Faulkner University gets road win at Campbellsville
CAMPBELLSVILLE, Kentucky -- Faulkner withstood a furious Campbellsville second-half rally, escaping with a 31-24 victory Saturday afternoon to secure the program's first winning season in its six-year history.
The Eagles, who needed a late-game defensive stop after leading 28-7 early in the third quarter, moved to 6-4 overall and 4-2 in the Mid-South Conference's West Division with the victory, spoiling the Tigers' Senior Day celebration in the process. The Tigers dropped to 2-8 overall and 1-4 in the division.
The game was close at the end despite Faulkner's dominance of the statistics. The Eagles gained 598 yards of offense compared to just 299 for the Tigers, but it took a Campbellsville fourth-down incomplete pass in Faulkner territory in the closing minutes before the Eagles and head coach Brent Barker could rest easy.
"It's always exciting for us, there's no doubt about that," said Barker, who in his first year as head coach has led the Eagles to twice as many victories as any previous Faulkner team had secured in a season. "We certainly had opportunities to stretch this one out, but we just couldn't put them away.
"I'm proud of these guys," Barker said. "We fought through some adversity with some dropped passes and costly turnovers, but we stayed on track and got the win. The last two losses ended our chances of reaching some of our goals, but getting that sixth win with a chance for seven next week is a really good accomplishment for our program."
Faulkner hosts Kentucky Christian next Saturday afternoon for homecoming. The Eagles' seniors will be honored prior to the kickoff, which is set for 1:30 at Faulkner Stadium.