PEMBROKE, N.C. --- Luke Charles passed for 384 yards and four touchdowns to the lead the 19th-ranked UNC Pembroke football team to a 60-20 non-conference win over Tusculum College Saturday at Johnson Stadium in the Braves' homecoming contest.
UNCP (7-1), the No. 3 ranked team in NCAA II Super Region 2, scored 30 unanswered points in the first half and finished off the game with the final 24 points of the contest in setting a program record for scoring in a game.
Tusculum will close out the road portion of its 2013 schedule next Saturday as the Pioneers travel to Brevard College for a 1 p.m. South Atlantic Conference match-up.
UNCP kicker Connor Haskins accounted for 16 points for the Braves as he was perfect on the day on his three field goals and seven extra points.
Tusculum quarterback Bo Cordell went 28-for-41 for 310 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. One of those interceptions was picked off by Brandon Fulton which was returned for a 91-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter.
TC receiver Justin Houston was the Pioneers' top target as he hauled in 14 receptions for 172 yards. Tight end Wesley Powell added three catches for 61 yards, including a 53-yard touchdown.
Tusculum linebacker Brian Alexander became the program's all-time leader in career tackles as his five stops on Saturday gives him 343 as a Pioneer, breaking the previous record held by Jacques Sessions (340 from 1991-1994).
Rontonio Stanley rushed for a game-high 114 yards on 15 carries for the Braves, while B.J. Bunn posted eight catches for 105 yards and a touchdown.
Tusculum (3-6) was led in rushing by Isaac Robinson and his 69-yard performance, which included a 25-yard TD.
Tusculum's Dustin Lane led all tacklers with 10 stops, including one for loss and a pass break-up. Cameron Thomas and LiRonta Archie tallied eight tackles apiece, while Wayne Soliai and Irim Aiken added seven hits each.
Pembroke scored on its opening possession as the Braves drove 73 yards in 10 plays, capped off by a 22-yard field by Haskins and a 3-0 UNCP lead.
Tusculum answered with a six-play, 74-yard drive as Cordell dove in for a one-yard touchdown. The big play of the drive came on a 53-yard completion to Houston to the UNCP 11-yard line.
The Braves would score touchdowns on its next four possessions and recorded a safety on a high snap on a Tusculum punt that went through the back of the end zone as UNCP led 33-7 at halftime.
Tusculum scored on the opening possession of the third quarter as TC converted on a fake-punt to extend the drive that ended on a 25-yard TD run by Robinson.
UNCP answered with a 32-yard Haskins field goal on the ensuing possession to extend its lead to 36-13. Tusculum followed with a five-play, 87-yard drive as Powell made an acrobatic catch and run on a 53-yard pass from Cordell as TC trailed 36-20 at the 7:05 mark of the quarter.
But the Braves finished off the game with a 24-0 run, sparked by a 50-yard touchdown pass from Charles to Te'vell Williams.
Pembroke out-gained the Pioneers in offensive yardage by a 584-422 margin. UNCP also recorded 30 first downs, including 19 in the opening half. The Braves also went 10-for-16 on third down conversions.
- TC -
