Staff report
SALISBURY — The Catawba Indians were a different team defensively in the second half and rallied to beat UVA Wise 44-34 in South Atlantic Conference football played on Saturday night at Shuford Stadium.
UVA Wise scored 34 points in the first half, zero in the second half. A transformation of that magnitude is going to happen maybe once every 10 years. But it really did happen — 2,850 fans witnessed it.
Whether the change was due to halftime adjustments by the Indians, or simply better execution or better effort by Catawba after the break wasn’t immediately clear, but the results were satisfactory. The Indians (2-1, 1-1) needed the home conference win against a team that beat them in 2024 and they got it.
UVA Wise (0-3, 0-2) led 14-6 after a Jake Corkren to DJ Powell touchdown pass and a Corkren TD run.
UVA Wise peaked with a 34-20 lead with 3:36 left in the second quarter. Catawba was reeling at that point. The Highland Cavaliers had scored on a pick-six and Daniel Thomas, who threatened the program rushing record with 256 rushing yards and caught a 62-yard pass, was running amok for massive gains.
Catawba scored a critical touchdown with a little over a minute left in the first half — Preston Brown to RJ Jackson for 39 yards — t0 get back to a 34-27 deficit at the half.
The game swung for good with a 98-yard Catawba drive in the third quarter that got the Indians level at 34-all. Brown, the SAC Offensive Player of the Week, got the touchdown from the 5.
Bryson Sims kicked a tie-breaking, 30-yard field goal for a 37-34 Catawa lead.
Catawba’s defense got a huge stop at the 1-yard line, and UVA Wise missed a chip-shot field goal that would’ve tied the game with 9:38 remaining.
About three minutes later, Catawba scored a backbreaking TD on Brown’s 41-yard completion to Amari McArthur, who spun out of a tackle and was off to the races. It was a huge day for McArthur, as the former North Rowan star turned five receptions into 138 yards and two TDs.
Brown shook off the pick-six and produced a monster game with 25-for-29 for 372 yards and three TDs. He also ran for two TDs. Bo Pryor had nine catches for 117 yards.
Bennett Galloway rushed 18 times for 138 yards for the Indians.
Next for Catawba is a road game at Newberry. Next for UVA Wise, coached by former Indian Gary Bass, is a home game against Wingate.
