Week 1 Box Scores
Alderson Broaddus 57, Pace 37
Kentucky State 41, Kentucky Wesleyan 21
Central State 28, Clark Atlanta 18
GREENWOOD, Ind. - The Great Midwest Athletic Conference is anticipating and preparing for the addition of two emerging sports within the league landscape, football and women’s lacrosse.
Alderson Broaddus University, Central State University and Kentucky Wesleyan College, are already active on the gridiron with one game already in the books for this season.
The Battlers throttled Pace University by a 20-point margin, the Marauders toppled Clark Atlanta University and the Panthers battled in-state foe Kentucky State University.
Led by a school-record and NCAA Division II weekly high 316 yards on the ground, running back and workhorse Brandon Jones scored four touchdowns and averaged 6.7 yards per carry in ABU’s season-opening effort.
Jones was named the D2Football.com Co-Offensive Player of the Week with Texas A&M Commerce quarterback Tyrik Rollison. At the Eastern College Athletic Conference level -- ABU's current football affiliation -- he was named the league’s Offensive Player of the Week.
Battlers’ signalcaller Wilson Vaughn led the aerial assault with three touchdowns on 21-of-29 passing and racked up 221 yards. After falling behind in the first quarter, 9-6, Alderson Broaddus (1-0) picked up the offensive tempo, outscoring its opponent in every period the rest of the way.
Alderson Broaddus is coached by Dennis Creehan and the Battlers are preparing for their home opener in Philippi, WV, this weekend against Chowan University.
Bound for the Bahamas and Nasssau this weekend as part of the HBCUX Classic, Central State (1-0) will look to keep the early momentum rolling against Texas Southern University at the Thomas A. Robinson Stadium.
The Marauders scored a pair of first-quarter touchdowns against Clark Atlanta and wide receivers Christopher Mur and Leon Chambers had identical numbers with two receptions for 76 yards and a score.
Mur’s 45-yard touchdown haul was right before halftime and Isaiah Grooms added a 10-yard score on the ground shortly into the fourth quarter. The CSU defense forced four fumbles, two converting effectively for turnovers.
Central State is coached by first-year coach Cedric Pearl.
Kentucky Wesleyan (0-1) had the early game of the three G-MAC schools, falling by a score of 41-21 against the Thorobreds in a Thursday-night affair. Quarterback Dalton Oliver had four yard and 60-yard touchdown connections, but the Thorobreds ran roughshod on the ground with 283 yards rushing.
The Panthers answered a 66-yard KSU punt return for a score with Oliver’s four-yard touchdown in the red zone. Kentucky State would use a field goal and one of two Justin Williams’ rushing TD’s to take a 20-7 lead into the intermission.
Next on the schedule, the Panthers are preparing for Lindsey Wilson University on Saturday. Kentucky Wesleyan is coached by Brent Holsclaw.
The women’s lacrosse season will officially start in the spring with Ursuline College, Ohio Valley University and Alderson Broaddus, scheduled to compete from the G-MAC.