MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. — Mercyhurst (1-7) lost to Robert Morris (4-4) 28-14 on Saturday. The Lakers threw three interceptions and lost a fumble, and Robert Morris turned the turnovers into 14 points.
The Lakers' defense kept Robert Morris from adding to its 7-0 lead late in the first quarter, with Jeff Leavell recording a 6-yard sack inside the 10 before Daylan Pringle blocked a 23-yard field goal attempt at 2:48. Earlier, Robert Morris scored on its opening possession, but the Lakers' first drive recovered from an early fumble when Alex Gevaudan hit Dylan Evans for 21 yards and a first down. After the blocked field goal, Gevaudan found Evans again for a 20-yard gain, though the drive ended with Thomas O'Neill's 45-yard punt to the Robert Morris 10. The Lakers finished the quarter with two passing first downs, both on Gevaudan-to-Evans completions, and trailed 7-0.
The Lakers answered their defensive stops with an 88-yard scoring drive, tying the game 7-7 when Gevaudan hit Amare Lattimore for a 40-yard touchdown and Rocco Marcantonio added the PAT with 3:04 left in the second quarter. Earlier, after an interception ended the Lakers' first possession of the quarter, the defense kept Robert Morris out of the end zone as Jake Miller stopped a fourth-and-1 rush at the Lakers 10, and Jayonn Saunders later intercepted a Robert Morris pass at the Lakers 12 with a breakup credited to Miller. Ethen Knox helped move the tying drive with gains of 7 and 18 yards, and Gevaudan also completed passes to Ashton Wilson and Evan Van Dyke before the touchdown. The Lakers forced a three-and-out after the kickoff, with Leavell making a tackle for loss, Pringle breaking up a pass and Shanard Lo-Ray recording a sack. But a late Lakers fumble gave Robert Morris a short field, and it scored from 7 yards with 32 seconds left. Jason Woods returned the ensuing kickoff 16 yards before the Lakers' final snap ended in a sack, leaving Robert Morris ahead 14-7 at the half.
The Lakers kept Robert Morris off the scoreboard in a scoreless third quarter and entered the fourth trailing 14-7. Woods opened the second half with a 42-yard kickoff return to the Lakers 47, and Lattimore followed with a 12-yard first-down run before the drive ended on an interception at the RMU 32. The defense answered with stops on Robert Morris' first two possessions, with Pringle, Anez Jordan and Mark Hawkins Jr. breaking up passes while Miller and Hawkins added quarterback hurries. The Lakers' longest possession came from their own 21, a 13-play, 35-yard drive that included third-down conversions by Knox and Van Dyke and Gevaudan's fourth-and-1 conversion at the RMU 46 before a punt into the end zone. Robert Morris reached the Lakers 35 on the final play of the quarter, leaving the score at 14-7 heading to the fourth.
The Lakers' comeback bid was tested early in the fourth quarter when Robert Morris completed a 35-yard touchdown pass at 14:13, then returned a Gevaudan interception 89 yards for another score on the Lakers' ensuing drive to make it 28-7 after the extra point. The Lakers answered with an 11-play, 90-yard drive from their own 10, converting through Knox, Evans and Lattimore before Gevaudan found Lattimore for a 21-yard touchdown at 8:06 and Marcantonio's kick made it 28-14. The defense got the ball back when Dajaun Webb helped limit the next Robert Morris series and Leavell and Jean-Christophe Vital Cloutier stopped a third-and-9 completion short, forcing a punt with 6:29 left. The Lakers then converted three more third downs, including a 17-yard Knox run and Shalik Hampton receptions of 26 and 15 yards, to reach the RMU 9 despite taking multiple sacks. The drive ended on a fourth-down incompletion at the RMU 15 with 1:10 remaining, and Robert Morris ran out the clock to close out the 28-14 final.
Gevaudan completed 25 of 48 passes for 297 yards and two touchdowns. Lattimore caught four passes for 84 yards and two touchdowns and added 17 rushing yards. Knox rushed for 95 yards on 18 carries and added nine receptions for 78 yards. In his first career start, Knox went for 173 yards from scrimmage. Leavell led the Lakers with eight tackles and recorded one sack.
Up next, the Lakers' continue their road journey at Stonehill on October 31st at 12PM.
