MARS HILL, N.C. -- The running game carried the Carson-Newman football team to its first three wins of the season, but it was the passing attack that sparked the Eagles against Mars Hill on Saturday afternoon.

Senior quarterback Alex Good (Greensboro, N.C.) completed 9-of-10 passes for 196 yards and one touchdown, as the Eagles cruised to a 55-28 victory over the Lions at Meares Stadium in South Atlantic Conference action.

"I'm really proud of our guys," C-N head coach Ken Sparks said. "I'm so excited about the way this team is trying to respond. I believe before this thing is over with we can be a pretty good football team."

C-N (4-2, 2-0 SAC) was held below 300 yards rushing for the first time since its season opening loss at Winona State, but Good turned in his best passing performance of the year, connecting on passes of 73, 41 and 36 yards. He completed six passes to Reggie Hubbard (Chattanooga, Tenn.) for 113 yards, two to Doug Belk (Valdosta, Ga.) for 42 yards and one to Charles Dobson (Umatilla, Fla.) for 41 yards and a score.

"We could have thrown it a lot more," Sparks said. "But when we got the big lead, we slowed down the tempo and stopped throwing it. You have to give No. 7 (Good) credit. He put the ball on the number every time."

C-N finished the day with 245 yards rushing as it outgained the Lions 441-352 in total offense. Senior running back Buck Wakefield (Drummonds, Tenn.) led the way with 152 yards and three touchdowns on 23 carries. It was Wakefield's second three-touchdown performance in three games. Good also added 43 yards on the ground and three touchdowns.

The Eagles' defense had another stellar performance, forcing four Mars Hill turnovers, including a fumble return for a touchdown, three sacks and eight tackles for a loss. Zeke Andrews (Eastman, Ga.) recorded four tackles and two sacks to lead the way.

"I loved how the defense forced turnovers and scored some points for us," Sparks said. "We hit them pretty good, and I thought we won the game physically. Zeke had a breakout game."

The Eagles found success early on by taking advantage of a muffed punt by Mars Hill. C-N recovered the fumble at the Lions 11. From there, Wakefield needed just two carries to break into the end zone and give the Eagles a 7-0 lead with 6:02 left in the first quarter.

On the ensuing possession, C-N forced a three-and-out, and the Eagles took over at their own 49 after a 32-yard punt by Mars Hill's Shaun Tant (Hayesville, N.C.).

Good then guided C-N down the field for a score by completing all three of his pass attempts for 35 yards and rushing three times for 21 yards, including a 2-yard touchdown run. Carlos Lopez's (Seymour, Tenn.) extra point pushed C-N's lead to 14-0 early in the second quarter.

The teams traded touchdowns over the next six minutes. The Lions (3-2, 1-1) marched 76 yards in eight plays, capped by a 49-yard touchdown strike Jon Richt (Watkinsville, Ga.) to Josh Johnson (Newland, N.C.). Nerman Imsirovic (Jacksonville, Fla.) added the extra point to trim C-N's lead to 14-7.

But C-N fired back on the next possession. On first-and-10 from the C-N 25, Good connected with Hubbard on a slant pattern, and Hubbard raced 73 yards to the Mars Hill 2. Good broke into the end zone from a yard out to give the Eagles a 21-7 advantage with 7:30 left in the first half.

The Eagles added another score late in the first half after a 22-yard punt by Tant gave C-N the ball at the Mars Hill 31 with 50 seconds remaining.

Consecutive penalties on the Eagles pushed the ball back to the Lions 41, but Good found Dobson, who was behind the Mars Hill secondary, for a 41-yard touchdown pass to give the Eagles a 28-7 cushion heading into the locker room.

Mars Hill rode the legs of sophomore running back Jonas Randolph (Daleville, Ala.) in the second half. On the opening possession of the third quarter, Randolph broke loose for a 65-yard run down to the C-N 8. Two plays later, Garrison McDowell (Landrum, S.C.) busted through the Eagle defensive line for a 1-yard touchdown run, trimming C-N's lead to 28-14.

The Eagles began to pull away with two more touchdowns on Wakefield runs of one and nine yards, respectively, giving C-N a 42-14 cushion at the 14:16 mark of the fourth quarter.

But Mars Hill refused to go away, as Demetrius Smedley (Decatur, Ga.) hauled in the ensuing kickoff and sprinted down the sidelines for a 95-yard touchdown to make it a 42-21 ballgame.

After a three-and-out by C-N, Randolph, who led Mars Hill with 185 yards rushing on 24 carries, went back to work for the Lions. He busted through the Eagle defense for a 53-yard run down to the C-N 12. Four plays later, Luis Cruz (Anaheim, Calif.) connected with Josh Crumpton (Pickens, S.C.) for a 2-yard scoring strike to pull Mars Hill to within 42-28.

However, C-N answered once again to put the game out of reach with a nine-play, 83-yard touchdown drive, highlighted by a 41-yard run by Wakefield. Good capped the drive with a 4-yard touchdown run, and Lopez drilled the extra point to give the Eagles a 49-28 lead.

Elliette Jackson (Fairfield, Ala.) scored the final touchdown of the day when Donte Strickland (Louisburg, N.C.) knocked the ball out of Cruz's hand and Jackson scooped up the fumble and raced 40 yards to pay dirt.

C-N returns to the gridiron next Saturday for homecoming. The Eagles will square off against Catawba at 3 p.m. in Burke-Tarr Stadium.