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Kentucky Wesleyan College Athletics

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KWC pulls away from Alma
Kentucky Wesleyan College quarterback Chris Owen throws a pass out to the wing Saturday against Alma College in Steele Stadium. Owen hit 31-of-44 passes for 423 yards and four touchdowns in the Panthers’ 49-28 victory over the Scots. Gary Emord-Netzley, Messenger-Inquirer.

KWC pulls away from Alma

Box Score

It was a touchdown fest for Kentucky Wesleyan College on Saturday afternoon.

And the visitors from Alma, Mich., were more than willing to keep pace -- at least for a while.

The Panthers scored 21 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to subdue Alma 49-28 at Steele Stadium.

That put KWC at 3-1 heading to South Alabama this coming Saturday. It is the best start for the Panthers since they were 5-0 in 1999. KWC hadn't scored 49 points in a game since the 2000 season.

Chris Owen had his best day at quarterback as a Panther, hitting 31-of-44 passes for 423 yards and four touchdowns.

Two of those scoring passes were to DaMarcus Ganaway, who made 11 catches for 184 yards and two scores. KWC's David Smith caught eight passes for 142 yards and one touchdown.

Ganaway's first touchdown catch, covering 64 yards, saw him get wide open down the visitor's sideline and gather in a perfect strike from Owen off a rollout.

"It's always good to have a player like DeMarcus," Owen said. "He's very unselfish and always willing to make plays."

Owen notched several important marks for himself and in the KWC record book. It was the third straight week that Owen has thrown four touchdown passes. His 423 passing yards was the fifth-best, single-game performance in KWC history.

"I think the first thing with Chris is his confidence," KWC coach Brent Holsclaw said. "He wanted to come back and prove something after (suffering a knee injury). And he's surrounded by good offensive players."

Sammy Bland was major for KWC's defense and special teams. He intercepted two passes and returned a blocked field goal 80 yards for a touchdown to put the Panthers up 21-14 just 27 seconds before halftime.

The Panthers picked up 506 yards in total offense to 401 for Alma.

Owen hit Smith on third and eight for a 17-yard pickup to the Alma 13 on a drive in the fourth quarter. One play later, Darius Henderson blasted off the right side for a 13-yard scoring run that put the Panthers in command 42-28 with 7:51 to go in the game.

Ganaway accounted for the Panthers' final score on a 17-yard pass from Owen with 7:12 left.

"In the first half, we were struggling a little," Owen said. "But in the second half we got it going."

Alma drew first blood, moving 91 yards on 15 plays and getting on the board with a 2-yard touchdown run by Ross Richard at 3:09 in the first quarter.

The Panthers tied the game 7-7 when Owen hit David Smith on a 21-yard screen pass play with 12:14 left in the second quarter.
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