Game Notes vs Lock Haven

ERIE, Pa. - The Mercyhurst University football team (4-1, 2-0 PSAC West) will look to extend its winning streak to five straight on Saturday, October 6, when it hosts Lock Haven (0-5, 0-2 PSAC West) at Tullio Field. Kickoff is scheduled for 12:00 p.m.

The Lakers are 4-0 lifetime against Lock Haven and have outscored the Bald Eagles 151-24 in those meetings.

Mercyhurst has rattled off four straight victories after a season opening 59-42 setback against Notre Dame College back on August, 30. Since the defeat, Mercyhurst has outscored Millersville, Clarion, Slippery Rock, and Cheyney by a combined score of 141-54. The Lakers' most recent victory came last Saturday at Cheyney by the final of 36-10. Mercyhurst outscored the Wolves 23-0 in the second half to break open a 13-10 halftime lead.

Redshirt freshman Brandon Brown-Dukes fell one yard short of his fourth consecutive 100-yard game, but tied his personal best with three rushing touchdowns against the Wolves. Over the last four games, Brown-Dukes has rushed for 629 yards and nine touchdowns.

Meanwhile, Lock Haven comes to Tullio Field with an 0-5 record and have now lost 47 consecutive games dating back to a 17-14 victory over Clarion in the season finale of the 2007 season. The streak is the longest active streak in college football and broke the NCAA Division II record of 46 previously held by Minnesota-Morris from 1998-2003.

NOTES

This Week
Mercyhurst returns home to take on the Bald Eagles of Lock Haven University on Saturday. Mercyhurst is 4-0 lifetime against Lock Haven and has outscored the Bald Eagles 151-24.

Safety First
Last week against Cheyney, Mercyhurst redshirt freshman T.J. Latimer blocked a Wolves' punt that ended up resulting as a safety for the Lakers. It was Mercyhurst's first safety since August 27, 2005 against Gannon.

Latimer Honored By ECAC
Latimer earned the ECAC's Division II Defensive Player of the Week for his efforts against Cheyney last Saturday. Latimer tied for the team lead with five solo tackles to go along with the blocked punt that resulted in a Mercyhurst safety. Latimer becomes the sixth player over the last four weeks to be honored by the ECAC.

For their performances against Slippery Rock, Brandon Brown-Dukes and Serge Augustin were honored as Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week respectively by the ECAC. Brown-Dukes and junior placekicker Steven Wakefield earned honors after the victory over Millersville, while junior Vladmir Rock earned an award after the Lakers' win over Clarion.

Running Wild
Over the course of the last four games, Mercyhurst has rushed for 1,087 yards and 13 touchdowns on just 187 attempts (5.8 yards per carry). That number includes 254 yards two Saturdays ago against Slippery Rock, a defense that had allowed 88 yards per game entering its contest with the Lakers. Redshirt freshman Brandon Brown-Dukes has taken over the reins as the lead back and, after rushing for just 39 yards in his first collegiate start against Notre Dame College, he has rushed for 629 yards and nine touchdowns on just 92 carries (6.84 yards per carry) over his last three games. He currently ranks 12th among Division II players in rushing yards per game (133.6).

In just his second career start, Brown-Dukes became the fifth player in program history to rush for more than 200 yards in a game, finishing with 213 yards and three touchdowns in the win over Millersville. He was the first played to rush for more than 200 yards since Gerald Anderson rushed for 237 against LIU Post in 2010. His yardage output was the fifth-highest total in program history. All told, Mercyhurst had 379 yards rushing in the victory over the Marauders, the most by the Lakers in a game since rushing for 402 yards in a 48-0 win over Pace on November 6, 1993.

Three-Peat
Brown-Dukes tied a school record against Slippery Rock with three consecutive games of 150 or more rushing yards. He tied the school's all-time rushing leader, Richard Stokes, who also rushed for 150 yards or more in three straight contests back in 2007.

Despite not reaching the mark last week against Cheyney, Brown-Dukes tied his career high with three rushing touchdowns. He also accomplished the feat against Millersville in week two.

On A Record Pace
Through the first five games of the season, nobody in program history as gotten off to a better start running the football than Brandon Brown-Dukes. His 668 rushing yards through the first five games is an all-time record. Gerald Anderson, who broke the school record in 2010 with 1,313 rushing yards, started the season with 665 yards through the first five games.

Don't Forget About Me
Junior running back Allen Jones II is also having a career start to the season. After rushing for 478 yards in his first season as a Laker last year, Jones has already rushed for 420 yards and four scores this season. Against Millersville, he posted his first career 100-yard game, rushing for 132 yards in the Laker win. He had his second 100-yard game against Slippery Rock two weeks ago, finishing with 102 yards and two touchdowns. He averaged 5.8 yards per carry last season, which was the third highest total in school history. This season, he is averaging 6.8 yards per carry. He has moved into the top 20 among rushers in school history, now ranked 17th,  with 898 career yards. Next up on the list is Shea Berkley, who is 16th with 938 from 1993-94.

Points At A Record Pace
Through five games, Mercyhurst has scored 183 points (36.6 points per game), marking the second-highest point total in school history to start a season. The 1985 Lakers, under head coach Tony DeMeo, racked up 217 points in their first five games, including a school-record 82 points in an 82-0 win over Niagara (September 14, 1985).

The 2010 team holds the record for most points in a season with 354, while the 2007 squad holds the record by averaging 32.1 points per contest.

Yards Coming Fast And Furious Too
Mercyhurst, through four games, has accumulated 2,067 yards of total offense, an average of 413.4 yards per game - again, on record-setting pace after only five weeks. The 2000 Lakers hold the record with 4,473 yards - an average of 406.6 per contest.

Bruner Reaches Milestone
With 114 yards receiving two weeks ago against Slippery Rock, senior wide receiver Paris Bruner became the 12th player in school history to record 1,000 career receiving yards. Bruner has only caught ten passes this season, but averages 28.6 yards per catch (286 yards). Sam Scarpaci holds the single season record by averaing 26.7 yards per catch in Mercyhurst's inaugural season of 1981. Mercyhurst Hall of Famer Scott Gorring holds the career record by averaging 18.9 yards per reception. Bruner currently sits at 18.3 yards per catch for his career.

He has 1,096 receiving yards, 11th on the all-time list and just 49 yards behind Calvin Kelly (2004-05) to move into the top ten.

Vendemia Also Hits Milestone
With 141 yards of total offense two weeks ago in the Lakers' win over Slippery Rock, redshirt junior quarterback Anthony Vendemia became the 16th player in school history to record 2,000 yards of total offense. He has 2,287 for his career - 12th on the all-time list and 28 yards behind Craig Woodard (1992-95) for 11th.

Vendemia earlier became the 10th quarterback to throw for 2,000 career yards in week three's victory over Clarion. He has 2,334 passing yards for his career - eighth on the all-time list. He needs nearly 1,000 yards to catch Mac McArdle (3,274 from 1999-01) for seventh.