Carse takes first ten wicket haul as England beats New Zealand by 8 wickets in 1st test

CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand battled to delay the inevitable but England eventually eased to an eight wicket win in the first test on Sunday and a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

Resuming on the fourth day with only a four run lead and four wickets in hand, New Zealand managed to bat through all the first session thanks to Daryl Mitchell who made 84 as a lone rearguard and was the last man out.

Playing in just his third test, Brydon Carse took 6-42 for match figures of 10-196 as New Zealand was bowled out for 252 in its second innings, leaving England needing only 104 runs to win.

New Zealand managed to claim the wicket of Zak Crawley (1) in the second over of England’s innings, then Ben Duckett when the tourists were was 55-2 to create a little suspense before the end.

But Jacob Bethell who made an unbeaten 50 from 37 balls, his first half century in his debut test, and Joe Root, who scored 23 after a first innings duck, saw England to 104-2 in only 12.4 overs at a run rate of over eight runs per over. The victory came with more than a day and a half to spare.

England’s win was made possible by Harry Brook whose innings of 171 in partnerships of 151 with Ollie Pope (77) and 159 with Ben Stokes (88) propelled England to 499 in its first innings in reply to New Zealand’s 348, a lead of 151.

Carse had three wickets by the end of the third day and took three more Sunday to become the first Englishman since Monty Panesar in 2012 to take 10 wickets in a test overseas.

“Of course I'm very proud of the outcome today and to be able to win as a team is very satisfying,” Carse said. “I think we were thrown different challenges throughout the game but I think as a group we stuck to certain plans and we got our rewards during the game.”

In a moment of concern for England, captain Ben Stokes completed 6.3 overs during New Zealand’s second innings and was unable to continue, calling on Gus Atkinson to complete his seventh over. Stokes remained on the field for the remainder of the innings and showed no obvious sign of injury, though he recently had to overcome a hamstring strain.

“We're very happy with the way we performed through the whole week,” Stokes said. "We got put under pressure on day two. We were 40-3 and to go on and get a big first innings score and a pretty likeable lead was very nice.

“I thought our bowlers were pretty relentless the whole time.”

England was in a strong position from the first day when, after winning the toss, it had New Zealand 319-5 at stumps on a pitch at Hagley Oval which offered pace and bounce on all four days.

Kane Williamson held the New Zealand innings together with 93 while Tom Lathan (47) and Rachin Ravindra made solid starts but didn’t go on. Young off-spinner Shoaib Bashir took 4-69, bowling 20 overs in an unusually heavy workload for a spinner on the first day at Hagley Park.

On day two, Glenn Phillips completed a half century and finished 58 not out as New Zealand reached 348.

New Zealand removed Zak Crawley early but Ben Duckett made 46 at a brisk pace to set the tone for England’s first innings which was driven by Brook’s 171, his seventh test century.

England also was helped to its commanding position by New Zealand’s poor catching. It dropped seven catches, including Brook on five occasions, at 17, 41, 70, 112 and 132.

“If we isolate the first two innings, being put in on that sort of surface and to be in the position we were, we were happy with that,” New Zealand captain Tom Latham said. “The position we had them in, we had our opportunities. If catches go to hand things could have been different.”

Using Bazball principles, England added 180 in 33 overs on the third day at almost six per over.

New Zealand then slumped to 64-3 early in its second innings, losing Devon Conway, Latham and Ravindra cheaply. Williamson made 61, compiling half centuries in both innings for the 10th time in his career.

But New Zealand was 155-6 at stumps on day three and while Mitchell’s gallant effort on the last day was impressive, it ultimately came in a lost cause.

The second test begins at the Basin Reserve in Wellington on Friday.

AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket

England's Jacob Bethell bats during play on the fourth day of the first cricket test between England and New Zealand at Hagley Oval in Christchurch, New Zealand, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024.(John Davidson/Photosport via AP)

England's Ben Duckett bats during play on the fourth day of the first cricket test between England and New Zealand at Hagley Oval in Christchurch, New Zealand, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024.(John Davidson/Photosport via AP)

New Zealand players celebrate the dismissal of England's Zak Crawley during play on the fourth day of the first cricket test between England and New Zealand at Hagley Oval in Christchurch, New Zealand, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024.(John Davidson/Photosport via AP)

England's Zak Crawley walks from the field after he was dismissed during play on the fourth day of the first cricket test between England and New Zealand at Hagley Oval in Christchurch, New Zealand, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024.(John Davidson/Photosport via AP)

England's Brydon Carse gestures to the crowd after taking six wickets during play on the fourth day of the first cricket test between England and New Zealand at Hagley Oval in Christchurch, New Zealand, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024.(John Davidson/Photosport via AP)

New Zealand's Daryl Mitchell bats during play on the fourth day of the first cricket test between England and New Zealand at Hagley Oval in Christchurch, New Zealand, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024.(John Davidson/Photosport via AP)

England players celebrate the wicket of New Zealand's Nathan Smith during play on the fourth day of the first cricket test between England and New Zealand at Hagley Oval in Christchurch, New Zealand, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024.(John Davidson/Photosport via AP)

England's Jacob Bethell, left, is congratulated by his captain Ben Stokes following their eight wicket win in the first cricket test against New Zealand at Hagley Oval in Christchurch, New Zealand, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024.(John Davidson/Photosport via AP)

England's Brydon Carse poses with his-man-of-the-match trophy following England's eight wicket win over New Zealand in the first test at Hagley Oval in Christchurch, New Zealand, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024.(John Davidson/Photosport via AP)

England's Brydon Carse celebrates after taking the wicket of New Zealand's Nathan Smith during play on the fourth day of the first cricket test between England and New Zealand at Hagley Oval in Christchurch, New Zealand, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024.(John Davidson/Photosport via AP)

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) — Kyle McCord and Syracuse knocked No. 6 Miami out of Atlantic Coast Conference title contention — and possibly ended the Hurricanes' College Football Playoff hopes — by rallying from a 21-0 deficit for a 42-38 win on Saturday.

McCord threw for 380 yards and three touchdowns for the Orange (9-3, 5-3). LeQuint Allen ran for two scores and picked up two critical first downs on Syracuse’s final, clock-killing drive, and Devin Grant forced a fumble that he returned 56 yards for a touchdown to help the Orange beat a ranked foe for the third time this season.

“I want to be the one who brought (Syracuse football) back to what it once was,” said McCord, who transferred from Ohio State after starting for the Buckeyes last season. “That’s a testament to this team. This win shows that Syracuse is for real and being part of that team that turned things around, that’s going to last forever. Looking back, everything (coach Fran Brown) said came true and coming here is the best decision I’ve made in my life.”

Cam Ward had 349 yards passing with two touchdowns for the Hurricanes (10-2, 6-2, No. 6 CFP), who will be off next week while Clemson faces SMU for the ACC title and will have to hope for an at-large bid into the 12-team playoff.

“If we get a chance to go into the playoff, we’re going to make the most of it,” Ward said.

Miami had little trouble scoring but settled for a field goal on what turned out to be its final possession when coach Mario Cristobal declined to go for it on fourth-and-goal from the 10.

“We use analytics. It was outside the 10-yard line with four minutes to go. Get the points. Get a stop,” Cristobal said.

The Hurricanes didn't get that stop. Syracuse ran the ball eight times to run out the final 3:42, aided by an offside penalty.

Miami had defeated Syracuse six straight times before this shootout, in which the teams combined for 983 yards of offense and 51 first downs. The Hurricanes began the season 9-0 but have lost two of three, falling three weeks ago at Georgia Tech.

“We came up short and that’s on all of us, starting with myself,” Cristobal said. “We don’t shy away from it. We’re not in any way, shape or form anything but hard workers and accountable people. And it’s brutally difficult.”

McCord was 26 of 36 and became the first Syracuse quarterback to throw for 4,000 yards in a season. His second touchdown pass to Jackson Meeks was his 27th of the season, also an Orange record.

McCord couldn't resist a dig at his old school after the second-ranked Buckeyes scored just 10 points in a loss to unranked Michigan earlier Saturday.

“Everything comes full circle,” he said.

Allen finished with 143 yards from scrimmage for Syracuse — 22 carries for 82 yards and six receptions for 61 yards. Trebor Pena had six catches for 128 yards and a touchdown, and Meeks had seven catches for 110 yards and the two scores.

“They made contested catches 80, 90 percent of the time,” Cristobal said. “We had a difficult time covering them. The ball was out quick. We affected (McCord) early but didn’t affect him much as it went on.”

The game was tied at 28 when Grant forced a fumble by receiver Xavier Restrepo at the Syracuse 44. He scooped the ball and ran down the left sideline for the score, giving the Orange a 35-28 lead with 1:47 to go in the third quarter.

“We do it in practice,” Grant said. “The ball is the program. You punch at the ball. I was grateful for it to come out and was fortunate to take it to the house.”

Damien Martinez ran for a 2-yard TD on Miami's next possession to tie the game at 35-all. Allen's 3-yard run gave the Orange the lead for good at 42-35.

Restrepo finished with 148 yards receiving on nine catches for the Hurricanes, and Jacolby George had six receptions for 121 yards.

Miami scored touchdowns on its first three possessions and a rout appeared possible. A 40-yard touchdown pass from McCord to Pena midway through the first quarter was wiped out by an illegal formation penalty and seemed to deflate Syracuse.

The Hurricanes dominated the first 15 minutes, outgaining Syracuse 189 yards to 42.

"We gave them 21 points. There were a lot of self-inflicted wounds,” said Brown, the Orange's first-year coach. “I think we were just tested again, about how tough we were and our will. I think the 21-0 (deficit) showed we won’t quit and that we’ll continue to push.”

The Orange began their rally with two quick touchdowns in the second quarter. Allen took a handoff, bounced off a would-be tackler and maintained his balance for an 8-yard TD, and McCord connected with Meeks in the left corner of the end zone from 9 yards out to make it 21-14 at the half.

The scoring didn't slow down after halftime.

A 25-yard pass to Pena in the right corner of the end zone tied the game briefly at 21 with less than a minute to go in the third, but the Hurricanes countered three minutes later on Mark Fletcher Jr.’s second 2-yard score of the game. McCord and Meeks tied it at 28-all when they hooked up for another 9-yard TD.

Miami must clean up its defense, and given the struggles on that side of the ball, Cristobal will be second-guessed for kicking the short field goal late.

McCord and Syracuse showed tremendous fight and resilience.

Miami awaits a playoff berth or a bowl game. The Orange await their bowl game destination and opponent.

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Miami wide receiver Xavier Restrepo (7) dives for the pylon to score while defended by Syracuse defensive back Devin Grant (23) during the first half of an NCAA football game Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024, in Syracuse, N.Y. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)