VALDOSTA - Buster Faulkner hit C.J. Lofton with a 9-yard touchdown pass with 1:14 remaining to rally second-ranked Valdosta State to a 31-28 victory over No. 3 Carson-Newman in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division II playoffs here Saturday.<br>
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The Blazers drove 80 yards in 13 plays for the winning points after the Eagles had rallied from a 24-13 third quarter deficit to take a 28-24 lead with 6:48 left in the game. The drive was extended by a substitution infraction against Carson-Newman when VSU was fourth and three at its own 43.<br>
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The Eagles scored first on a 30-yard Kjell Lorentzen field goal after recovering a Blazer fumble at the VSU 16. The first of five lead changes came on Valdosta State's next possession with Faulkner hitting Tyrone Jordan on a 38-yard scoring play for a 7-3 lead.<br>
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Randy Bell returned the ensuing kickoff 49 yards to the VSU 40, and the Eagles regained the lead on quarterback Leonard Guyton's 4-yard run with 35 seconds left in the first quarter.<br>
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The Blazers took a 14-10 lead on a 5-yard pass from Faulkner to Andre Zellner, capping an 11-play, 63-yard drive, before Lorentzen kicked a 40-yard field goal as time expired in the first half to bring Carson-Newman within one at intermission.<br>
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Valdosta State scored 10 straight third quarter points for a 24-13 lead, getting a 19-yard TD pass from Faulkner to Reggie Mosley and a 46-yard field goal by Will Rhody.<br>
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But Guyton, a Harlon Hill Trophy finalist, drove the Eagles 84 yards in 12 plays, scoring from the two and adding the two-point conversion. After forcing a VSU punt, Carson-Newman drove 53 yards in 11 plays to take the lead. Reggie Alexis capped the drive with a 3-yard run.
