Pikeville, KY – One of the most important numbers in the game of football is time of possession, and on Friday night, the Bears dominated that category. UPIKE controlled the ball for a staggering 41 minutes, leaving the 25^th-ranked Bethel Wildcats with little time as the Bears rolled to their third straight win by a final score of 35-19.

UPIKE put up 488 yards of total offense featuring a season high 275 yards on the ground as Alex Sanders led the charge in his career-high 124-yard outing. The Jeff Davis HS product averaged an impressive 7.8 yards per carry. Jayden Neace finished just short of his breakout performance a week ago, totaling 123 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

Through the air yet another breakout game came from the talented arm of Jalil El-Amin who relieved Trevon Wofford in the third quarter. The redshirt sophomore was precise and dynamic, going 8 for 9 with 124 yards through the air including a 75-yard drive in the fourth where he threw for 59 yards, punching in the TD on a keeper to end the drive.

The Bears strung together four drives over 70 yards, three of which resulted in a touchdown. Coach Holland's squad totaled a season-high 24 first downs in the effort, converting eight times in third down situations. The ground game was strong the entirety of the contest as the team finished averaging over five yards per carry.

Damian Sutton led the receiving core with three catches for 59 yards, including a 31 yard snag in the fourth quarter. Victor Johnson was targeted four times and finished with 50 yards and a touchdown.

Defensively, the Bears held the Wildcats to 239 total yards which is the lowest for Bethel this season. UPIKE tallied 72 tackles, a season-high eight tackles for loss, a sack and two interception, allowing the Wildcats just 64 yards rushing.

Troy Hill led the defensive effort, getting in on 10 tackles while Luke Adkison totaled nine, including a pair of tackles-for-loss totaling 15 yards. Christopher Dublin swarmed the secondary, grabbing two interceptions and totaling seven tackles. Cedric Thomas and Cameron Miller led the Bears with three solo tackles each.

UPIKE's defense forced a three and out on the opening drive of the game, taking over after a punt and marching 88 yards down the field before Neace punched it in to make it 7-0. The turnaround was quick for the UPIKE offense after the Bears forced a fumble and put the ball back into the hands of Wofford and company who once again scored, this time on a TD pass to Victor Johnson.

The Bears were quieter offensively in the second quarter, but the defense held strong, only allowing Bethel a single field goal as the Bears headed into the break up 14-3.

Bethel struck for their first touchdown of the contest early in the third but the Bears had one in the bag late in the third quarter, putting El-Amin under center. The Duluth, GA native got to work quickly, leading the Bears on a 52-yard drive to score making it 21-10 UPIKE.

The fourth quarter belonged to El-Amin and the Bears as they tacked on two more touchdowns, allowing Bethel one TD after a costly penalty. UPIKE continued to control the clock and cruised to their third straight MSC win.

With the win, UPIKE improves to 3-2 on the season and moves to third in the MSC standings behind 17^th ranked Georgetown (4-1) and 3^rd ranked Lindsey Wilson (5-0).

The Bears go on the road next Friday, April 6^th for a bout with University of the Cumberlands. Kick-off between the Bears and Patriots is slated for 6PM.