ROME, Ga. – A defensive team effort lead the Rhodes College football team to a 12-0 win over conference foes Berry College Saturday afternoon at Barron Stadium.
 
The Lynx keep an unblemished record at 4-0 and begin conference play with a 1-0 start, while the Vikings fall to 0-3 on the year and 0-1 in league play.
 
Rhodes won the toss and deferred to the second half, and forced a three-and-out to start the game after a DJ Barrow nine-yard sack. On the successive Rhodes drive, the Lynx worked all the way down to the Berry one, but couldn't break through the Viking defense as they went for the TD on 4th-and-1. Both teams exchanged drives, with neither posting points in the first quarter.
 
The Lynx got things started in the second quarter, where they turned a five play, 62-yard drive  into seven points. Blake Box went 2-2 on the drive, including a 23-yard rush of his own to post the TD, followed by the Tucker Nichols extra point, Rhodes took a 7-0 lead with 11:11 to play in the half.
 
The Lynx defense turned up the pressure when Justin Toliver intercepted a Dale Jackson pass at the 4:55 mark to the Berry 22-yard line. The Lynx capitalized on the turnover, adding three points when Nichols nailed a 39-yard field goal. Rhodes held on to the 10-0 lead heading into the half.
 
In the third quarter, the Lynx defense continued to be relentless when Trey Hooper forced a safety, tackling John Tuggle for a one-yard loss in the Berry endzone for two-points. The Lynx held strong to the 12-0 lead, and with neither team posting fourth-quarter points, Rhodes captured a 12-0 victory.
 
Blake Box led the offense, throwing 11-22 for 76 yards with one touchdown. On the ground, the Lynx rushed for a total of 131 yards, spread between Roc Sherrell and Kevin Vieira. Sherrell added 72 yards on 21 carries with Vieira racking up 30 yards on 14 attempts.
 
The Rhodes defense was stifling, as they wrapped up a total of 10 sacks, and 10 tackles for loss. Hooper led the way with 10 tackles, including four solo, two tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks.  Wyatt McRae, Joseph Raby and Michael Shield all added seven tackles a piece, with Raby recording six solo tackles, three tackles for loss and two sacks.
 
Rhodes will continue their road stretch as they travel to Chicago, Ill. to take on the University of Chicago on Oct. 4 in the Blues Bowl.