LEXINGTON, Va. – Courtesy: Generalsports.com/Brian Laubscher
LEXINGTON, Va. - The Washington and Lee football team scored three touchdowns in the second quarter and held Ferrum to just 177 total yards in registering a 30-10 victory over the Panthers on Saturday at Wilson Field.
The Generals (4-1, 3-0) limited Ferrum (1-3, 0-2) to just 50 yards rushing in the contest, with 58 yards coming on the Panthers' final drive of the game against W&L's second team defense.
W&L opened the scoring with 9:58 left in the second quarter when sophomore running back Alex Wertz (Sterling, Va. / Dominion) scored on a 7-yard touchdown run. The Generals made it a 14-0 game with 2:30 left in the first half when sophomore running back Coby Kirkland (Duncan, Okla. / Duncan) took an option pitch on the second play of the drive and rumbled 76 yards for a touchdown.
Senior linebacker Will Corry (Watkinsville, Ga. / Athens Academy) then picked off Ferrum senior quarterback Zack Clifford on the fourth play of the next series, returning the ball 18 yards to the Ferrum 35-yardline. Three plays later, sophomore quarterback Jack Pollard (Richmond, Va. / Douglas Freeman) found junior wide receiver Montgomery Owen (Nashville, Tenn. / Montgomery Bell) with a 29-yard touchdown pass with just 49 seconds left in the half for a 21-0 lead at the break.
Ferrum got on the board with a 37-yard field goal by junior placekicker Brad Green at 10:32 of the third quarter, but W&L responded with a 9-play, 78-yard drive to take a 27-3 lead with 5:38 left in the period. Junior quarterback Trey Laughlin (Henrico, Va. / Douglas Freeman) hooked up with Owen for another touchdown pass, this time from 32 yards out.
Junior placekicker Jarrett Wright (Charlotte, N.C. / Ardrey Kell) knocked a 31-yard field goal through the uprights with just 42 seconds left in the third quarter for a 30-3 lead and the Generals substituted often for the remainder of the game in posting the 20-point win.
W&L finished with 490 yards of total offense, including 320 yards on the ground. Despite the ground success, Owen led the Generals' offense with seven catches for 152 yards and two touchdowns. It was the most receiving yards by a W&L player since the 2009 season and was his third straight game with 100 or more receiving yards.
Kirkland tallied 93 yards rushing and one touchdown on just three carries, while Pollard rushed for 57 yards on nine carries and completed 5-of-7 passes for 97 yards and a touchdown. Laughlin amassed 52 rushing yards on eight carries and he also completed 6-of-8 passes for 73 yards and one score. Wertz finished with eight carries for 42 yards and one touchdown.
On defense, Corry had five tackles and his first career interception. Senior defensive end Oak Mize (Henrico, Va. / Douglas Freeman) added three tackles, all for a loss (-11), one forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
Ferrum finished the game 0-for-11 on third down and 0-for-2 on fourth down. First-year running back Joe Burris III led the way with 58 yards and a touchdown on just eight carries. Clifford completed 11-of-22 passes for 127 yards and one interception, and sophomore defensive back Niccolas Helvy paced the defense with nine tackles.
Washington and Lee will now enjoy a bye week, before returning to action on October 19 at Emory & Henry.