ERIE, Pa. — The Golden Eagle football team exploded to an early three-score lead on Saturday, but they could not keep up that momentum in falling 27-20 to Gannon at McConnell Family Stadium.
Clarion held the Golden Knights to just 12 total first downs and 292 offensive yards, but a series of late miscues allowed Gannon to come from behind for the win.
The offense and defense worked in concert in the first quarter, with the latter setting them up and the former knocking them down, so to speak. Gannon was forced into a three-and-out on their opening possession after Kareem Hamdan harassed quarterback Nate Mikell into an incompletion on third down.
The ensuing punt traveled only 19 yards to give Clarion possession in Golden Knight territory, and the Golden Eagles happily took advantage. They marched down the field without ever reaching third down themselves, and Paul Newton scored his first collegiate touchdown when he motioned from the slot and carried 16 yards into the end zone for the score.
Gannon’s next drive didn’t go much better. The Golden Knights reached 4th-and-1 at their own 34-yard line and opted to go for it, but Hamdan and Alex Huzicka smacked running back Donny Marcus in the backfield for a two-yard loss and a turnover on downs. That turned into a 22-yard field goal for Andrew Kurtas that gave the Golden Eagles a 10-point advantage.
The defense stuffed the next Golden Knight drive on just one play when Colton Irwin punched the ball away from Braxton Todd in the backfield, allowing Griffin Buzzell to fall on it and give the Golden Eagles possession at the 26-yard line. It took Clarion just four plays to reach the end zone, with Anthony Guercio running untouched into the end zone from one yard out.
The Golden Knights did manage to tighten things up as the half went on, but the Clarion defense kept them largely in check, holding Gannon to just three first downs and 52 total yards in the first half. The sole Gannon score came as a result of a Golden Eagle gaffe; Clarion fumbled the ball on their own 20-yard line late in the second quarter, enabling the Golden Knights to score on a touchdown pass from Mikell to Donell Mason with 2:35 left in the half.
It was Gannon’s turn to go on a rally in the third quarter, scoring 10 unanswered points to open the second half and cut the Golden Eagles’ lead to 20-17. Mason scored his second touchdown of the day on an 80-yard score, beating his man down the field and taking it to the end zone for the score. Later in the quarter, kicker Eric Scarpino booted a 32-yard field goal to cut the deficit to three points.
The Golden Knights broke through for their first lead of the day 51 seconds into the fourth quarter, when Kam Snell jumped a route and picked off Guercio in the flat, returning the ball for a touchdown. Scarpino’s successful extra point gave Gannon a 24-20 lead, and the kicker added a 30-yard field goal with 2:39 remaining to increase the lead to seven points.
Clarion had one more opportunity to make up the difference, with Zach Benedek checking in at quarterback and rushing for four yards to set up a 3rd-and-6 play. The Golden Knights flushed Benedek from the pocket on third down to force an incompletion, and a pass attempt to Khalon Simmons on fourth down sealed the Golden Eagles’ fate.
The Golden Eagles rushed for 158 yards thanks to a diverse cast of runners, led by 47 yards on nine carries by Corahn Alleyne.
Guercio was effective rushing the football with 11 rushes for 63 yards, though he was sacked four times for a loss of 24 yards.
Jake Tarburton added 1.5 sacks as part of the Golden Eagles’ three-sack day against Mikell, with Connor Lyczek also adding a sack.
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