Golden Lions take rust off against D-II Thorobreds
ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTEST. LOUIS -- Revenge came at the optimum time for Arkansas-Pine Bluff.
Off for three weeks after struggling in its first two games, UAPB (2-1) showed improvement on both sides of the ball Saturday, defeating NCAA Division II Kentucky State 20-13, before an estimated crowd of 33,500 at the TWA Dome.
The victory avenged an embarrassing 34-30 loss last year to the Thorobreds in the grand opening of Golden Lion Stadium. Senior running back Ron Johnson finished with 101 yards rushing on 23 carries.
"We were rusty in the first half after not playing for three weeks," UAPB Coach Lee Hardman said. "In the second half, we played with a lot more intensity.
"Offensively, we did a good job of moving the football and the offensive line began to open up some holes."
With the game tied 7-7 after Kentucky State running back Alvon Brown scored on a 30-yard run, UAPB held the Thorobreds on fourth-and-1 at their 30 with 8:41 left in the third quarter .
Dwight McKissic scored six plays later with a 1-yard run to give UAPB a 14-7 advantage with 2:19 left in the third quarter.
After Willie Seals recovered a fumble at the Kentucky State 31 on the following possession, quarterback LaKendrick Powell scored seven plays later on a 1-yard keeper to move the advantage to 20-7 with 14:56 remaining. Aaron Wall's extra-point attempt was blocked.
Brown, who finished with 137 yards on 23 carries, scored on a 10-yard run with 6:36 left to set the final margin.
UAPB avoided the possibility of overtime when Brown was held short of a first down on the final play of the game at the Golden Lions' 14.
"I knew going in that Kentucky State would be tough because of the experience they had returning," Hardman said. "Brown is an exciting running back who caused us a lot of problems."
Behind 70 yards rushing on 13 carries from Johnson and a special teams' highlight from Mark Bradley, UAPB took a 7-0 lead at the intermission.
But in the first quarter, it was evident the Golden Lions hadn't played in three weeks. UAPB started its first three possessions inside its 18 and failed to gain a first down.
Midway through the second quarter, the Lions began to shake off the rust. With Kentucky State attempting to avoid preseason All-Southwestern Athletic Conference punt returner Bobby Jett, Bradley fielded a punt and returned it 44 yards to the Thorobreds' 40.
Kept alive by Johnson's 16-yard run on second-and-10 at the 21, the six-play drive was capped by Bradley's 5-yard touchdown reception from Powell.
Wall's extra point extended the advantage to 7-0 with 4:25 left in the half.
Following back-to-back personal fouls against UAPB in the final minute, Kentucky State reached a first-and-goal at the 6 with 10 seconds remaining.
With no timeouts left, Brown was tackled at the 1 by linebacker Jamal Joyner to preserve the 7-0 cushion.
The Thorobreds finished with 134 first-half yards, while UAPB was held to 99.
This article was published on September 30, 2001
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