"Football Release - Guilford 24, Ferrum 14" - Guilford College

Ferrum, VA (10/12/02) -- Guilford College capitalized on four Panther turnovers in coming up with a 24-14 non-conference win over Ferrum College this afternoon.  The Quakers ended a four-game losing streak to Ferrum with its first win over the Panthers since 1997.

Guilford opened the scoring with a five-yard touchdown run by junior running back Marcus Ballard at 6:14 of the first quarter.  Ferrum replied when senior quarterback Kevin Embick scored on a three-yard run at the 12:21 mark of the second quarter, tying the game at 7-7.  The score came after Ferrum sophomore safety Darren Venable blocked a Quakers' punt and the Panthers recovered at the Guilford 34 yard line.  

Guilford extended its lead to 14-7 on an eight-yard scoring run by senior running back Brandon Lockhart with 8:49 left in the half.  The score came one play after Ferrum fumbled on its own eight-yard line and Guilford's Kyle Becher recovered it.  Ferrum had an opportunity to tie the score after a 40-yard punt return by senior safety Dennis Freeman gave the Panthers a first-and-goal at the Guilford five-yard line.  However, the Quaker defense held, stopping Ferrum on four downs.

The Panther defense returned the favor four plays later when junior Ricky Peace intercepted a pass by redshirt sophomore quarterback Josh Smith at the Guilford 47 with 1:15 to go in the half.  The Panthers marched 47 yards in the next five plays, capped by a five-yard touchdown pass from Embick to freshman Adrian Dailey, who wrestled his way into the end zone after being hit at the goal line.  The touchdown knotted the score at 14-14 with six seconds remaining in the half.

The second half was a defensive struggle until the Quakers took advantage of a breakdown in the Panther secondary and Smith found a wide open Oren Robinson for a 43-yard TD pass and a 21-14 lead.  Robinson diagrammed the play based on openings he saw in Ferrum's coverage earlier in the game.  Guilford added a 37-yard field goal by freshman kicker Aaron Horton for insurance with 4:15 remaining in the game, to close out the scoring.

Smith was 8-16 for 85 yards, a touchdown and one interception for the Quakers.  Redshirt freshman quarterback Clint Duckworth was 3-6 for 42 yards in the most extensive playing time of his brief career.  The two combined to go 11-22 for 127 yards through the air.  For Ferrum, Embick was 10-18 for 144 yards, including one touchdown and an interception.

Defensively, Guilford was led by junior linebacker Wes Kidd, who had nine tackles, including five solos.  Sophomore Glenn Brown and junior cornerback Sherod Long had eight tackles each.  For Brown, his performance marked a career high.  Venable had 13 tackles, including eight solo stops for Ferrum. 

Both teams are 3-3 overall after today's game.  Ferrum travels to Fayetteville, North Carolina, next Saturday for a 1 p.m. contest at Dixie Conference opponent Methodist College.  Guilford hosts 2001 NCAA Division III national runner-up Bridgewater College next Saturday at 1 p.m. in Greensboro, North Carolina.

- Gary Holden, Ferrum Sports Information