Tusculum’s Ryan Dolce recorded two interceptions while the Pioneers scored the final 35 points of the game in a 49-14 South Atlantic Conference win over visiting Erskine Saturday afternoon at Pioneer Field.
Tusculum has won six consecutive games and are 8-1 for the first time in program history. The Pioneers improve to 6-1 in conference play and remain tied for the top spot in the SAC Mountain Division with Mars Hill (6-2, 6-1 SAC), setting up next week’s road game with the Lions as a winner-take-all contest with the winner advancing to the SAC Championship Game.
The Pioneers racked up a season-high 547 yards offensively as sophomore quarterback Tre Simmons threw for 289 yards and three touchdowns, while also hauling in a 20-yard TD reception himself. Simmons went 20-for-29 with zero interceptions while also rushing for 40 yards on the afternoon on nine carries.
TU finished the game with a season-best 352 passing yards, while rushing for 195 yards on 37 attempts.
The Tusculum defense limited the Flying Fleet (2-7, 0-7 SAC) to 202 yards on the day including just 22 yards in the second half while holding EC scoreless for the final two quarters.
TU’s Mekhai Johnson totaled 147 all-purpose yards in the game as he rushed for a game-high 81 yards and a touchdown, his team-leading sixth of the year. Maurice Gomillion added 53 rushing yards on nine attempts, while also posting four catches for 24 yards.
A dozen Pioneers recorded at least one reception in the contest including Tyler Burke’s four grabs for 64 yards and a TD, his fifth of the season. Lanadrick Bradley, Mydreon Vines, Jackson Fritts and Simmons also accounted for TD catches on the afternoon.
Four different Erskine players completed pass in the game led by Korey Besse as he went 10-of-22 for 107 yards and an interception.
Tusculum linebacker Wesley Scott, the reigning SAC Defensive Player of the Week, accounted for a team-high eight tackles including one for loss, while Earnest Johnson tallied seven stops with five solos and three hits behind the line of scrimmage.
Along with his two interceptions, which are tied for the most in a TU single-game (25th time the feat has been duplicated), Dolce also finished with four tackles including one for loss and a pass break-up.
Tusculum’s two picks adds to the Pioneers’ NCAA Division II-leading total of 18 interceptions, which are tied for the second-most in a TU season (school record is 23 by the 2003 squad).
Tusculum moved into Erskine territory twice in the opening quarter but a fumble inside the 10 and a missed field goal kept the Pioneers off the board. Following the missed 41-yard field goal, Erskine moved the length of the field on two plays. Kevon Catoe ran up the middle for a 43-yard gain to the TU 33 and Besse completed a 30-yard pass to Zion Walker to the TU 3. Three plays later, Catoe completed a two-yard TD toss to Kaavon Parker at the 1:05 mark of the quarter. West Hiller’s extra point would give the Fleet a 7-0 lead.
The Pioneers would finally answer early in the second quarter as Simmons completed a 21-yard pass to Justice Parham to the EC 25. Two plays later, Brown would fake a sweep to the right side. But he would stop and throw across the field to Simmons who was wide open on the far sideline as he would run in for the 20-yard scoring catch. John Aiden Pittman’s kick would tie the game at 7-7 with 11:20 remaining in the half.
Tusculum would later take over at their own 43 and it would take just two plays to break the tie as Simmons completed a 52-yard strike to Burke for the go-ahead touchdown as TU would lead 14-7 with 4:10 to go in the quarter.
The Flying Fleet answered with a six-play, 69-yard drive which was capped off by a Besse two-yard TD run to tie the game with 1:48 remaining before halftime. The big play of the possession came when Walker made an eight-yard catch but was hit from behind and fumbled. But Catoe scooped up the ball for the Fleet and advanced the ball down the field for a 29-yard gain to the TU 18.
Tusculum snatched the momentum back on the ensuing kickoff as Marquel Pittman returned the kick for a 96-yard touchdown for the fifth-longest return in school history.
With the Pioneers ahead 21-14, Erskine would go three-and-out and would punt the ball to Tusculum as TU took over at its own 35 following a 12-yard return by Eddie Watson with 59 seconds remaining.
The Pioneers move the ball quickly down the field and Simmons completed a 24-yard pass to Brown to the EC 3 with five seconds remaining. Tusculum, who was out of timeouts, rushed the field goal team onto the field and got off a 20-yard field goal, but the kick hit the right upright to end the half.
Erskine would have the opening possession of the second half and advance the drive to midfield, but Dolce would come up with his second interception of the game to set up the Pioneers at the EC 45 at the 14:02 mark of the third quarter.
Tusculum advance the ball inside one-yard line and on third-and-goal from the one, Johnson would take the snap in the Wildcat formation and ran up the middle for the score as TU extended the lead to 28-14 with 10:38 to go in the third.
Simmons added a 35-yard touchdown toss to Mydreon Vines to move the score to 35-14. The Pioneers added two more touchdown passes in the fourth quarter including Simmons’ 49-yard pass to Bradley and Brayden Phillips came off the bench and tossed an eight-yard TD to Jackson Fritts for his first collegiate score to cap the scoring for the day.
Tusculum eclipses 30 points for a fifth time this season and exceeds 40 points on a third occasion this year. TU also continued its string of dominance in the third quarter where the Pioneers have outscored the opposition by a 96-3 margin this season alone and haven’t allowed a third-quarter touchdown in over a year (12 straight games).
Gomillion has rushed for 1,387 yards in his career, which are the eighth-most in TU history as he moves past Robert Hankerson (1,350 yds – 1991-1995).
Punter Andrew Cantrell averaged 40.5 yards on his four kicks on the day. He moved into second place all-time with 9,206 punting yards, surpassing former All-American John Gregory (9,120 – 2006-2009). Cantrell is now 299 yards from the TU record which is held by his older brother Hunter Cantrell (9,504 from 2014-2017).
Saturday’s contest marked the final regular season home game for 13 Tusculum seniors.
Next Saturday’s game at Mars Hill will kick off at 1 p.m. Tusculum’s six-game winning streak is the longest active streak in the conference, while MHU has recorded four consecutive victories (3rd in the league). Tusculum’s six-game winning streak is the second-longest in school history and the most since TU won seven in a row in the 2003 season which the Pioneers went 7-2 in its first nine games.
