Rocky Mount, N.C. - The Battling Bishop football team of North Carolina Wesleyan celebrated its 2012 Senior Day on Saturday afternoon with a 32-21 victory over Averett University. NCWC's defense pitched a shutout in the second half, outscoring the Cougars 20-0 in the third and fourth quarters en route to the victory.
Prior to kickoff, head coach Mark Henninger honored the 13 senior members of his squad: Dwayne Hollis, Ed Harrington, Timaine Moore, Sam Smith, DeAngelo Stewart, John Jackson, B.G. Howell, Taylor Revelle, Lorenzo Haden, Jamal Smith, Garrett Paschall, JaQuan Evans and Gerald Wells.
Hollis proceeded to get Wesleyan off to a good start with a 49-yard punt return early in the first quarter to give his team a quick 6-0 lead. The Cougars, however, reeled off the game's next 21 points with a trio of touchdowns, the last of which saw a blocked punt returned 41 yards for the score. Jackson later took the Bishops 60 yards in five plays, including a 3-yard TD strike to Moore, for for a 21-12 halftime score.
In the second half, sophomore Austin Arbuckle's 24-yard interception return for a touchdown brought the Bishops to within two at 21-19, and an 80-yard TD pass from Jackson to Greg Edwards less than three minutes later gave NCWC a 25-21 lead it would not relinquish. Jackson finished his day with a 44-yard rushing score late in the fourth quarter that essentially put the game out of reach.
Jackson finished with 104 yards on the ground and 153 yards through the air with a trio of scores (1 rushing, 2 passing). Jacques Alston racked up 61 rushing yards and Smith 60 on the day.
Wesleyan did the rest on defense, holding the Cougars to just 269 yards of total offense. Junior James Wallace paved the way with a game-high 11 tackles, while Harrington and Hollis finished with eight and seven, respectively.
The Bishops have now wrapped up their 2012 schedule with a 3-7 overall record and 2-5 mark in the USA South.