MURFREESBORO – Wesley College was as good as billed.

The number 28 ranked Division III team in the nation scored three times on defense and once on special teams to defeat Chowan College 59-13 here Saturday afternoon.

Trailing 24-0 late in the second quarter, the Braves rallied for a score to close the deficit.

One play after being sacked, senior quarterback Kevin Helmlinger found Josh Floyd for a 12-yard gain to the Chowan 27-yardline.

Jack Ross picked up two yards on the next carry before Helmlinger completed back-to-back passes to Floyd and Ross to get the ball to midfield.

Helmlinger then found James Fox for a 21-yard gain down to the 29. After Ross moved the ball to the 22, Helmlinger connected with Fox again to move the ball to the 14-yardline.

A pass interference call against Wesley gave the Braves a first-and-goal at the two-yardline with only two seconds to play in the first half. Helmlinger connected with Fox on the last play of the half for the touchdown. Grayson Jackson added the PAT to make it 24-7 at the intermission.

Any momentum the Braves took into halftime evaporated quickly in the third quarter when the Wolverines scored four times to amass a 52-7 advantage.

Wesley opened the scoring in the second half quickly as Mike Clarke returned the kickoff 67 yards for a score. Chris Carlton added the PAT to make it 33-7.

The Wolverine offense scored two more times – a Tykee Perry three-yard run and a two-yard Warren Sharper score – to grab a 45-7 lead with less than six minutes to play in the third quarter.

The final score of the period came when Chris Mumey, who forced a fumble, sacked Helmlinger. William Buck picked up the loose pigskin and scored from 33 yards out which, combined with Carlton’s kick, made it 52-7.

Wesley’s final score of the game came when Terrell Ingram returned his interception of a Chris Desteunder pass for 50 yards for a score. Carlton added the PAT to make it 59-7.

Desteunder, who was in for Helmlinger, led the final scoring drive for Chowan.

He started the drive by connecting with Jackson on a 20-yard completion to move into Wolverine territory. Two plays later, Desteunder found Brandon Myrick for another Chowan first down, this one at the Wolverine 35-yardline.

Desteunder picked up one first down on the ground while Ross picked up another, eventually getting the Braves to the 10-yardline.

Desteunder found Brandon Squires for a five-yard gain and then found Floyd on a five-yard touchdown pass. The conversion pass fell incomplete, leaving the Braves behind 59-13.

&uot;Obviously, we learned a lesson today,&uot; first-year Chowan mentor Lorick Atkinson said. &uot;I told them in the locker room, now we know what it takes to make the next step.&uot;

The coach said he wasn’t interested in sugarcoating the truth.

&uot;They’re better than us,&uot; he said. &uot;They did a great job. They outplayed us, out coached us, just did it all right.&uot;

Despite suffering their seventh loss of the season, Atkinson said he was proud of his team for their continued effort.

&uot;I’m proud of our effort,&uot; he said. &uot;These kids fight, they really do. It’s just part of the process we have to go through to build this thing.&uot;

Atkinson said the program was without a kicker and that certainly hurt and also said the team as a whole was suffering from a lack of depth.

&uot;We’re not good enough to overcome mistakes,&uot; he added. &uot;Good teams exploit mistakes and that’s what they did today. Still, I think we’re learning from it.&uot;