HICKORY, N.C. - Lenoir-Rhyne heads to Mars Hill in search of their 14th straight regular season victory when the two teams clash on Saturday afternoon. The Bears are riding an eight-game winning streak in South Atlantic Conference play as well.
The Bears, who rank No. 8 in the NCAA Division II poll for the third straight week, had the ball for 38:28 in last week's 34-17 win over Newberry. The Bears had 64 rushing attempts for 363 total yards and scored 17 of the final 20 points to defeat the Wolves. The win was LR's ninth straight home win, just six shy of breaking the team-record for longest winning streak at Moretz Stadium.
Grayson Willingham went 15-for-20 for 176 yards and a touchdown to move into sole possession of third place on the all-time list with 32 career passing TDs.
Jace Jordan made his LR debut after missing the first two games and exploded for 96 yards on five carries and one catch for 18 yards (all in the first half) with his first touch as a Bear going for 37 yards.
Demarius Hampton set a career-high with seven receptions and finished with 65 yards receiving.
Drake Starks added two catches for 61 yards, including a 56-yard touchdown and
Ameen Stevens added a nine-yard rushing TD, his 14th career rushing touchdown in just 17 games.
MHU's sophomore QB Jimmy Urzua threw for a career-high 403 yards in the Lions 21-14 win over Mars Hill last week and added two touchdown passes and one touchdown rush. Standout WR Craig Rucker finished with 12 catches for 185 yards and three players had 80 yards receiving or more.
Defensively, Nigel Bowden had 11 tackles, two tackles for loss and 0.5 sack while adding a QB hurry to win SAC Defensive Player of the Week honors.
Against the Bears last season, Urzua went 9-for-15 for 177 yards with two touchdowns and one interception, while Rucker added 10 catches for 132 yards and a pair of TDs. In the win, LR ran for 305 yards and four touchdowns while also throwing for four TDs. Incredibly, eight different players found the end zone for the Bears.
Prior to defeating MHU last season, the Lions had won three straight head-to-head match ups. The series is knotted at five-all over the last 10 match ups including LR's 51-21 win at Mars Hill in 2011 where the Lions entered ranked No. 21 in the nation. That win was LR's first at Mars Hill since 1989.
