PEMBROKE –
Rodney Smith found
Eric Price in the back of the endzone early in the fourth quarter, and
D.J. Parker blocked a potential game-tying extra point with just more than three minutes left, to help lift the Gold past Black, 10-9, in the 13
th Annual UNC Pembroke Football Spring Game on Thursday evening at Grace P. Johnson Stadium.
The squads traded field goals in the second quarter – a 26-yard kick from
Shawn Andrew (Black) and a 19-yarder from
Alex Alvarado (Gold) – for all of the scoring in the first half. The Black team had all the makings of a go-ahead drive late in the second quarter, but
Jordan Howard forced a fumble at the 1-yard line right before the halftime whistle to keep the game tied.
Gold used the swift legs of running back
Jerry Roberts, as well as the elusiveness of Smith, to march down the field in the fourth quarter. Smith capped off the long drive when he barely avoided a sack and found a diving price for the eventual game-winning score.
Jayce Allen put Black in good field position when he picked off
Rodney Smith at the Gold 33-yard line a few possessions later, but
Shawn Everett got in front of a long pass from Jones on the ensuing play to stuff the momentum. Jones would make good on the following possession, however, when he found
Aaron Whitaker on a 27-yard touchdown pass that made it a 10-9 game. Parker found space up the middle on the point-after attempt, however, and got a mitt on the ball to keep the score at a standstill.
Black got one last chance to make a difference when it took possession with just more than a minute left to play in the contest, but
Jordan Howard sealed the outcome for Gold with an interception at the 30-yard line.
Season tickets for the 2019 season are already on sale and can be purchased for $107 at the Givens Performing Arts Center box office or by calling (910) 521-6361. The 2019 slate features five games at Grace P. Johnson Stadium, including an October 12 Homecoming contest against Mars Hill. The Black & Gold will open its 2019 campaign at home on September 5 against Winston-Salem State in a Thursday night tilt at Grace P. Johnson Stadium.
