PEMBROKE – UNCP's ball-hawking defense turned in 12 tackles for loss, five sacks, two interceptions and a fumble recovery in limiting visiting Fairmont State to just 147 yards of total offense and keying the Braves to a 24-0 victory over the Falcons on Saturday afternoon at Grace P. Johnson Stadium.

True freshman Elliott Powell rushed for 47 yards and a pair of touchdowns to provide more than enough scoring on the day for UNCP (5-2) who has now won 14-straight home games dating back to its inaugural season in 2007. Wide receiver St. Anthony Lloyd matched a school record with eight receptions for a career-best 81 yards, with Josh Throckmorton hauling in three key passes for 46 yards as well. Quarterback  Cory Smith threw for 198 yards on 14-of-27 passing, but had his streak of 23-straight games with a touchdown pass snapped on the day as well.

The setback marked the fifth-consecutive loss for Fairmont State (2-5) who mustered just 66 yards of total offense in the first half. The Falcons were paced by Damon Waters who rushed 15 times for 64 yards, while also catching two passes for nine yards as well.  

Quentin Pate registered five tackles, including a pair of sacks, in pacing an outstanding defensive effort for the Braves who also got sacks from Adam Deese, T.J. Jenkins and Owen Thomas. A.C. Boykin and Rakim Williams each tallied an interception, while Kellen Rankin and Derek Davis both turned in a forced fumble.

"I am very excited for our guys. I thought that they bounced back extremely well (from last week's loss at Webber International)," said UNCP head coach Pete Shinnick. "We were without a handful of players (today) so, to play the way we did, speaks volumes about our team. I have a lot of respect for (Fairmont State) coach (Mike) Lopez. He is a class act and we think they are extremely competitive. I am proud of our defense for getting the shutout. They played well and I am fired up for them."

UNCP broke a scoreless deadlock on Jake Sanders' 20-yard field goal early in the second quarter, but took a 10-0 lead into the intermission when Powell capped a 7-play, 80-yard scoring drive with a one-yard plunge later in the period. Fairmont State would, finally, break the UNCP's scoring prowess by blocking a 34-yard field goal attempt by Sanders in the third quarter, but Boykin intercepted Fairmont State quarterback Logan Moore on the ensuing play to set up a short scoring jaunt by the Braves moments later.

Travis Daniels, who missed last week's game at Webber International due to injury, would cap the scoring on the day with a two-yard touchdown run with just more than a minute left in the third period.

UNCP will close out the road portion of its 2010 regular season schedule on Saturday when the Braves head to Winston-Salem to battle 25th-ranked Winston-Salem State (6-1) in a 1:30 p.m. Homecoming contest at Bowman Gray Stadium.