Elon holds off William & Mary 25-17

Oct 7, 2017, 10:18 pm

ELON, N.C. -- Malcolm Summers ran for two touchdowns, Davis Cheek ran for another, and Elon held off a second-half rally and capped it with a safety to beat William & Mary 25-17 on Saturday to win its fifth straight.

The Tribe (2-3, 0-2 Colonial Athletic Association) scored 14 unanswered points in the third quarter while holding Elon (5-1, 3-0) to two yards, but with 3:39 left in the game Elon's Warren Messer sacked Brandon Battle in the end zone to preserve the win.

Summers capped Elon's opening drive with a 20-yard TD run. Late in the second quarter, Greg Liggs Jr. picked off a pass by Battle and the Phoenix scored three plays later when Davis Cheek ran 18 yards for a TD for a 23-3 halftime lead.

Cheek was 12 of 16 for 179 passing with an interception and scored on an 18-yard run. Summers gained 81 yards on 17 carries and Elon outgained William & Mary 319 yards to 271.

Battle hit Riley Wilson on a 1-yard scoring pass after completing a pass on fourth down, and the Tribe closed to 23-17 after Nate Evans's 2-yard plunge in the third quarter. Battle scrambled to convert another fourth-down play on the Tribe's next drive, which ended with a missed 31-yard field goal.

Battle was 11 of 21 for 155 yards passing. Evans gained 77 yards on 19 carries.

---

More AP college football: http://collegefootball.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-Top25