Boxscore

ERIE, Pa. – Trevor Kennedy and Andrew Bailey each posted two touchdowns while #R.J. Miller and Gerald Anderson# both added scores in Mercyhurst's 41-0 whitewashing of Lock Haven in front of 719 fans at the Tullio Field home-opener. 

The Lakers have now won two straight and improve to 3-1 on the year, 1-0 in the PSAC West while Lock Haven falls to 0-4 on the year, 0-1 PSAC West. 

Bailey provided the only score for either team in the first half with a five-yard run, then the Lakers erupted for 28 points in the third quarter, including two straight touchdowns by Kennedy, to take control of the game before adding another score in the fourth for the final score. 

Celebrating Homecoming and Family Weekend and the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division Opener, the Lakers treated their fans to a shutout for the second time this season, joining the 1981, 1983 and 1984 squads as the only units to post two shutouts in a season. 

After a scoreless first quarter that saw the Lakers turn the ball over in their first three possessions, including fumbles in the first two drives followed by an interception, Mercyhurst finally found the endzone in the second quarter on a five-yard run by Bailey that capped off a three-play, 14-yard drive that took just 1:31 off the clock after Kennedy's 35-yard punt return set up the drive. 

In the third quarter, Kennedy caught a 26-yard touchdown strike from Garrett Kensy with 12:10 remaining before he returned a punt 79 yards to paydirt on the Lakers next possession to quickly stretch Mercyhurst's lead to 21-0. 

Kennedy's 79-yard return tied the program record for the longest punt return for a touchdown set by Ben Bluemle against Northwood in 2004. It also is the first Lakers' punt return for a touchdown since Aaron Haynes scrambled 67 yards against Gannon in 2007. 

After Kennedy's electric return, the Lakers' offense came alive with another score just four minutes later as Kensy found #R.J. Miller# in the endzone on a five-yard pass to complete a three-play, 67-yard drive that took less than a minute off the clock. 

Kensy hit Kennedy for a 12-yard gain to start the drive, then Anderson helped with a 50-yard burst on the second play of the drive to set up Miller's first career touchdown catch. Kensy finished the game with 126 yards on 9-of-10 completions. 

The Laker defense came up big on the Bald Eagles' next possession as Bryan Boyce recovered a fumble at the LHU 19-yardline after a 2-and-28. 

From there, it took the Lakers just 1:37 to find the endzone for the fourth straight possession, this time on a 10-yard run by Anderson. Anderson followed his career performance from a week ago with 147 yards on 14 carries. 

In the fourth quarter, Bailey tied his career-high with his second touchdown of the game on a 25-yard run that capped off a four-play, 37-yard drive which took just 2:18 off the clock. Bailey completed the game with 43 yards on seven carries. 

All told, the Lakers finished with nearly 26 minutes of possession in comparison to the Bald Eagles' 34 minutes. 

The Mercyhurst offense wasted little time scoring, helping to give the Lakers' defense plenty of time to showcase why it's one of the nation's best units. 

The Lakers' defense today held the Bald Eagles to -5 yards rushing and just 120 yards of total offense while providing three sacks, two forced fumbles and two interceptions. The Bald Eagles' were forced to punt the ball 11 times, of which eight of those were three-and-out situations. 

Leading the charge for the unit was Tim Herbener, who had a game-high 10 tackles, including one for loss. Ian Wild provided nine stops and two pass break-ups while Boyce tallied eight stops, 1.5 sacks, 2.5 tackles for loss and a fumble recovery. Nine different Lakers registered tackles for loss. 

Along with Kimball's interception, Julius McCormick also provided a pick. 

The Lakers return to the road next week for the fourth time in five weeks when they travel the nearly 3-mile trip to city-rival Gannon. Kickoff for the Golden Knights' Homecoming contest is set for 12 noon.

Notes:
Mercyhurst improves to 3-0 in the PSAC West opener. 

The Lakers also improve to 19-11 overall in home openers, including 6-3 under head coach Marty Schaetzle. 

The Lakers have now shut out two opponents in four games, marking the just the fourth time in program history that a squad has registered two shutouts in the same season. They join the 1981, 1983 and 1984 squads. No squad has recorded three shut outs in a season. 

Andrew Bailey tied a career-high with two rushing touchdowns. He set his mark in a 23-0 season-opening win at Notre Dame College. 

Trevor Kennedy's 79-yard punt return ties the program record set by Ben Bluemle against Northwood in 2004. It also is the first punt return for a touchdown since Aaron Haynes went for a 67-yard return against Gannon in 2007. 

#R.J. Miller# recorded his first career touchdown catch. 

Anthony Vendemia recorded his first career completion. 

Blake Morrison recorded his first career carry and catch, finishing the day with two catches for 18 yards. 

Clyde Robinson recorded his first career catch. 

Gerald Anderson now has 550 yards rushing this season, eclipsing his personal best of 507 yards set last year. 

Bryan Boyce continued to move up the all-time charts, taking over 11th place in sacks (13.5), seventh in tackles for loss (35) and 16th in total tackles (239). 

Trevor Kennedy moves into the top 25 all-time in receiving, overtaking 24th-place with 636 career yards. 

Garrett Kensy moved into 14th place in total offense (2,038 yds) and moved into ninth place in passing yards (1,880).