FOOTBALL: ROAD SHOW

WIN AT UNCP RAISES RECORD TO 7-2

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Sometimes, a milestone is just up ahead. Sometimes, it's far away.

But whether it's near or far, reaching a milestone is always worth the effort.

The Concord Football team reached a milestone in Saturday's 30-26 non-conference victory at North Carolina-Pembroke. It was CU's 7th victory of the season, giving CU its first seven-win campaign since 1992 – before some of this year's freshmen were born.

The win is CU's second straight away from home and keeps alive the Mountain Lions' flickering hopes of reaching the post-season – also for the first time since 1992.  It ended UNCP's 13-game home winning streak, which dated back to 2007.

Getting to Saturday's milestone was far from a straight-line trip. CU took a 10-0 lead early in the 2nd quarter, fell behind 26-16 early in the 3rd, then scored the game's last 14 points to even up its all-time series with UNCP at two wins apiece.

Brian Kennedy paced the Concord offense. The junior RB rushed 32 times for 186 yards and a touchdown and caught four passes for another 48 yards as CU piled up 417 total yards against a UNCP defense that was allowing 236 yards per game – 5th-best in the nation.

The Mountain Lions defense limited the Braves to 94 yards rushing and 213 total yards, 107 under their average. Joe Greenway's interception of a Cory Smith pass in Concord territory – his first pick of the season – secured the win with just :32 left in the game.

CU took a 3-0 lead on Brandon Strupp's 37-yard field goal with 9:10 left in the 1st quarter, after a 10-play, 44-yard, 3:43 drive.
Concord (7-2) went ahead 10-0 on a ten-yard touchdown pass from Zack Grossi to Horace Daughtry with 9:07 to go in the 2nd quarter, capping a 13-play, 84-yard 4:49 possession.

UNC-Pembroke (5-4) responded with a 16-yard TD pass from Cory Smith to Josh Throckmorton on its next drive, and although a bad snap derailed Taylor Baskett's PAT kick the Braves were within 10-6 with 5:45 left before halftime.

Concord came back with an 11-play drive that reached the Braves' two-yard line. But Rayvon Stanback sacked Grossi and forced a fumble that Adam Deese scooped up and returned 91 yards for a touchdown just 1:03 before intermission.

Instead of leading 17-6 going into halftime, Concord trailed 13-10, and UNCP's Homecoming crowd was raising the decibels.

Kennedy quieted the fans with a 65-yard TD run on Concord's next play from scrimmage, and the Mountain Lions went up 16-13 with a mere :45 left in the half.

But the Braves took advantage of a squib kickoff to get a short field, and drove 28 yards to set up Baskett's 47-yard field goal as the first half clock ran out.

UNCP carried the momentum into the second half. The Braves took the 3rd quarter kickoff and, again working with a short field, drove 42 yards on seven plays, capped by a nine-yard TD pass from Smith to Wes Carter. The Braves led 23-16.

On the ensuing kickoff, a jarring hit from Karlin Brown forced CU's Tae Gilbert to fumble, and Michael Adams recovered at the CU 30. The Mountain Lions kept the Braves out of the end zone, but Baskett hit a 36-yard field goal and UNCP took a 26-16 lead.

That's when Concord grabbed the momentum back.

The Mountain Lions went on a seven-play, 80-yard drive, ending with Daughtry's second TD catch of the day (and the season). The freshman hauled in a 21-yard Grossi strike, pulling CU within 26-23 with 6:13 left in the 3rd quarter.

Concord twice missed on chances to tie the game before the quarter ended. But Strupp, remarkably, hit the right upright on two field goal tries – the first from 40 yards out with 4:04 to go, the second from 32 yards with :46 left – and the Braves still held the advantage.

The game's next three possessions resulted in punts, with Concord taking over at its own 45 with 9:24 left in regulation.
Seven plays later, Grossi found Mayo on a crossing route, and the eight-yard touchdown put CU ahead 30-26 with 6:54 to go.
It was Grossi's 22nd TD pass of the season, and Mayo's 10th touchdown catch.

Both sides exchanged three-and-outs, leaving UNCP with the ball at the 50 with 3:06 left. The Braves drove to the CU 21, but Greenway's interception crushed their remaining hopes.

BOXSCORE

The series between the two teams started their season in 2007, the first season of UNCP's new program. Concord won that year, 10-0 at Callaghan Stadium, for their only victory of the season.
The next year, a rising Braves squad dealt out a crushing 58-0 win in Pembroke, during a season in which Concord would finish 0-11.
Last year, UNCP claimed a physical 27-9 win in Athens on the way to claiming its first-ever NCAA playoff berth.

Up next for Concord is a WVIAC matchup with Fairmont State next Saturday, November 6. It's the annual 'Rotary Bowl,' played at Hunnicutt Stadium in Princeton, WV – 15 minutes from the Concord campus.
Kickoff is scheduled for 1:00 pm.

The game will be broadcast on ESPN Radio 102.3 The Ticket, starting with the “Mountain Lion Preview Show” at 12:30. The audio webcast will be provided at www.theticket102.com.

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