Big 2nd half keeps WBU rolling

Box Score Wayland Baptist rallied from a 14-point halftime deficit by scoring 24 second-half points and pitching a shutout on defense as the Pioneers claimed their fourth straight win over Southwestern Assemblies of God in Central States Football League play Saturday afternoon, 24-14.

"The kids kept working hard and came back in that second half and it really changed over for us," Wayland coach Butch Henderson said. "It goes back to our belief system that good things are going to happen.

"The guys just started making plays," he added. "It was like this is what we're supposed to do. Let's find a way to win, and that's what they did."

The come-from-behind victory at Greg Sherwood Memorial Bulldog Stadium gave Wayland (5-1, 2-0 CSFL) its fifth win on the season, one more than last season when the Pioneers set a new mark for total wins since the program was restarted in 2012.

De'Sean Johnson scored on a pair of 3-yard runs and Trey Rowe snared a 51-yard touchdown pass from Mitchell Parsley to provide the points for Wayland, which also got a 19-yard field goal and three PATs from fill-in kicker Renato Dos Anjos.

Leading the opportunistic WBU defense were linebacker Alden Mann, who matched his school-record with 22 tackles, and strong safety Travis White, who established a new school mark by intercepting three passes. Richard Parham and Brian Johnson also had a pick apiece as Wayland came up with a school-record five interceptions and a fumble recovery.

"When you're plus-six in turnovers you're going to win most of the time," Henderson said.

Four of the Pioneers' interceptions came inside Wayland's 20-yard line, including three on SAGU's last three possessions of the game. White ended SAGU drives with back-to-back picks, including one in the end zone for the second straight week, before Parham grabbed his at the Wayland 1 with 10 seconds left on the clock.

White, who preserved Wayland's 26-20 win over Bacone a week earlier with an interception in the end zone with 10 seconds left in the game, now has seven thefts on the season, also a school record.

Although kept out of the end zone, Jerrell Peterson ran for 95 yards on 28 carries, while Johnson added 45 yards on 15 totes to go with two receptions for 41 yards. Parsley completed 17-of-31 passes for 266 yards, while Preston Woodard hauled in five passes for 86 yards. Rowe finished with four grabs for 93 yards, including the 51-yard TD.

Wayland's defense came up with six sacks, while the Pioneer offense line didn't allow any. Billy Hatten and Dalton Bartel recorded a pair of sacks each, and 11 different players were credited with being in on tackles behind the line of scrimmage, of which Wayland had 13.

Things looked a bit bleak for Wayland when SAGU (2-5, 0-3) scored first-half TDs following a 99-yard drive and again after recovering a muffed punt at the WBU 19-yard line.

"If I knew what it was I would fix it so it would never happen again," Henderson said of his team's first-half performance. "Part of it is (SAGU) is pretty dang good."

The Lions then sniffed out a fake Wayland punt on the Pioneers' first second-half possession.

But White came up with his first INT three plays later, and that seemed to flip the switch for Wayland.

"I felt like we came out in that second half with a whole different perspective," Henderson said. "Our guys kept staying after it and staying after it and started putting things together."

Parsley hooked up with Woodard for a 31-yard completion, and after a personal foul penalty against SAGU the Pioneers had it at the Lions' 14.

A 12-yard pass to L'Waylon Derrick set WBU up first-and-goal at the 2. Two rushes by Johnson and one by Parsley left the Pioneers a yard further back, but on fourth down Johnson took it in to get the Pioneers their first points with 4:10 left in the third.

"When that happened it was like, 'Yes, here we go,'" Henderson said.

Wayland then benefited when SAGU snapped the ball over its punter's head, putting the Pioneers in business at the Lions' 29-yard line. WBU turned that into a 19-yard field goal by Dos Anjos on the first play of the fourth quarter, pulling the Pioneers to within 14-10.

SAGU managed a couple of first downs on its next possession before the Wayland defense forced a punt. On third-and-18, Parsley connected with Johnson for a 35-yard completion, and with another personal foul against the Lions tacked on Wayland went from its own 24-yard line to the SAGU 26.

The Pioneers kept driving, and Johnson put the Pioneers ahead, 17-14, with his second 3-yard TD run of the day five minutes into the final quarter.

Wayland's interception fest began at that point with the Pioneers grabbing three SAGU passes to stop the Lions' final three possessions. The first – by White in the Pioneer end zone – was turned into seven insurance points when Rowe turned a short inside slant pass from Parsley into a 51-yard TD with 6½ minutes remaining.

The win kept Wayland unbeaten in conference play as the Pioneers try to keep pace with Arizona Christian (4-2, 3-0), which blasted winless Texas College (0-6, 0-2) in Arizona on Saturday, 57-7. Arizona Christian is ranked the equivalent of 28^th in the NAIA.

The Pioneers next take on Texas College at 2 p.m. Oct. 22 in Tyler. Then they return home to face Lyon College (3-4, 2-1) – the team Wayland beat 37-14 in a non-conference game in Arkansas to open the season – before heading to Arizona on Nov. 5.

WBU's regular-season ends at home Nov. 12 against Langston (3-2, 1-1), which edged Bacone Saturday, 33-32.