Jefferson City, Tenn. - The Carson-Newman Football Team (2-0, 1-0) scored the first 20 points of the game en route to a 47-23 win over Lenoir-Rhyne (1-2, 0-1) Saturday afternoon in a South Atlantic Conference opener at Burke-Tarr Stadium.

The Eagles' Brandon Baker (Miami, Fla.) rushed for 104 yards on just nine carries and a touchdown while the Carson-Newman defense forced five fumbles in snapping a two-game losing streak to the Bears.

Carson-Newman's Curt Duncan (Morristown, Tenn.) also kicked four field goals and finished with a school-record 17 points for a kicker as the Eagles totaled 443 yards of total offense in the triumph.

Lenoir-Rhyne sophomore halfback Jarrod Spears (Bunnlevel, N.C.) rushed for a career-high 182 yards on just 11 carries including a 55-yard touchdown run in the third quarter while redshirt freshman quarterback Teverrius Jones (Washington, Ga.) scored two touchdowns on the ground despite the loss for the Bears.

A 25-yard field goal by Duncan early in the second quarter staked the Eagles to a 20-0 lead before the Bears finally scored on a 45-yard run by Jones with 10:39 left before halftime.

However, Carson-Newman answered a Lenoir-Rhyne score every time with one of its own and the Bears couldn't get any closer than nine points the rest of the way after Spears' 55-yard touchdown run late in the third quarter.

The Eagles iced the contest with two scores in the final 2:17 of regulation capped off by a 66-yard fumble return for a touchdown by Greg Beauduy (Deerfield Beach, Fla.) with 42 seconds left in the contest.

Lenoir-Rhyne also lost despite finishing with 442 yards of offense including a season-high 340 yards on the ground.? On defense, Bear senior linebacker Demetrius Green (Cedartown, Ga.) led all tacklers with 14 stops while L-R sophomore linebacker Tanner Botts (Lawrenceville, Ga.) added 11 takedowns in the setback.

L-R does not play again until Saturday, September 29, when it hosts North Greenville beginning at 7:00 p.m., while Carson-Newman plays at league-foe Newberry on Saturday at 6:30 p.m.