BOILING SPRINGS – Gardner-Webb scored 28-straight points in the second quarter to pull away for a 52-17 win over Limestone Saturday night in the 2018 season opener.

The Runnin' Bulldogs (1-0) had 406 total yards offensively and got a pair of defensive touchdowns from Shai Thomas in the win.

"We had a lot of older guys who have worked really hard to get this program where it needs to be and they've shown good leadership this summer and preseason, so it was very important to get this win tonight," said head coach Carroll McCray. "We also had a bunch of young guys who had never seen the field before and it was really good for those newcomers to get live action and perform. Our entire defensive line, our quarterback and several more had never played in a college game before. I thought we came through with a solid overall performance tonight."

Limestone (0-1) took a 10-7 lead with 1:47 left in the first quarter when quarterback DJ Phillips barreled in from 12 yards out, but saw Gardner-Webb answer quickly. The Runnin' Bulldogs drove 75 yards in 10 plays to regain the lead, getting a one-yard plunge from A.J. Moses with 13:10 to play before the half.

Jayln Cagle scored from five yards out with 10:51 on the clock to cap a 47-yard drive for a 21-10 lead, then Thomas and the Gardner-Webb defensive put an exclamation point on the half.

Thomas, a 6-foot-2, 248-pound linebacker from Anderson, S.C., pounced on a fumble in the end zone with 5:29 to play before the half to put the 'Dogs up 28-10, and corralled a pass tipped by defensive end Kendall Bailey to score on a 41-yard interception return on the ensuing possession for a 35-10 at the break.

Those touchdowns were the first of Thomas' entire football career – at any level – since beginning the sport at age 10. He finished the night with six total tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss and a quarterback hurry in addition to his exploits scoring.

Gardner-Webb nearly had a 42-10 lead at the break, but Kyle Horton's 68-yard touchdown return was negated by an illegal block.

The Runnin' Bulldogs chewed 7:31 off the clock on a third-quarter scoring drive that stalled inside the five and resulted in a 21-yard field goal by Tre Jackson with 4:38 to play in the stanza. Elijah Perry scored from two yards out to put GWU up 45-10 with 49 seconds left in the third and, after a Phillips hit Cody Rau on a short scoring toss, reserve quarterback Keegan Smith scored on a three-yard run for what would be the final margin with 9:01 remaining.

Gardner-Webb finished the night with 406 total yards, including 242 on the ground, while Limestone had 329 yards of total offense.

Cagle finished with a game-high 117 yards and two scores on 20 carries, racking up 105 yards and both scores in the first half. The Kannapolis, N.C., junior rested for much of the second half.

Jordan Smith made his first career start under center, completing 14-of-24 passes for 150 yards and rushing for 29 yards on six carries. A veteran offensive line not only helped GWU averaged 4.9 yards per rush – but did not allow a sack to the Saints.

Moses finished with 33 yards on five carries with a score and Perry had 19 yards and his score on just three carries – while also catching a 28-yard pass. Brody Rollins led the receiving corps with 49 yards on four catches and converted running back Jonathan Blackmon caught three balls for 55 yards.

Eight different GWU receivers caught at least one pass.

Defensively, cornerback Triston Dozier finished with eight stops (six solo) and Corey Horne followed suit with eight tackles (six solo). 

Jackson was strong in his debut as the team's starting kicker, making all of his extra point attempts, scoring nine points and booming five kickoffs for touchbacks.

Limestone was led by Phillips, a transfer from Marshall who completed 22-of-35 passes for 204 yards and a touchdown – but had two costly turnovers. Jerko'ya Patton led the ground attack with 100 yards on 21 carries, but did not reach the end zone. Patton also finished with a team-high six catches for 41 yards, while JoJo Watson shook free for four catches and 86 yards through the air.

Linebacker Dalton Yates, who had less than 30 tackles in 2017, finished Saturday night with a game-high 17 stops for the Saints (nine solo). Cornerback Mannie Ogletree had an interception in the second quarter that halted a deep Gardner-Webb march.

Gardner-Webb will have a stiff road test next weekend, taking on a red-hot North Carolina A&T squad in Greensboro, N.C., at 6 pm. The Aggies' game at East Carolina was postponed Saturday night and will now be played on Sunday, September 2.