Huntingdon escapes No. 25 BSC in 38-35 thriller

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WSFA) - Huntingdon defeated No. 25 Birmingham-Southern in a thrilling road game Saturday night.

The Hawks were first to score at General Charles C. Krulak Stadium. Running back Kahari McReynolds scored a 31-yard rushing touchdown with 5:28 remaining in the first quarter. The Panthers quickly responded as wide receiver Branden Rew caught a 35-yard TD pass.

Both teams scored back-to-back touchdowns early in the second quarter, tying the game 14-14. Huntingdon scored another TD with 9:11 in the quarter but missed the field goal. Birmingham-Southern answered back with a TD of their own. A field goal gave the Panthers a one-point lead over the Hawks with 8:18 left in the quarter.

But the Hawks returned with a late field goal and led the game 23-21 into halftime.

After an almost scoreless third quarter, the Panthers scored a TD with 1:50 remaining, putting them back on top, 29-23.

The flip flopping continued into the final quarter. Huntingdon scored a touchdown with 7:16 left in the game followed by a TD for Birmingham-Southern with 4:10 remaining.

A final Huntingdon touchdown with 1:09 left in the game followed by a two-point conversion would give the Hawks a 38-35 victory over Birmingham Southern. This win gave the Hawks their first Wesley Cup achievement since 2017.

“I’m really proud of the way our guys continued to fight,” said Huntingdon head coach Mike Turk.“ We made a ton of mistakes and it would have been easy for our guys to think that it wasn’t going to be their night. They kept believing in each other though, and we found a way to win.”

The Huntingdon Hawks are now 1-1 for the season. They will travel to play Guilford in North Carolina next Saturday at 12 p.m. CST.

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