Owensboro, Ky. – The Kentucky Wesleyan football team suffered its first loss of the season on Saturday night, falling short to William Jewell by a score of 23-16.
In a game the Panthers had control of for the majority of the sixty minutes, the Cardinals overcame three turnovers to win the non-conference battle.
Wesleyan largely dominated the first half, holding a 10-0 lead at the two-minute warning with possession of the ball. The 10 Panther points came off a Blake Vivrette field goal in the first quarter and a 21-yard Joey Cambron touchdown pass to Kam Sherrard midway through the second.
After recovering their second fumble of the quarter, the Panthers went for it in a a play that changed the game entirely. On 4th and 8 from the William Jewell 47-yard line with 1:49 in the half, Wesleyan failed to convert after Cambron short-armed a throw to Sherrard.
The Cardinals, having been shut down to this point in the game, were gifted strong field position and decided to make a quarterback change. Tucker Griffin took over for Jewell and led a crucial drive that resulted in a field goal for the Cardinals, cutting their deficit to 10-3 at the half.
Jewell received the ball to begin the second half and retained momentum with a 10-play, 75-yard touchdown drive. Although the extra point was missed, the Cardinals trailed by just one early in the third quarter.
Wesleyan responded with another field goal by Vivrette, this time a booming 52-yarder that is tied for the longest field goal in school history and extended the Panthers' lead to 13-9.
The Cardinals wasted no time bouncing right back, as Griffin led another touchdown drive in just six plays to put Jewell back out in front at 16-13.
Vivrette knocked in yet another field goal from 16 yards out with 4:33 left in the game, but it came after Wesleyan got all the way down to the one-yard line and failed to punch it in.
Building on that defensive goal-line stand, Jewell continued to be unstoppable in the second half with an eight-play, 75-yard drive that was capped off by Keaundre McCullough's second touchdown run to put the road team in the lead at 23-16 with just a minute remaining.
Cambron completed a few passes in the final drive and had one final play from the Cardinals' 30-yard line, but Khia Sherrard was tackled just 10 yards from the end zone to end the comeback effort.
Kam Sherrard finished with nine catches for 156 yards and the Panthers' lone touchdown, while Khia Sherrard impressed as well with seven catches for 74 yards. Cambron's final line was 19-34 passing for 202 yards and a touchdown.
Defensively, Gerald Palmer and Jhor'dan Inniss each had seven tackles while all three of John Purdy, Malik Bolling, and Elijah Hawkins recoverd fumbles for the Panthers.
The quarterback change paid dividends for Jewell (1-1, 0-0 GLVC), as Tucker Griffin went 9-13 with a passing touchdown and three total touchdown drives. Keaundre McCullough, who rushed for over 400 yards and six scores last week, was comparatively held in check with just 24 carries for 98 yards but did find the end zone twice.
Wesleyan (1-1, 0-0 G-MAC) heads on the road for the first time this season to begin conference play with a matchup at Walsh on Saturday, September 21st. First kick is set for 11 a.m. as the Panthers look to get back on the winning side and begin G-MAC play strong.
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