CATAWBA, N.C. - - UVA Wise put together its best defensive effort in program history Saturday as the team rolled to a 30-7 South Atlantic Conference football victory over Catawba at Shuford Stadium. The Indians were limited to just 40 yards of total offense and four first downs, both of which were new program records for the Cavaliers.
UVA Wise (5-5, 4-4 SAC) controlled the game from start to finish. The Cavaliers scored a pair of first quarter touchdowns as quarterback Lendon Redwine fired a 29-yard scoring strike to Darrien Newton and a 23-yard touchdown pass to Cam Blakely to put the visitors out to an early lead.
The early offense would prove to be more than enough as Catawba (5-3, 2-3) failed to muster any offense on the day. The Indians best chance of scoring an offensive touchdown came on the team's second drive. Catawba moved the ball 34 yards on six plays before being forced to punt from inside the UVA Wise 40-yard line.
It would be the deepest penetration of the day for the hosts who finished the game a paltry 0-for-13 on third downs while going 0-for-2 on fourth down chances.
The defensive front for the Cavs lived in the Indians' backfield all afternoon. Chavon Fields finished with five solo tackles, three sacks, four tackles for loss, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. Fellow defensive lineman Joel Burgess added five tackles and a forced fumble to join Fields for team-high tackle honors.
Dane Damron's team pushed its lead to three scores in the second quarter on a career-long 41-yard field goal by Drew Cassidy to head to intermission comfortably in front.
Catawba scored its lone touchdown 17 seconds into the second half when Denoris Wardlow intercepted a pass and returned it 39 yards for a touchdown.
It would be all the excitement the home fans would get. The Indians finished the third quarter with negative eight yards in the quarter as the squad finished with negative two yards in the second half.
With the early lead and the defense clicking on all cylinders, UVA Wise turned to its running game to ice the win.
Redshirt sophomore Javeon Gillespie went over 100 yards for the second consecutive contest. Gillespie ran the ball 23 times for 117 yards and two scores to lead a rushing attack that posted 183 yards on the ground.
Redwine finished the game 23-for-41 through the air for 330 yards as he completed at least one pass to 11 different receivers. Blakely, Newton and JJ McNeil each had four catches; Blakely led all players with 72 receiving yards.
Catawba quarterback Ken Avent finished 10-of-25 for 48 yards while finishing with the team's longest play from scrimmage when he scrambled for 18 yards.
The four first downs allowed are the third fewest in SAC history as UVA Wise won back-to-back road games for the first time since 2016.
With the win, the Cavs have an opportunity to claim their first winning season since 2016. Next week, Barton visits Smith Stadium for Senior Day 2021. Kickoff is slated for 12 p.m.
