SALISBURY, NC —Winston-Salem State (WSSU) traveled 40 minutes down I-85 and made itself at home at its nearby HBCU rival, beating Livingstone College 31-17 on Saturday at Alumni Memorial Stadium.
WSSU’s defense dominated Livingstone, forcing three turnovers and holding its run game to just 64 yards on 33 attempts.
The game kicked off with Winston-Salem State scoring first, as Trevon Hester’s 1-yard touchdown run capped a brief two-play drive following an 83 yard punt return, putting WSSU up 7-0. Livingstone responded late in the first quarter when De’Angelo Alston connected with Davontay Deloatch for a 10-yard touchdown pass, tying the game at 7.
Winston-Salem State pulled ahead in the second quarter, with Gilberto Lorenzana nailing a 36-yard field goal, followed by a 35-yard touchdown pass from Daylin Lee to Kaleb Washington, giving the Rams a 17-7 lead at halftime.
In the third quarter, Livingstone managed to close the gap with a 31-yard field goal by Jason Zapata, but Winston-Salem State’s defense stepped up. Dante Bowlding’s 18-yard interception return for a touchdown pushed WSSU’s lead to 24-10.
The Rams’ offensive line dominated the fourth quarter with a grinding 13-play, 68-yard drive, culminating in a 1-yard touchdown run by Lee, sealing the game at 31-10. Livingstone managed a late touchdown, but it wasn’t enough to change the outcome.
The win gives WSSU a 6-2 record overall, and 4-1 in CIAA play, securing the first winning season since 2018 for the HBCU program. That moves it into third place in the CIAA behind Virginia Union and Johnson C. Smith. WSSU is set to host JCSU next Saturday in a game that could help determine who makes it to Salem, VA for the CIAA title game.