Complete Box Score

ERIE, Pa. - The Mercyhurst football team lost its third consecutive game on Saturday afternoon, falling 30-20 to county-rival Edinboro, during Senior Day at Tullio Field. The Lakers dropped to 3-4 overall and 1-3 in the PSAC West, while the Fighting Scots improved to 5-2 overall and 2-2 in conference play.

Mercyhurst jumped out to a 7-0 lead on its opening possession of the game, a nine-play, 80-yard drive, capped off by sophomore Allen Jones II's one-yard run. However, the Lakers would go on a dry spell the rest of the half offensively, and allowed Edinboro to score three touchdowns to close out the half, as the Scots went to the locker room ahead 20-7.

After the Lakers' scoring drive in their first possession, Mercyhurst's next five drives to close out the half resulted in four three-and-outs, and just eight total yards. Meanwhile, as Mercyhurst's offense went cold, the Fighting Scots heated up, and put together two methodical drives to take the lead that they would never relinquish.

Edinboro's first scoring possession was an 11-play, 69-yard drive, capped off by a Brian Davis two-yard run with 23 seconds left in the first quarter. Mercyhurst's senior linebacker Ian Wild, however, blocked the extra point, so the Lakers led 7-6.

The visitors would go back to work, as Davis again capped off a long scoring drive with 6:50 left in the first half, giving the Scots a 13-7 lead. Edinboro drove down the field, using 7:12 of the clock on a 15-play, 84-yard drive. During the drive, Edinboro converted two third-downs and one fourth-down to take the lead.

Davis would cap off the first half scoring with his third touchdown of the opening 30 minutes, again with a two-yard burst into the endzone with 2:38 showing on the clock.

Mercyhurst's offense would continue to struggle against the stout Edinboro defense, as the Lakers' first possession of the second half also resulted in a three-and-out. Then, on Mercyhurst's next possession, sophomore Anthony Vendemia tried to complete a pass to his running back, freshman Richie Sanders Jr.. The pass, which was ruled a backward pass, was broken up by Edinboro's Devin Ghafoor, who then scooped up the ball and gave the Scots their fourth consecutive touchdown to take a 27-7 advantage.

The Lakers would respond, however, as Vendemia found senior Trevor Kennedy in the endzone from 14 yards out, capping off a 10-play, 59-yard drive with 56 seconds left in the third quarter, cutting the Edinboro lead to 27-14. It was Kennedy's 12th touchdown reception of the season, setting a new Mercyhurst single-season record for touchdown catches. He broke his own record of 11 he set last season.

Edinboro placekicker Alex Romanias booted a 27-yard field goal with 5:29 left in the fourth quarter, putting Edinboro ahead 30-14. But, again the Lakers would respond, thanks to a 43-yard kickoff return by Kennedy to the Edinboro 32-yard line. Three plays later, Vendemia found Kennedy again, this time from 20 yards out with 4:27 still showing on the clock. Mercyhurst went for two points, to attempt to make it a one possession game, but Vendemia's pass was batted down in the endzone.

Edinboro would take another 3:28 off the clock on its final possession to eliminate any thoughts of a Laker comeback. Mercyhurst got the ball back for one final drive, but Kennedy was stopped short of the goal line, in triple coverage on a 26-yard completion, on the final play of the game.

The major difference in the game came on the ground. Edinboro, as a team, carried the ball 56 times for 222 yards, while the Lakers could manage just 31 yards on the ground on 22 carries. Davis led the way for the Scots with 96 yards on 22 carries and his three touchdowns. Quarterback Cody Harris had 64 yards on the ground, while Drew Herrell chipped in with 62. Mercyhurst's ground game was led by Jones, who finished with 28 yards on 12 carries. Time of possession was also affected tremendously by the Scots' ability to run the football. Edinboro held the ball for 38:08 in the game on Saturday.

Vendemia completed 17-of-32 for 244 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. His favorite target was Kennedy, who hauled in eight balls for 147 yards and both scores. Sophomore tight end R.J. Miller caught a season high three passes for 41 yards. Kennedy would finish the day with 204 all-purpose yards, the fifth time in the last six games he has gone over 200 yards.

Harris was 10-of-16 for 99 yards, as Edinboro relied heavily on its ground attack.

Senior Ian Wild led the Laker defense with a career-high 16 tackles, including seven solo stops. He also had three tackles for a loss, and one sack and a blocked point after attempt, his second blocked kick of the season. Wild now has a career-high 86 tackles this season, with still four games remaining on the schedule.Sophomore Dustin Galich also set a career-high with 11 stops, and also added a sack. Edinboro's Keir Jeter was a force for Edinboro on Saturday, making nine tackles, with four tackles for a loss and two sacks.

Mercyhurst will on the road for the final four games of the season, starting with a 3:30 p.m. kickoff at California (Pa.) next Saturday.

Other Laker Notes

Mercyhurst honored 12 senior players and three cheerleaders before the game on Saturday. The senior players that were honored were Rodney Dale, Bryant Kimball, Travis Rearick, Ian Wild, Trevor Kennedy, Nick Jackson, Leon Gallop, Dan Kruper, Kevin Williams, Jim Maxwell, Andrew Bukta, and Matt Cirell.

Kennedy continued his climb up the record books on Saturday. He caught eight passes for 147 yards and two touchdowns. His eight receptions gave him 156 for his career, trailing only Ed Bailey's 201 in the record books. His 147 receiving yards gave him 2,313 for his career, trailing only Bailey's 2,983. Kennedy's two touchdowns gives him 26 for his career, again only trailing Bailey's 28.

Kennedy caught his 12th and 13th touchdowns of the season, setting a new Mercyhurst single-season record. He broke his own record of 11 he set last season.

Kennedy had 204 all-purpose yards on Saturday, passing Scott Gorring for third on the all-time list with 3,441. He trails only Bailey (4,026) and Richard Stokes (4,744).

Ian Wild had a career-high 16 tackles on Saturday and now has set a career-high with 86 tackles this season, with still four games remaining on the schedule. He became the 10th player in school history to record 300 career tackles, and enters next Saturday's game with an even 300. Scott Platz (1997-00) holds the record with 383.

Sophomore Dustin Galich had a career-high 11 tackles on Saturday and now has set a personal-best with 44 tackles this season.

Senior Bryant Kimball had eight tackles on Saturday, giving him 229 for his career. He is now in sole possession of 20th place on the school's all-time list.

Senior Dan Kruper had one sack, giving him 16.5 for his career, moving into seventh on the all-time list. Jim Zank (1984-86) holds the record with 21. He also had one tackle for a loss, giving him 34.5 for his career, eighth all-time.

The Lakers started two pairs of brothers on defense Saturday, marking the first time in history that has happened. Ian Wild and his freshman brother Garrett Wild earned starts at linebacker, while Bryant Kimball and his freshman brother Colin Kimball earned starts in the secondary.