The crowd at their feet at the beginning of the second half. Photo by Calvin Inman.
There were gusty winds and a chill in the air, but that did not deter Catamounts’ fans from cheering on their team on
military night. From the opening kickoff to the closing moments of the game, fans were energetic in hopes of getting Western Carolina to end its two game losing streak.
The Catamounts came out aggressive early by getting out to a 9-3 lead in the first quarter. It seemed as though the team had the confidence that was utterly missing against The Citadel. However, this forceful style of play began to fade in the second quarter, as the Catamounts were outscored by Wofford 14-0 giving the Terriers a score of 17-9 going into halftime.
Lorenzo Long scoring a touchdown late in the fourth quarter. Photo by Calvin Inman.
For the second consecutive game, the Catamounts gave up a chunk of yards on the ground. Wofford running back Lorenzo Long was able to gather 135 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries. Even Terriers’ wide receiver Cole Cleary had two big runs with one leading to a 35 yard touchdown in the second quarter.
For Western Carolina, the quarterback-receiver tandem of Tyrie Adams and Terryon Robinson stole the show. Although he threw an interception, quarterback Tyrie Adams still had a great game after throwing for 285 yards and two touchdowns. Receiver Terryon Robinson was the guy who collected those two touchdowns, along with tying a school record by tallying 15 receptions.
Following the game, Robinson surpassed former receiver Marquel Pittman for 13th in school history in career catches with 137.
Tyson Dickson rising up after tackling QB, Brandon Goodson. Photo by Calvin Inman.
On defense, the leading tackler for the Terriers was linebacker Datavious Wilson with a total of 10 tackles. The Catamounts’ leading tackler was middle linebacker Tyson Dickson mounting a career high 18 tackles exceeding his
career best of 17 set last week against The Citadel.
In the post-game interview, Catamounts’ coach Mark Speir was critical.
“In the second quarter, our offense goes nonexistent. We self-destruct, and that’s the same old story,” coach Speir said. He talked about how the team regrouped in the second half, but that they have got to be more consistent offensively. “I’m proud of our efforts. Our guys fought all the way in trying to win the thing. We had an opportunity to win.”
The Catamounts’ quarterback Tyrie Adams talked about a great week in practice preparing, but it seemed as if they were not as mentally focused during the course of the game. “It’s really nothing Wofford’s defense did to stop us. We shot ourselves in the foot,” said Adams. “We came out fast. We executed. They weren’t able to get set. The second drive we come out, the first play we have a negative play.”
The final score had Wofford taking down Western Carolina 31-19. This loss marks the first time since 2012 that the Catamounts have lost back-to-back home match-ups. The team is now on a three game losing streak.
