Box Score A record setting performance from senior quarterback Evan Pittenger was the catalyst for a tough 31-26 road victory for Maryville College over Averett University in Danville, Virginia on Saturday afternoon.
Pittenger dashed for 104 yards on 19 carries while completing 13 passes for an additional 142 yards. The team captain signal caller darted for the end zone on runs of 25-yards, 5-yards, and a pair of one-yard plunges for a MC single game record of four rushing touchdowns. The four scores equals the feat of Charsie Robertson who sprinted for four touchdowns against Kentucky Wesleyan in 1994.
Averett lit the scoreboard first following a punting miscue from the Scots. The Cougars capitalized on the great field possession with a 7-play, 41 yard scoring drive finishing with a 1-yard Travis Jones dive toward pay-dirt. The extra point hit the crossbar, but the Cougars led 6-0 at the 9:09 mark.
Maryville would answer in their next possession on the legs of Pittenger. A 13-yard sprint by Pittenger and a 14-yard pass from Evan to Stevorius Kimball put the Scots on the 25-yardline. Pittenger promptly followed his dominating offensive line toward daylight and the senior completed the 11-play, 77-yard scoring drive with a 25-yard TD run.
The first quarter ended with a fourth down and short with the Cougars driving on the Scots' 25-yard line. MC's defense converged on the quarterback, forcing a fumble, and Franchez Marshall recovered stalling Averett's drive.
MC would take the Courgars miscue 70-yards in their next possession, stalling just five yards from the Averett end zone. Key pass completions from Nick Myers to Brady Brown, Michael Smith, and Mario Williams had Maryville knocking on the doorstep, but the hosts' defense stopped the Scots. Maryville's Kyle Bennett attempted a 22-yard field goal and knocked it through the uprights.
With 11:26 left in the second quarter, Maryville secured a 10-6 early advantage.
On Averett's next possession, Jonathan Clark recorded his second sack of the afternoon forcing the Cougars to punt deep in their own territory.
Maryville took advantage of the possession at mid-field with an option to Elijah Chenier. The freshman cruised for a 26-yard gain behind outstanding blocking. Pittenger promptly connected with Mario Williams for a 22-yard strike. Just five yards from the end zone, Pittenger would scamper home for the score completing the 4-play, 53-yard drive in only 1:23. Bennett's kick made the score 17-6 in favor of the Scots.
Averett quickly found their offense in MC territory following a 42-yard passing strike from Kelly Hall to Terrence Owens. Maryville's defense held strong with a forced fumble sack and a strong third-down denial forcing a punt.
The Scots looked to put up one final score before the half. Key completions from Pittenger to Michael Smith, Dontarius Gilbert, and Mario Williams followed by a pair of 16-yard and 10-yard jaunts by Deshjion Whitlock put Maryville on Averett's one-yard line. Pittenger completed the 15-play, 85-yard scoring drive with a plunge. Bennett's kick made the score 24-6 going into the halftime break.
At the half, Maryville held a 16-6 first down advantage while out running the Cougars 127-yards to 38-yards.
Maryille's defense came up big in Averett's opening drive of the second half. A pair of long completions to Terrance Owens put the Cougars on the Scots' 8-yard line. Back-to-back forced fumbles by Ron McGriff and Ezekial Koko backed up Averett to try a 31-yard field goal that eventually drifted wide right.
On the Scots' next possession, a Pittenger pass was tipped into the hands of Averett's Kevin Norcott giving AU the ball on Maryville's 35-yard line.
A 30-yard dash by Averett's Sean Bowman put the ball on the door step and Bowman promptly completed the drive with a 5-yard TD dash. Hobie Proctor's kick made the score 24-13.
Averett would close out the third quarter ready to complete another scoring drive. A 35-yard pass to Owens put the Cougars on the Scots' 2-yardline as the third quarter ended. Two plays into the final quarter quarterback Kelly Hall bulled into the end zone from a yard out. The two-point conversion failed, but Averett had battled back to make the score 24-19.
Maryville would secure a little breathing room on their next drive. A pair of passes to Michael Smith and a 13-yard strike to Mario Williams put MC in position to complete the 17-play, 78-yard scoring drive. Strong runs by Whitlock and Pittenger set up Evan's fourth score with a one-yard touchdown. Bennett's kick made the score 31-19 with 7:57 remaining.
A fumbled punt return gave the Cougars a scoring opportunity on the Scots' 13-yard line. Sean Bowman took it to the house from four yards out and Proctor's kick made the score 31-26.
The Scots' looked to eat up the final 3:18 with a sustained drive, but Caleb Williams picked off a Nick Myers pass on MC's 18-yard line.
Maryville's defense rose to the occasion after a holding penalty, stopping the Cougars on downs. MC would run out the final 1:53 to preserve the five-point USA South road victory.
Averett (1-5, 1-2 USA South) tallied 339 total offensive yards behind Kelly Hall's 12-for-18, 182 yard passing performance. Sean Bowman ran for 11 yards on 17 carries averaging 6.5 yards per carry. Terrance Owens was Hall's favorite target with five receptions for 137 yards. The Cougar defense was paced by the nine-tackle effort of Jamal Forney. Ti'Shawn Daniels added eight stops and a sack.
Maryville (6-1, 3-1 USA South) passed for 214 yards with Pittenger and Myers combining for a 19-for-37 effort via the air. Pittenger finished with 104 rushing yards on 19 carries while Deshjion Whitlock added 81 yards on 13 touches. Elijah Chenier tacked on 31 yards on three carries. Michael Smith hauled in seven passes for 97 yards while Mario Williams brought down five passes for 65 yards. Brady Brown added 29 yards on three receptions.
Evan Pittenger's four touchdowns gives the fleet-footed quarterback 29 for his career. He is now third all-time in the MC record with 29 career TD's. The record is 33 held by Travis Felder (2010-2013).
Gabe Johnson and Jonathan Clark paced MC's defensive effort that held Averett to 4-of-14 (29%) on third-down conversions. The pair combined for 14 tackles with Clark recording three tackles for a loss.
Maryville will now prepare for an October 31st matchup with LaGrange College on MC's Honaker Field. Kick-off is slated for 1:30 p.m.
