CHARLESTON, W.Va. – On Saturday afternoon, Notre Dame College and the University of Charleston were locked in a close contest through three quarters on the gridiron. UC put up 21 unanswered points in the fourth quarter, to get past the Falcons by a score of 52-27.
 
Notre Dame put together solid possessions in the first half. The Falcons had at least six plays in each of their first four drives. After receiving the opening kickoff, NDC went 60 yards down the field in six plays to score the first points of the game.
 
On that first drive, junior Idris Lawrence ran the ball three times for 21 yards, including a seven-yard scamper to the endzone. Along with that, Charleston penalties helped the Falcons' offense get moving. The Golden Eagles had two 15-yard penalties, along with a five-yard offside penalty on the defense.
 
Charleston's offense responded right away, as quarterback Javonte Howard completed four passes, including a 21-yard throw to Marquan Herron and a 13-yard touchdown pass to Tae Marrero.
 
NDC punted on its second drive, and UC took advantage. The Golden Eagles went ahead by seven after marching down the field 83 yards in 14 plays. Howard used his arm and his legs to move the ball, finding Damon Mouzon for a touchdown on a 21-yard pass.
 
Quarterback Deshawn Evans kept the next Notre Dame drive alive, completing a pass to junior James Faulkner for 19-yards on a 3rd and 10 situation. The drive would result in a 29-yard field goal by senior Cameron Shirkey. NDC moved within four points, 14-10, with 11:35 on the second quarter clock.
 
However, Charleston went down the field and scored another touchdown. This time, it was a 25-yard rushing touchdown by Chavon Wright after Howard completed three long passes.
 
With about nine minutes to go before halftime, Notre Dame found a groove in the run game. The Falcons gave the ball to Lawrence, five times, and junior Krys Riley-Richardson, twice. Lawrence got the drive started with a splash, finding a hole for 27 yards on the first play. He would run for 44 total yards on the drive. Riley-Richardson was asked to move the chains on a third and short situation, and he did that by breaking through for a 13-yard touchdown run, making the score 21-17 in favor of UC.
 
Lawrence ran the ball seven times for 52 yards in the second quarter. After setting a career-high in rush yards last week, he set a new mark with a total of 184 rush yards this week, averaging 7.4 yards per carry.
 
Before the half, Charleston's offense got all the way to NDC's 16-yard line, but the Falcons' defense stood strong on 3rd and 3, as junior Lavell Gibson broke up the pass attempt. UC's Tim McCutchen could not connect on the 34-yard field goal attempt.
 
The Golden Eagles scored quickly in the third quarter, to go ahead 28-17, but the Falcons made sure they did not fall too far behind. NDC went 41 yards down the field to set up another scoring opportunity, with the help of Evans' arm. He found Lawrence for 16 yards, sophomore Michael Solomon for 10 yards and senior Tyshawn Lighty for 15 yards. Shirkey then set a program record with a 47-yard field goal, breaking his own program record of 46 yards, that he set last year.
 
After another UC touchdown, NDC bounced back with seven of its own. The ground game continued to be a bright spot, as Lawrence started the drive with a 22-yard run, followed by an eight-yard gain. In Golden Eagles' territory, Notre Dame went deeper into the playbook. The next handoff went to Lighty, who caught Charleston off-guard with a 27-yard run to the right corner of the endzone. At the end of the third, NDC trailed by just four points, 31-27.
 
Wright took over by running the ball for UC in the fourth quarter, as the home team posted 189 yards of offense and three rushing touchdowns in the final stanza to make the score 52-27.
 
Sophomore Nathan Rosario-Santos and junior Isaiah Stephens each had nine tackles to lead the Falcons.
 
NDC will travel to West Liberty University, on Oct. 21, for a 5 p.m. kickoff.