Daulton Hatley and Marquis Gray etched their names in the record book as Southeastern pushed its winning streak to four-straight with a 48-20 victory over Arkansas-Monticello on Saturday afternoon in Monticello, Ark.
The win lifts the Savage Storm to 6-3 on the year and secures the second-straight wining season and seventh in the last eight seasons.
Hatley finished with 205 yards passing on a 14-of-31 performance in wet conditions with three touchdowns. The three touchdowns would move Hatley into a tie with Drew Beard for the school record for career passing touchdowns and leaves him one short of matching his own record for passing TD’s in a season. He would also bring his career passing total to 7,462 yards which passes Beard and moves him into second place on SE’s career passing yardage list.
He would find six different receivers on the day, but none more than Marquis Gray who finished with six grabs for 96 yards and a touchdown. His receiving score would move him into sole possession of the Savage Storm record for receiving touchdowns in a season with 14. His 96 yards also moves him to 1,096 yards on the season which ranks second all-time for a single season, just 62 yards behind Romar Crenshaw’s record of 1,158 yards.
Matthew Nunez pulled in three catches for 54 yards and a score, while Ryan Hirt logged one catch for a touchdown.
Hirt would finish as the leading rusher as well for SE with 79 yards on seven carries, while Deundre Wheeler and Jonathon Cobb turned in 68 yards each, with Wheeler scoring twice.
The Storm rushing attack finished with 256 yards, while the passing game added 205 yards.
Maalik Hall led the defense with four tackles and a pair of sacks, while Ja’Lon Freeman added four tackles, one for a loss, and a forced fumble.
Trey Keatts connected on a pair of field goals, while Tyveon Williams blocked and returned a punt for a touchdown, the second one he has had this season.
SE found itself in a hole early as UAM would take advantage of a Southeastern turnover and take a 7-0 lead at the 11:40 mark of the first quarter.
The teams would trade drives after that score until the Storm put together a seven play, 64-yard drive with Wheeler scoring from five yards out to knot the game at 7-7 with 3:05 to play in the quarter.
Williams would end the next UAM drive by blocking a punt and returning it 10 yards for a score, his second blocked punt return for a TD this season, giving SE a 14-7 lead.
On the next Storm drive Hatley would find Nunez for a 35-yard touchdown pass to push the lead to 21-7 at the 11:47 mark of the second quarter.
The teams would trade fruitless drives until the 4:48 mark when Southeastern took over at its own 30 yardline, converting one third down on a Hatley scramble and another on a Jason Ngwu rush, and later converted a fourth down on a pass to Kaleb Whitley before cashing in the drive with a 19-yard pass from Hatley to Gray with 15 second to play in the first half to take a 28-7 lead at the half.
SE would get the ball to open the second half and march 62 yards on eight plays with Wheeler scoring from eight yards out to stretch the lead to 35-7.
Two drive later Freeman would force a fumble and Chilton would recover it at the UAM 17 yard line and Keatts would cap the drive with a 32 yard field goal for a 38-7 lead with 6:48 to play in the third.
On the next SE drive the Storm would move 59 yards on seven plays before Keatts hit a 29 yard field goal to push the lead to 41-7.
The Boll Weevils would answer with a scoring drive to move the score to 41-14 late in the third, butt he Storm would answer with a 10-play, 68 yard drive before Hatley hit Hirt for a 17 yard touchdown pass to extend the lead to 48-14 with 11:09 to play in the contest.
UAM would score one final touchdown with 2:32 remaining to set the final of 48-20.
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