DOVER, Del. - Christopher Newport jumped to a 7-0 lead Saturday, and trailed 14-7 at the half to 13th-ranked Wesley College at Scott D. Miller Stadium. The Wolverines pulled away in the second half, though, and recorded a season-ending 31-14 victory over the Captains.
"I was happy with the way we battled today," Head Coach
Art Link said following the completion of his first season at the helm. "Our effort was excellent and we did a good job of stopping them. They're a really good team and I thought defensively our guys really competed."
The Captains got on the board first thanks to a defensive touchdown. Senior cornerback
Justus Drakeford picked off a pass and returned it 51 yards for a score just four minutes into the game. For Drakeford it was his sixth interception of the season, and first score of 2017 after returning two picks for touchdowns last season.
The Wolverines pulled even late in the opening stanza on a sunny and chilly day at Drass Field to make it a 7-7 game. Wesley grabbed a 14-7 halftime advantage by reaching the endzone in the final minute of the second quarter.
Following the intermission, Wesley took control of the game by posting a field goal and then returning a CNU punt 60 yards for a score to build a 24-7 lead heading into the fourth quarter. After another Wolverine score, senior quarterback
K.J. Kearney concluded the scoring with a 16-yard touchdown pass to freshman Cole Blais to account for the 31-14 final verdict.
Kearney, who started at QB for the 19th time in the last 20 games over the last two seasons, completed 29 of 39 passes for 271 yards. Junior
Jordan McIntyre caught six passes for 49 yards, while senior tight end
Danny Mattson grabbed five for 75 yards. Blais and senior
Legend Hayes also caught five balls each with Blais registering 45 yards and Hayes 54 yards receiving. Senior
James Stinnett also caught five passes out of the CNU backfield for 23 yards.
On defense, senior linebacker
Brennan Gary topped the squad with 13 stops, while fellow senior linebacker
B.J. Hill and junior
Demetrius Arties had a dozen tackles each.
CNU concludes the season with a 5-5 overall record and a 4-5 mark in the New Jersey Athletic Conference. Wesley, 9-1 and 9-0 in the NJAC, had already claimed the league's title and will advance to play in the NCAA Tournament beginning next Saturday.
