Fayette, Mo. - The Central Methodist Football program fell to Heart North Division foe William Penn University by a score of 35-17 Sunday afternoon at Davis Field.
The game was rescheduled for Sunday after multiple rounds of lightning delays Saturday forced the game to be moved. Central now stands at 1-3 overall, while the Statesmen improve to 2-2.
The Eagles found themselves trailing early, as WPU scored a pair of touchdowns on its opening two possessions of the first quarter. William Penn then drove 80 yards in 17 plays to score their third touchdown of the first half midway throug the second. The drive chewed up more than eight minutes of game time, and put the Statesmen up 21-0.
Central found a spark in the closing moments of the second quarter, as the offense drove 63 yards in 14 plays to reach the Statesmen 25 yard line. Junior kicker Oscar Simon nailed a 42-yard field goal to give Central its first points of the day.
The Eagles entered the halftime break trailing 21-3.
William Penn padded its lead on its opening drive of the third on a 17-yard touchdown pass. Central responded on their ensuing drive, as senior quarterback Joe Cambridge threaded a pass to Drake Dudley for a 29-yard touchdown reception.
The next three drives would stall, as both defenses remained in a stalemate through the end of the third quarter.
William Penn's defense came up big as a quarterback sack led to a fumble recovery for an 11-yard touchdown at the 10:40 mark of the fourth. CMU's offense continued to battle, as they responded with an eight-play 67-yard scoring drive, capped by a 13-yard touchdown pass from Cambridge to Arron Edwards.
The Eagles were unable to add anymore points, as the Statesmen would go on to earn a 35-17 win.
Cambridge finished the afternoon completing 19-of-33 passes for 236 yards and two touchdowns. Dudley led the receiving core with three catches for 95 yards and a touchdown, while Zane Rice snagged three catches for 52 yards including a long of 24.
Lontas Mcclinton was all over the field defensively, racking up a game-high 16 tackles. Keshawn Wilson tallied 15 tackles and two pass breakups, while Joseph Slattery recorded 10.
Dylan Holt and Devin Watson each finished the day with a sack.
Central heads out on the road to face No. 2 nationally ranked Grand View University Saturday, Sept. 30 at 12:00 p.m. in Des Moines, Iowa.
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