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GREENVILLE, S.C. – Behind a monster first half, Kennesaw State won its third straight game overall and its second straight road game by holding off Furman, 52-42, Saturday in a shootout at Paladin Stadium in Greenville, S.C.
 
The Owls (3-1) led 49-14 at the halftime, but withstood a 21-point third quarter by the Paladins (0-5) to win consecutive road games for the first time in the program's history.
 
"It's a big win for us," said head coach Brian Bohannon. "That's a team that's made 16 playoff appearances and won a national championship. That win says a lot about our kids and our program."
 
Darnell Holland rushed for 123 yards and a pair of touchdowns, Justin Sumpter caught six passes for 147 yards and a touchdown, while QB Chandler Burks had a big day through the air (9-fo-12, 171 yards, one TD) and on the ground (27 carries for 107 yards and three TDs) in pacing the Owls.
 
Kennesaw State scored on each of its first five possessions to open a 35-0 lead with eight minutes left in the second quarter. After Furman scored consecutive touchdowns, the Owls' quick-strike offense reached the end zone twice in the half's final 1:06 to take a 49-14 lead into the break.
 
"We went in there with a great game plan, knowing we were going against a really good program," said Burks. "Our guys made a lot of plays. We were executing on all cylinders (in the first half) and I'm proud of our guys. That's a great team win."
 
It was all Furman in the third quarter as the Paladins chipped away at the lead, scoring three straight times to pull within 49-35 heading to the fourth.
 
In game defined by touchdowns, it was a clutch, 40-yard field goal by Justin Thompson with 9:20 left in the game that allowed Kennesaw State to stem the tide and keep the hosts at arm's reach.
 
Thompson's boot gave the Owls a 52-35 lead, capping a clock-chewing 14-play, 52-yard drive that bled 6:30 off the clock and made it a three-score cushion again.
 
Kennesaw State rolled up 567 yards of total offense, including 393 yards on the ground. To go along with the 100-yard rushing efforts from Holland and Burks, Micah Reed rushed eight times for 66 yards, Jake McKenzie had 62 yards, while Myles White gained 45 yards rushing and scored the game's first touchdown.
 
Dante Blackmon, who intercepted three passes last week at Duquesne en route to National Defensive Player of the Week honors, recovered a fumble on Furman's first drive that set up a KSU touchdown and intercepted a pass in the closing seconds of the first half.
 
Desmond Johnson had two more sacks and has four over his last two games. Izzy Sam led the defense with nine tackles, while Anthony Gore had eight. Taylor Henkle had six tackles, recovered a fumble and swatted away three passes.
 
After three weeks away from Fifth Third Bank Stadium, Kennesaw State returns to action next Saturday by hosting Missouri S&T. The game kicks off at 1 p.m. and can be seen live on Peachtree TV.

POST-GAME #NESTNOTES

ROAD WARRIORS
The Owls have now reeled off two consecutive road victories for the first time in program history. Kennesaw State followed a 36-28 victory at Duquesne a week ago with an impressive 52-42 win at Furman. The Owls have out-scored their opponents in their three road wins in school history by a combined 144-86 – a +58 scoring margin in road victories for Kennesaw State.

RUN STOPPERS
Kennesaw State's ground defense was impressive for the second consecutive week, holding Furman to just 69 yards on 19 carries – a 3.6 average per rush. KSU's rushing defense entered the day ranked 12^th nationally and first in the Big South, allowing just 97.7 yards per game. Furman became the latest victim to fall short of the 100-yard mark on the ground, as the Owls have now held three of their four opponents short of the 100-yard mark this season (five since last year).

TURNING THE TIDE
After forcing just one turnover through the first two games of the season, Kennesaw State now has eight over the last two games including two more interceptions (Dante Blackmon and Akebren Ralls). Kennesaw State has accounted for at least one turnover in 12 of its 15 games in program history.

HAND IT OVER
Senior DB Derrick Farrow ranked fourth in the nation in forced fumbles in 2015, and continued his robbery at Furman. His stripe in the first quarter –recovered by secondary-mate Dante Blackmon—marked the Owls' first fumble recovery this season. In fact, Blackmon and DB Akrebren Ralls each tallied interceptions on the day and Taylor Henkle recovered a fumble, as KSU now holds a +21 (31-10) in points-off-turnovers margin on the season. The pick was Ralls' first career interception and fourth for Blackmon in 2016. Meanwhile, the Owls' offense did not turn the ball over once on the day.

GAME OF BIG PLAYS
Three of the Owls seven touchdowns were explosive plays -- Myles White's 30-yard run to opening the scoring, Darnell Holland's 62-yard rush and a 46-yard TD pass from Chandler Burks to Justin Sumpter.

HOLLAND'S BIG DAY
Holland followed last week's impressive performance at Duquesne with a career day against the Paladins. He accounted for five carries for 122 yards and two touchdowns, marking his first career 100-yard rushing game. His two TDs were also a career high and his 62-yd run marked the third-longest touchdown run in KSU history.

-- #GoKSUOwls --