CONWAY, Ark. (Interstat) — Collin Hurst threw an 84-yard touchdown pass to Jaden Henry, but Central Arkansas answered with a productive ground game and a decisive second-half run to defeat West Georgia 35-14 in an NCAA Football Championship Division game Saturday at Estes Stadium. The announced attendance was 4,374. Central Arkansas improved to 3-7, while West Georgia dropped to 1-9.

West Georgia struck first when Hurst connected with Henry deep for an 84-yard score in the first quarter. Central Arkansas responded later in the opening period when Omolo found Tyrell Pollard for a 36-yard touchdown. The Wolves regained the lead in the second quarter on Holton Harris’s 70-yard touchdown run. Central Arkansas cut into the deficit with Jalen Washington’s 1-yard scoring run, and Caleb Jones added a 32-yard field goal before halftime. After the break, Central Arkansas took control when a West Georgia fumble was recovered by Jalen Washington at the goal line for a touchdown. Omolo later broke free for a 28-yard touchdown run, and Jones hit a 22-yard field goal in the fourth quarter. A 38-yard field-goal attempt by Jones was no good later in the fourth.

Hurst completed 15 of 25 passes for 184 yards and a touchdown for West Georgia and added one 3-yard reception. Henry finished with three receptions for 109 yards and a touchdown and had a 1-yard kick return. Lucas Naquin recorded eight tackles and one quarterback hurry, Stephan French made 10 tackles and Dawson Rivers had 11 tackles. Chidu Bekee led the Wolves with 12 tackles and one quarterback hurry. Chancellor Bryant added four tackles, Malik Leverett had one 4-yard reception and one tackle, Brody Jones caught two passes for 14 yards and returned two punts for 18 yards, BJ Atkins caught an 18-yard pass and Nakobi Spurrier made seven tackles. Holton Harris had a 70-yard touchdown run and three tackles, Luke Marble rushed six times for 38 yards, and Nolan Harris punted four times for 159 yards. Christian Monfort added six carries for 23 yards and four receptions for 15 yards, Shammai Gates had six carries for 22 yards and two receptions for 15 yards, and Chance Washington ran four times for 10 yards. Dalton Epps and Sean Ferguson each made six tackles, with Ferguson adding a quarterback hurry. Malik Lewis had four tackles, Caleb Reid, Elijah Barnes and Myti Johnson each made three tackles, and Zack Harris and Andrew Ruffin each had two tackles. Jamie Speight, Cam Marshall, Darien Harden, Xavier Ether, Randarius Ogletree and Shawn Cummings each recorded at least one tackle for the Wolves.

For Central Arkansas, Jalen Washington rushed 21 times for 100 yards and a touchdown and caught two passes for 9 yards. Dakarai Anderson caught 10 passes for 113 yards, Tyrell Pollard had five receptions for 74 yards and a touchdown, and Arlie Lee added three catches for 47 yards. Enoch Assan ran 10 times for 38 yards and caught one pass for a 1-yard loss, Cameron Young rushed six times for 28 yards, and Chapman McKown had three carries for 6 yards, one reception for 5 yards and one punt return for no gain. Que Tillman caught one pass for 3 yards and Kealen Juniel had one reception for no gain. Defensively, Marcus Washington recorded eight tackles, Tae Bulock had seven tackles, Ashtyn Williams made six tackles, Deorius Cobbs added four tackles and Jakobe Shell finished with three tackles, two sacks and two quarterback hurries. Bryson Adamoh chipped in three tackles.

Central Arkansas snapped a five-game losing streak with the victory. West Georgia has lost four straight games. The Bears’ most recent win before Saturday came against Central Oklahoma, while West Georgia’s lone victory this season came against Fort Valley State. West Georgia entered having lost to Abilene Christian, Tarleton State, Austin Peay and Eastern Kentucky in its previous four games. Central Arkansas had lost to North Alabama, UT Rio Grande Valley, Tarleton State, Abilene Christian and Florida State in succession before Saturday.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Central Arkansas 41, West Georgia 26, and Interstat’s ELO system gave Central Arkansas a 62.3 percent probability to win. Central Arkansas will visit Eastern Kentucky next and then host Austin Peay. West Georgia will host North Alabama next and then host West Florida.