Sept. 22, 2007

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Box Score

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Samford's Mark Prevost kicked four second-half field goals and Chris Evans had his second-straight 100-plus yard rushing game as the Bulldog football team opened Ohio Valley Conference play with a 26-21 win over Southeast Missouri Saturday night at Seibert Stadium.

Samford improves to 3-1 overall and 1-0 in OVC play with the win. Southeast Missouri drops to 2-2 overall and 0-1 in conference play.

"This was a big win for us," Samford head coach Pat Sullivan said. "I am so proud of our guys. We just kept hanging in there and we were able to make a couple of plays to get the momentum back."

Prevost made field goals from 47, 37, 41 and 34 yards out in the second half after missing one from 23 yards out in the first half. The 47-yard kick was a career-long for the freshman. Evans rushed 22 times for 153 yards. Alex Barnett rushed 13 times for a career-high 97 yards. Barnett also returned a kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter.

"The kickoff return probably turned the game around for us," Sullivan said. "It gave us the momentum back and our kids just kept fighting and scratching. I wish we could have knocked it in for a touchdown when we got close, but Prevost just kept knocking them through. With each field goal he made, you could see him come off a little more confident."

For SEMO, Timmy Holloman rushed 28 times for 170 yards and two touchdowns.

Southeast Missouri jumped on top first when Doug Spada kicked a 48-yard field goal with 9:06 to go in the first quarter to give SEMO a 3-0 lead. Spada added a second field goal, this one from 46 yards out, with 10:25 to go in the second quarter to push SEMO's lead to 6-0.

Samford got on the scoreboard when Jefferson Adcock hit Jeff Moore on a 32-yard touchdown with 9:49 to go in the second quarter. Prevost's PAT gave Samford a 7-6 lead. SEMO took the lead back when Holloman ran for a 39-yard touchdown with 6:47 to play in the second quarter. Victor Anderson scored the two-point conversion to give the Redhawks a 14-7 lead.

Southeast Missouri pushed its lead to 21-7 when Holloman scored on a 45-yard run with 12:18 to go in the third quarter. Spada added the PAT for the Redhawks. Samford's Barnett returned the ensuing kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown, and Prevost added the PAT to cut the SEMO lead to 21-14.. The return marked the first time a Samford player returned a kickoff for a touchdown since Cortland Finnegan returned a kickoff 89 yards for a score against West Alabama in 2003.

Prevost kicked his 47 yard field goal with 7:50 to go in the third quarter, the 37-yarder with 4:14 left in the third quarter, the 41 yard kick with 9:55 to go in the fourth quarter and the 34-yarder with 2:14 to go in the game to seal the win.

The win marks the first time Samford has won a conference-opening game since the 2003 season when the Bulldogs opened OVC play with a 41-31 win over Southeast Missouri.

Samford will return to action on Saturday, Sept. 29, when the Bulldogs travel to Richmond, Ky., to take on the Eastern Kentucky Colonels. The game is scheduled for a 2 p.m. Central kickoff.