PIKEVILLE, Ky. — It wasn’t easy for sixth-ranked Georgetown to get past the University of Pikeville football team 37-26 on Saturday at the Hambley Athletic Complex.
Trailing 26-18 in the third quarter after an Aaron Jackson touchdown reception, Georgetown’s Josh Harris blocked the extra point which was returned 95 yards for two points. Now a 26-20 game, the Tigers’ Neal Pawsat hooked up with A.J. Johnson for the go-ahead touchdown on fourth down.
Bad luck continued for the Bears on the ensuing kickoff as Demetrius Cowherd Jr. spun out of a tackle before fumbling on his own 35-yard line. Georgetown (6-1, 3-0 MSC East) made UPIKE pay with a long drive that ended with Demonte Smith rushing in for six to push the Tigers’ lead to 34-26.
Too many drives with negative yards and dropped passes followed for the Bears (2-6, 2-2 MSC East) as Georgetown’s Josh Depp added a 32-yard field goal with four minutes to go, helping to seal the win and avoid the top-10 team’s second loss of the season.
After Pawsat carried in a touchdown on the opening drive of the game, the extra point was missed and everything started going right for UPIKE.
Jackson was unstoppable, hauling in two touchdown passes from Sani Warren of 42 and 61 yards to put UPIKE up 14-6 at the end of the first quarter. Damir Karapandzic sandwiched two field goals around a Pawsat touchdown pass in the second quarter to give the Bears a 20-12 lead at halftime.
UPIKE wasn’t as sharp in its first drive out of the break. While Warren did get the Bears across the 50 with a pair of long completions, the drive stalled when two keepers failed to produce more than two yards, forcing a punt from Karapandzic.
On the first play of Georgetown’s drive, Smith went untouched for 46 yards, then four plays later Pawsat found Nick Ford in the end zone. The two-point try failed, keeping UPIKE up 20-18, but the momentum-shifting blocked extra point loomed after the next drive.
Warren, making his first start since the loss at Morehead State on Sept. 6, was 17-of-31 for 298 yards and three touchdowns. Jackson was his top target, hauling in six catches for 172 yards and all three touchdowns. The 172 yards are the fourth most in program history for a single game, while the three touchdowns tie the school record.
Seth Millar and Quan Weaver formed a quality one-two punch on the ground for UPIKE, rushing for 60 and 57 yards, respectively.
John Dudley Hilton finished with 10 total tackles, including seven solo stops, giving him the all-time program record of 167 solo tackles. He passed Anson Cunningham with 166 and is now just two tackles shy of becoming UPIKE’s record holder for total tackles as well. Nik Lacey paced the defense with nine solo stops and two assists.
Pawsat, who also entered the record books as Georgetown’s touchdown pass leader, went 24-of-36 for 259 yards and three scores. Smith was a force on the ground with 96 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries.
Georgetown outgained UPIKE 471-401 in total offense, while the Bears did better through the air at 298-259. The Tigers also posted a 28-19 advantage in first downs, converting 11-of-18 third downs, compared to 7-of-14 for the Bears.
UPIKE is back in action at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday for its home finale against Kentucky Christian at the Hambley Athletic Complex.
[adsenseyu2]
Comments
