20th-ranked Valdosta State Blazers scored 21 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to hand the Newberry College Wolves a 45-17 loss at Setzler Field on Saturday.
Newberry drops to 1-1 on the season with the loss, while the Blazers go to 2-0 on the year. Newberry travels to Division I-FCS opponent Samford (1-1) for a Thursday night contest in Birmingham, Ala., while VSU hosts Delta State on Saturday, Sept. 18.
Valdosta State got on the board first on an 11-yard quarterback keeper by Brett Whitmire (Jacksonville, Fla.) with 9:02 left in the first quarter. His touchdown score was set up by a 75-yard rush by David Arnold (Adel, Ga.) on which the VSU running back eluded multiple tackles before being brought down.
Newberry answered with a Britt Blackmon (Kershaw, S.C.) 31-yard field goal on the next drive to make it a 7-3 game after an 8-play, 57-yard drive.
Neither team would score again in the first quarter, and Newberry would take the lead on its third drive of the second period. After a botched VSU snap was recovered by Newberry's Andre Clark (Rock Hill, S.C.) at the Blazer 40, Newberry quarterback Bryan Ehrlich (San Antonio, Texas) scored on a 6-yard quarterback keeper to make it 10-7 in the Wolves' favor after the PAT. However, the Blazers would immediately answer with an impressive 39-yard touchdown pass from Whitmire to Gerald Ford (Harvey, La.) to make it 14-10.
Valdosta State turned the pressure up in the rest of the half, as three consecutive Newberry drives ended in interceptions, with one in the Blazers' endzone. The Newberry defense stood strong though, and only allowed three points on those miscues, with Daniel Andersen (Meansville, Ga.) connecting on a 27-yard field goal to make it 17-14 in Valdosta State's favor at the half.
The Blazers scored first in the second half on a 15-yard touchdown pass from Whitmire to Jackson Dean (Loganville, Ga.). On the Blazers' next drive, Whitmire was flushed from the pocket and attempted to throw the ball away, but Newberry's All-American safety Ron Parker (St. Helena Island, S.C.) made a tip-toe interception on the sideline to give the Wolves the ball at the Valdosta 41.
Newberry needed just four plays to convert that turnover into points and Ehrlich's 3-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Bostick (Florence, S.C.) made it a 24-17 deficit with 3:37 left in the third quarter.
Untimely Newberry penalties assisted the Blazers on a 13-play, 89-yard scoring drive that spanned into the third quarter and changed the momentum of the game. Newberry made a stop on third-and-long that was negated by a personal foul and Valdosta proceeded to march down the field and made it a 31-17 game on a 19-yard Whitmire-to-Dean touchdown pass. The Wolves allowed their only two sacks of the night on the next drive and after a punt and some solid running by the Blazers, it was a 38-17 game just six plays later on a 22-yard scoring scamper by David Bailey (Brunswick, Ga.).
Newberry's final three drives of the second half also ended in turnovers and a 65-yard scoring pass from Austen Roberts (Lake Butler, Fla.) to Griffin Roelle (Marietta, Ga.) provided the final margin.
Valdosta State outgained Newberry 490 yards to 324 and forced six turnovers, while Newberry only forced two turnovers. The Blazer attack was balanced with 239 yards on the ground and 251 yards through the air. Newberry rushed for 94 yards and passed for 230 yards.
David Pressley (Anderson, S.C.) was the Wolves' statistical leader with nine receptions for 114 yards, his second consecutive season passing the century mark against VSU. With that yardage, he now has 905 career receiving yards and is on the way to becoming yet another 1,000-yard career receiver for Newberry. Bostick had eight catches for 91 yards and a touchdown.
Ehrlich was 22-of-45 through the air for 230 yards and a touchdown, but was picked off five times, with three coming on deflected balls. Dion Bryant (Crawfordville, Fla.) was the leading rusher with 44 yards on 15 carries.
Nick Kinney (Goose Creek, S.C.) punted nine times for a 41.7 yard average, with two punts inside the 20-yardline and a long of 54 yards. Blackmon was once again perfect in his place-kicking duties, making a field goal and both PAT attempts.
Apollo Stretch (Columbia, S.C.) led the Wolves with 10 tackles, while Parker had nine tackles and an interception. Arterio Arnold (Greenville, S.C.) had seven tackles and a sack, while the team tallied eight quarterback hurries. VSU linebacker Larry Dean (Tifton, Ga.) had a career-high 17 stops.
