IUP Uses Big Play
Explosion in Second Half to Down Slippery Rock
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IUP used four big
scoring plays to tally 28 points in the second half, including three
touchdowns in a span of 3:23 in the third quarter, as the Indians posted
a 38-17 victory over Slippery Rock before a homecoming crowd of 4,104 at
Miller Stadium.
IUP (3-3, 2-0 PSAC
West) defeated The Rock for the seventh straight time and gave Frank
Cignetti his 100th career home victory in 20 seasons.
Cignetti, celebrating his 68th birthday on Saturday, has a
home record of 100-16-1. Slippery Rock dropped to 2-4 and 2-1 in the
PSAC West.
IUP took over first
place in the PSAC West, one-half game ahead of Slippery Rock, Edinboro
and California, which are all 2-1 in the division.
The two teams
combined for 1,015 yards of total offense, with IUP piling up 517 and
Slippery Rock amassing 498. Chris Morgan led the Indians with 168
rushing yards on 24 carries and scored two times as IUP had 331 yards on
the ground. Pat McDanel added 89 yards and scored his first career
touchdown.
Morgan finished the
day with 2,009 career rushing yards, one of 10 players in IUP history to
eclipse the 2,000-yard plateau.
Josh Kniess led The
Rock with 21 carries for 142 yards and a pair of scores. Nate
Crookshank completed 19-of-36 passes for 254 yards and also rushed for
72 yards. Colin Golden had nine catches for 75 yards.
Andrew Krewatch hit
on 7-of-17 pass attempts for 186 yards for IUP. Cameron Mobley grabbed
three of those passes for an even 100 yards.
Trailing 14-10
midway through the third quarter, Deanco Oliver put IUP in front when he
hauled in a 53-yard touchdown pass from Krewatch with 6:39 remaining in
the period. Paul Favers fumbled the ensuing kickoff, which IUP kicker
Brad Whitacre recovered at the Slippery Rock 46.
Oliver went the
distance on the first play, taking an end around to paydirt to give the
Indians a 24-14 lead with 6:16 left in the third.
The Rock drove to
the IUP 17 on their next possession, but Ryan Daniel missed a field goal from
35 yards out. Taking over at the 20, Morgan raced 80 yards for a
touchdown on the first play of the drive, giving the Indians a 31-14
lead with 3:16 left in the third quarter.
Slippery Rock got
back to 31-17 on a 29-yard field goal by Daniel at the end of a 68-yard
drive. But IUP put the game out of reach two possessions later when
McDanel ripped off a 73-yard touchdown run to give the Indians their
final margin of victory with 11:21 left in the game.
In IUP’s four
scoring drives of the second half, the Indians ran six plays accounting
for 279 yards and just 1:16 of clock time.
IUP led 10-0 after
the first quarter on the strength of a 37-yard field goal by Whitacre
and a 24-yard run by Morgan. But Slippery Rock gained control of the
game after that point, with Kniess scoring at the end of drives at the
close of the first half and the beginning of the second.
Kniess went in from
11 yards out with 1:10 left before intermission to pull The Rock to
within 10-7 at the break. Slippery Rock then traveled 63 yards on its
first drive of the second half, with Kniess going in from 33 yards out
to put the visitors in front 14-10 with 10:56 remaining in the third
quarter.
The Rock had a
chance to expand its lead after Jim D’Amico picked off a Krewatch pass
and returned it 31 yards to the IUP 14. But the Indian defense held,
and Daniel missed a 24-yard field goal, setting the stage for the IUP
offensive explosion.
Brandon Lawrence was
one of three IUP players in double figures in tackles with 13, followed
by Tye Desiderio with 12 and Andre Henderson with 11. D’Amico led the
Slippery Rock defense with nine tackles, including his interception.
IUP faces Edinboro
in a PSAC West showdown next Saturday at Miller Stadium. The Indians
are looking to snap a two-game losing streak to the Fighting Scots.
Slippery Rock hosts Millersville in a PSAC crossover contest.
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