Box Score Team Effort Knocks Off N.C. Wesleyan
ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. – The Cody Estep Show debuted right on time for the Maryville Scots.
With the game tied late, Cody Estep found his number called and the Knoxville junior reeled off five consecutive carries for a combined 53 rushing yards. Estep pounded in from 11 yards out with 4:11 remaining to lift the Scots to a thrilling 31-26 road victory over North Carolina Wesleyan.
Maryville took a safety with 2 seconds remaining and then kicked off as the final seconds expired.
Not only did the Scots claim their first road victory, but they also dealt Wesleyan's USA South title hopes a huge blow and ended the Battling Bishops' three-game winning streak.
Some games are team wins, and this one was quite the example.
"It was really a lot of fun to see all three phases making explosive plays for us," Maryville head coach Ben Fox said. "We had new guys playing for us because of injuries. Jordan Lacey at defensive end played very physical and very hard. And then Cody Estep carrying the ball on those five straight plays.
"I'm really happy for him. They knew we were going to run it to Cody and we did and he still got us in the end zone. I'm really happy for him and for all of the guys who really contributed."
Scoring of All Varieties
Maryville scored on a field goal, an interception return, a safety and a kickoff return – all in the first half to lead 18-10 at intermission. The Scots' initial offensive touchdown came in the third quarter on a 26-yard quarterback scramble by Nelson Smith on fourth-and-10 that made the score 24-10 midway in the third.
Maryville was inches away from going up 31-10 when Smith's pass to Mykal Santos was ruled just out of bounds. Smith was sacked on the next two plays and then Wesleyan blocked the ensuing Scots punt and returned it 55 yards for a touchdown that made it a 24-17 game with 2:09 left in the third quarter.
It looked like the Scots were going to keep the Battling Bishops from tying the game in the fourth quarter, nearly sacking quarterback Storm Yarbrough on third-and-10. But Yarbrough broke free and found Kevin Alford in the end zone for a 24-yard touchdown and a 24-all game with 6:50 remaining.
That's when Estep stepped up.
With second-and-8 at the Maryville 47, Estep carried for the first time since the opening drive of the game and burst around right end for 23 yards to the Wesleyan 30. Estep then carried for 8, 3 and 8 more yards until his final burst from the 11 into the end zone with 4:11 to play. Trey Hampton's kick made it 31-24 Scots.
"Cody is the back for that personnel package," Fox said. "He's a physical player who finished his runs and broke some tackles when we needed him most."
Maryville then forced a defensive three-and-out, survived a second blocked punt, forced a four-and-out and kept feeding Estep the ball until finally Smith ran backwards 30 yards to burn off all but the last 2 seconds in taking the safety.
Return Game on Point
Dorian Champion came up with the interception return of 99 yards for Maryville's first touchdown and a 10-0 first quarter lead. Santos later busted his kickoff return 85 yards in the second quarter for an 18-3 Scots advantage as this one had wild swings throughout.
Estep led all ball carries with 68 yards on 14 attempts. Smith finished 16-of-26 passing for 197 yards to go with his 26-yard touchdown scamper. Jacob Cortez caught four passes for 77 yards and Santos added 182 all-purpose yards.
Bo Hering was Maryville's leading tackler with nine, including seven solo stops. In addition to Champion, Caden Harbin also picked off a pass in his first game back from injury. Nico Starcher contributed a big fumble recovery that led to three points.
"We talked a lot this week about envisioning what we wanted the last four weeks of our season to look like," Fox said. "We have wanted our guys to compete and today they competed. That winning drive showed that they still want to make a difference in this season."
Maryville has won two of its last three to improve to 2-5 overall, 2-3 in the USA South and 2-1 in October. North Carolina Wesleyan dropped to 3-2 in the USA South and 3-4 overall.
The Scots host LaGrange next Saturday for Homecoming in a 2 p.m. kickoff. LaGrange was 1-4 before Saturday's home game against Brevard.
