NEWBERRY - Corey Washington caught an 11-yard touchdown pass from W.T. Murden with 1:10 left in the game to give the Newberry Wolves a 24-21 upset win over the No. 8/12 UNC Pembroke Braves at Setzler Field on Saturday night.
With the win, Newberry moves to 7-1 on the year. It is only the second win over a team ranked in the top 10 of the AFCA poll since Newberry joined the NCAA. UNC Pembroke falls from the ranks of the undefeated at 6-1. The Wolves stay at home next week, hosting Brevard for a 1 p.m. kickoff on November 2.
The Newberry defense limited the Braves to a season low 21 points and that program's lowest ever rushing total of only 27 yards on the ground.
It was Newberry's ground game that got the game started, as the Wolves ran 7:38 off the first quarter clock for a 16-play, 52-yard drive which ended in a 30-yard Kyle Clark (Beaufort, S.C.) field goal to give Newberry a 3-0 lead.
UNCP took the lead five plays later on a 59-yard touchdown pass from Luke Charles to Te'vell Williams to make it a 7-3.
The Wolves used another long drive spanning into the second quarter, with a 15-yard touchdown carry by Raleigh Yeldell (Johnston, S.C.) with 10:24 left in the half giving Newberry a 9-7 lead after the PAT was blocked.
After a Braves three-and-out, Newberry drove deep into UNCP territory, but the guests made four stops inside their own 1-yardline to thwart the drive. The Braves were in the shadows of their own goalposts and Mike Hopkins (Blackstock, S.C.) forced a sack and intentional grounding penalty to give the Wolves an 11-7 lead after the safety. They would take into the halftime break.
UNCP ran only 14 plays in the half and had four yards of offense in the second quarter on six plays.
The Braves' highly touted offense finally clicked on the opening drive of the second half, with a 12-play, 55-yard drive ending in a Demetrius Fairley 2-yard touchdown carry to make it a 14-11 Pembroke lead.
Newberry answered with a six-play, 64-yard drive that was capped by a 22-yard touchdown pass from Murden (West Columbia, S.C.) to Washington (North Charleston, S.C.) to put the lead back in Newberry's hands at 17-14.
UNCP responded again with an 81-yard drive with two big pass plays. The Braves' score came on Rontonio Stanley's 4-yard touchdown carry to make it 21-17.
Newberry saw two chances in Braves' territory fail early in the fourth quarter, as a field goal was blocked and a fourth-down attempt after a Braves punt fell short. On the fourth down play, a pass interference penalty was denied because of a slight deflection on the pass by a defensive lineman.
Pembroke attempted to drive for an insurance score, but on third-and-5, Charles was sacked and stripped by Dominique Jacobs (Columbia, S.C.), who recovered the ball at the UNCP 21-yardline with 2:09 to play.
Just three plays later, Murden found Washington in the endzone for the second time on the night, putting Newberry ahead 24-21 with only 1:10 to play after the Clark PAT.
The Braves were stopped a yard short of the first down on their ensuing third down attempt and Edmond Robinson (Wadmalaw Island, S.C.) broke up a pass on fourth down to set off the celebration at Setzler.
Murden was very efficient leading a Wolves offense which did not turn the ball over on the night. He completed 13-of-20 passes for 116 yards and the two touchdown passes to Washington, while also carrying the ball 17 times for 84 yards. Yeldell was 8-of-10 for 77 yards and carried the ball six times for 43 yards and a score.
Washington was the Wolves' leading receiver with 7 catches for 89 yards and the two second half touchdowns.
The Wolves needed to make only 52 tackles defensively, as the Wolves controlled the ball for 37:27 of the game, racking up 426 yards of offense on 75 plays. Newberry punted only once in the game.
UNCP ran only 49 plays for 270 yards. Brice Green (Irmo, S.C.) had six tackles, while Hopkins had five stops with the sack which forced the safety and two total tackles for loss. Jacobs and Letavious Williams (Ware Shoals, S.C.) also recorded sacks. Dominique Walker (Rock Hill, S.C.) made five tackles as well.
