ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. - The Brevard College Football team (5-3, 5-2 USA South) was eliminated from USA South Conference Championship contention with a 30-24 loss to North Carolina Wesleyan (4-5, 4-3 USAS) on Saturday afternoon in Rocky Mount, North Carolina.
With the defeat, Maryville College clinched the USA South crown.
Junior quarterback Ethan Beamish went 19-for-27 with 277 yards and three touchdowns. NCW deployed a pair of quarterbacks who totaled 194 total passing yards.
Chancellor Lee-Parker gained 89 yards on the ground, with Jadien Deaton adding 47 on eight carries. NCW's Anthony Byrd dashed for a game-high 161 yards on 26 rush attempts with two touchdowns, and Javier Rice also got in the end zone for the Battling Bishops.
Zackary Orr caught five passes for 89 yards with two touchdowns catches. Adam Douglas added five receptions for 74 yards, and Reggie Taylor II caught a 30-yard touchdown pass. NCW's Christian Drumgoole caught four passes for a game-high 100 yards.
Baylee Ramey led all Tornados with eight tackles and a TFL. Trey Williams forced a fumble with a sack and five tackles, while Adam Chaney added six tackles defensively. Hugo Taylor made a field goal for Brevard, but NCW's Braxtyn Green drilled three FGs, including a 43-yarder in the fourth quarter.
Green got the scoring started with a 25-yarder in the first quarter. BC answered with Taylor's 23-yarder early in the second quarter, followed by Taylor II's 30-yard TD reception that gave Brevard a 10-3 lead. Rice punched in a TD for the Battling Bishops just before the halftime intermission to tie things at 10-all.
Orr caught a 14-yard pass from Beamish that put Brevard back on top, but Byrd scored his first touchdown of the day to tie the game at 17. Byrd then recorded another touchdown early in the fourth quarter as NCW retook the lead, 24-17.
Orr hauled down his second touchdown of the day as Brevard tied the score at 24, but a pair of NCW field goals and two Brevard drives resulting in turnover-on-downs iced the game, eliminating the Tornados from postseason contention.
NCW had a 201-137 edge on the ground, while BC carried a 277-194 advantage through the air as the teams were near deadlocked in offensive yards. Neither side turned the ball over, but Brevard's 2-for-7 effort on third down and 0-for-2 mark on fourth down proved costly.
The Tornados will conclude 2024 on the road next week, traveling to Grayson, Kentucky for the first time in program history to take on Kentucky Christian University at 1 p.m.
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-BC-
