It was less-than-ideal conditions for the West Virginia State University football team’s home opener on Saturday, with rain throughout the game.
It didn’t damper WVSU on the field though as the Yellow Jackets defense made huge plays and State used a strong run game to earn a 28-14 home win over Barton at Lakin-Ray Field at Dickerson Stadium to even its record at 1-1 on the season.
The Yellow Jackets defense returned two Barton interceptions for touchdowns, with the second one preserving the win late in the game.
With WVSU clinging to a 21-14 lead with just under two minutes to play, Barton attempted a pass on a crossing route. State’s Kyeran Garcia stepped in front for an interception and returned it 40 yards for the game-clinching touchdown.
“It’s always good to go 1-0,†State coach John Pennington said. “It feels good. The defense had two touchdowns, and you’re going to win a lot of games when you do that. We played a solid game in all phases.â€
The Yellow Jackets also returned another interception for a touchdown just 19 seconds into the third quarter to take a 14-0 lead. Jacob Camacho did the honors from 34 yards out.
“I though the defense was great,†Pennington said. “They had two touchdowns, a huge goal-line stand, and got another stop when they missed a field goal. They bent at times but never broke.â€
With the poor weather conditions, WVSU took to the ground, running 41 times for 182 yards. Two running backs had double-digit carries.
State standout running back Justin Pessoa ran 11 times for 57 yards, including a 2-yard touchdown run on the first possession of the game. However, he suffered an ankle injury and didn’t return to the game.
The Yellow Jackets had plenty of other options, though, as Jojo Restall stepped up and led the way with 82 yards on 16 carries. Also, Nasean Hill rushed for a touchdown.
“We moved the ball all day and kept running the ball at about five yards a clip,†Pennington said. “We led the entire game and kept feeding the beasts. The job was to run the clock and keep the lead, and they did that.
“Pessoa got his ankle rolled up and you hate to see him go down because he’s such a leader. But we have two other very capable backs right behind him and felt comfortable and didn’t bat an eye.â€
After Pessoa scored on a 2-yard touchdown run for State on the first possession of the game, the Yellow Jacket defense earned a huge defensive goal line stand, setting the tone for the rest of the game.
Barton faced a second-and-goal from inside the WVU 1 early in the second quarter. However, a loss of three on a run play, an incomplete pass and a 2-yard gain on a fourth-and-goal allowed WVSU to get off the field with no points allowed.
After going scoreless at halftime, Barton scored both of its touchdowns in the second half. Trevor Nored connected with Isaiah Jacobs for a 21-yard TD pass and added a 2-yard touchdown run to make it 21-14 with 8:22 left in the game.
