SALISBURY, N.C. — Quarterback Preston Brown passed for 239 yards and accounted for three touchdowns to lead the Catawba Indians to a 38-3 homecoming win over visiting Tusculum Saturday night at Shuford Stadium.
Catawba (6-2, 4-2 South Atlantic Conference) amassed 433 offensive yards while holding the Pioneers (1-6, 0-6 SAC) to 187 yards on the evening.
Brown went 15-for-24 while passing for two scores. He also rushed five times for 28 yards and a touchdown.
Running back Marquece Williams scored a pair of touchdowns for the Indians as he rushed for 50 yards on 15 carries with a score. He also had 58 receiving yards on four catches with a touchdown.
Catawba finished the game with 22 first downs while going 9-of-13 on third down. TU tallied 10 first downs and went 2-of-13 on its third-down conversions and 2-of-5 on fourth down.
Tusculum linebacker Rashad Watson led all players with his 11 tackles including seven solos and one for loss. Watson has recorded double-digit tackles in each of his last three outings. The trio of David Alston, Xavier Gunn and Malachi Jim-Lawson recorded five tackles apiece.
TU running back Teryn Brown-Freeman posted a season-best 93 rushing yards on 15 attempts to average 6.2 yards per carry. Brown-Freeman also posted a 31-yard reception to finish with 124 all-purpose yards on the night.
Catawba would fumble on the opening kickoff as TU’s Mason Davis dislodged the ball from Avery Fields at the CAT 19. But Catawba’s Jay Moore would come up with the recovery to save the Indians on the opening drive. Catawba marched 12 plays and went 81 yards while taking 7:18 off the clock as Preston Brown connected with Jalen Brown on a five-yard TD toss. Bryson Sims’ kick put Catawba up 7-0.
The Indians forced a three-and out on Tusculum’s first possession and were forced to punt as Catawba took over at its 31.
The Catawba offense would hold onto the ball for the remainder of the first quarter. On the first play of the second, Preston Brown ran in for a nine-yard touchdown to take a 14-0 lead.
Tusculum would answer with a 13-play, 63-yard drive of its own which was capped off by a 44-yard field goal by Max Turan as the Pioneers cut into the deficit, 14-3 with 7:51 left in the half. John Celestin‘s 21-yard run was the highlight of the TU drive.
Catawba responded immediately as Fields took the ensuing kickoff and returned it for a 97-yard touchdown to extend the lead to 21-3.
After a Tusculum punt, Catawba would take over at its own 35 with 5:23 left in the half. Six plays later, the Indians would get a Preston Brown 31-yard TD pass to Williams to move the lead out to 28-3 with 2:07 left.
On third-down and eight, TU quarterback Lavante Adams completed a 31-yard pass to Brown-Freeman as he was pushed out of pounds at the CAT 35. The Pioneers would get to the 28 before turning the ball over on downs as Catawba would run out the clock and take a 28-3 lead into the locker room.
Tusculum would possess the ball for the first six minutes of third quarter and moved into Catawba territory. On fourth-down and five, Tusculum’s special team drew off Catawba offsides to extend the drive with a first down. The Pioneers would get another first down on a penalty as Catawba was flagged for defensive holding and moving TU to the CAT 40. The Pioneers would get one yard on its next four plays and would turn the ball over on downs.
Catawba would follow suit and moved into Tusculum territory and faced fourth-down and 10 from the TU 34. But Preston Brown’s pass on fourth down would be broken up by Xavier Gunn.
Brown-Freeman ran down the far sideline for a 43-yard gain to the CAT 23. TU would get to the 17 and on fourth-and-four, Adams would be sacked by Evan Simons at the 28 as the Indians took over on downs with 1:53 left in the third quarter.
From there, Catawba would have the ball for 10 plays and go 63 yards before getting a 26-yard field goal from Sims to make it a 31-3 contest with 12:35 remaining in the game.
After a Tusculum punt, Catawba’s Preston Brown completed a 66-yard pass to Bo Pryor to move to the TU 3. An unsportsmanlike penalty on the play moved the ball back to the TU 18. Three plays later, Williams would score his second TD of the night with his six-yard run into the end zone to provide the final margin of victory for the Indians.
Tusculum returns to Pioneer Field for its next two games beginning with Homecoming when they host Mars Hill on Nov. 1 for a 2 p.m. contest.
