Dontae Owens
Matt Mead Photography LLC
38
Winner Mercyhurst MER 3-6 , 2-4
21
Gannon University GAN 2-7 , 2-4
Winner
Mercyhurst MER
3-6 , 2-4
38
Final
21
Gannon University GAN
2-7 , 2-4
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
MER Mercyhurst 7 17 7 7 38
GAN Gannon University 7 14 0 0 21

Next Game:

at Slippery Rock University

11/3/2018 | 1:00 PM

Next Game

Full Schedule
Nov. 03 (Sat) / 1:00 PM
at Slippery Rock University

Game Recap: Football | | David Rung, Director of Athletics Media Relations

Strong Second Half Lifts Mercyhurst Past Gannon Football

THE RUNDOWN
  • Final Score: Mercyhurst 38, Gannon 21
  • Records: Gannon (2-7, 2-4 PSAC West) | Mercyhurst (3-6, 2-4 PSAC West)
  • Location: McConnell Family Stadium — Erie, Pa.
  • The Short Story — Marcus Jones (Painesville, Ohio/Riverside) ran for 152 yards and a score, but Gannon was held at bay in the second half as Mercyhurst scored the game's final 17 points to retain the Niagara Cup in PSAC West action Saturday afternoon.

GAMEDAY MEDIA CENTER
HOW IT HAPPENED
  • The Golden Knights took the ball on the opening kickoff and executed its offensive gameplan to perfection on the first drive, covering 75 yards in 14 plays to take a 7-0 lead midway through the first quarter. Gannon ran 11 times on that trip, with Jason Dambach (Fombell, Pa./Riverside) capping it with a 1-yard plunge into the end zone.
  • It didn't take long for the Lakers to respond with their own ground attack, but theirs came on one big play, as Garrett Owens skipped 53 yards on the fourth play of the drive to tie things up.
  • Gannon was held to a three-and-out on its ensuing possession, but the defense stepped up to halt Mercyhurst after a facemask penalty gave the guests a first down in Golden Knight territory late in the first quarter.
  • Early in the second quarter though, another big run by Owens set up a 2-yard touchdown pass that gave the Lakers their first lead of the game with 11:39 left before the break.
  • The Knights got back to the ground game to respond. After a 5-yard completion to take the ball to near midfield, Gannon ran the ball six straight times, getting at least seven yards each time out of Jones or Melvin Blanks (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Hills). Jones bounced in from the 7 to tie it back up at 14-14.
  • The high-octane first half continued with a big kickoff return by Owens for the Lakers to start the drive at the 47, and continued when he took a screen pass 25 yards into the red zone and scored on a 4-yard run.
  • Not to be out-done, Gannon bounced right back with its own flash of offense. Backed up against a 3rd and 11 at the 25, Dambach lofted a ball down the left sideline for Dontae Owens (Reading, Pa./Reading), who beat the defender for the ball and spun out of his grasp to sprint 75 yards for the touchdown. That tied things up at 21-all with just 1:17 left until the break.
  • That 77 seconds left on the clock was enough for Mercyhurst to do some damage though, getting good field position again from an Owens return and moving into field goal range for Mark Shafer, who tacked on a 27-yarder as the half expired.
  • After the break, the Gannon defense buttoned down to only allow a pair of touchdowns, but its own offense wasn't able to get the ball moving consistently. Taking out a 74-yard touchdown run from Owens in the third quarter, the two teams combined for just 238 offensive yards in the second half.
  • Facing a 4th and 17 at the Mercyhurst 31 with just over nine minutes left in the game, the Knights chose to go for it, and a Laker interception ended the threat. The visitors responded with a shutdown drive, running the ball six times to cover 80 yards and extend the lead to three scores.
     
GAME NOTES
  • Jones carried the ball 29 times for 152 yards. It's the senior's fifth consecutive game of at least 133 yards, and he is up to 1,282 rushing yards on the season and 3,913 on his career.
  • Dontae Owens (Reading, Pa./Reading), who entered Saturday with the 12th-highest yards per catch average in Division II, added to it with his second-quarter score. The senior is averaging 23.35 yards per catch this season, with all four of his touchdowns coming in the past three games.
  • On defense, 22 different players recorded a tackle, including five different Knights registering six stops to lead the way. A.J. Satcher (Buffalo, N.Y./Canisius), Noah Harris-Lyles (Atlantic City, N.J./Atlantic City), Martell Davis (Columbus, Ohio/Licking Heights) and Keith Thompson (Woodbridge, Va./Woodbridge) all had six tackles, and they were joined by freshman Shi'Quan Likely (Columbus, Ohio/South High), who had six stops and a half sack in his collegiate debut.
 
UP NEXT
  • Gannon takes its final roadtrip of the 2018 season Saturday, heading to Slippery Rock for a 1 p.m. kickoff at Mihalik-Thompson Stadium.
  • Live video, live stats and live audio will be available.
  • The Rock clinched the PSAC West title with a 44-21 win over California (Pa.) Saturday. Next week will be their final tune-up before facing West Chester for the conference title.
  • Slippery Rock owns a current four-game winning streak against Gannon, dating back to a 38-27 Golden Knight win early in the 2013 season.
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Players Mentioned

Jason Dambach

#13 Jason Dambach

QB
6' 3"
Redshirt Sophomore
Business
Martell Davis

#2 Martell Davis

DB
5' 11"
Redshirt Senior
Sport Management and Entrepreneurship
Noah Harris-Lyles

#44 Noah Harris-Lyles

DL
6' 1"
Junior
Undeclared
Marcus Jones

#4 Marcus Jones

RB
5' 11"
Senior
Middle Childhood Education
Dontae Owens

#8 Dontae Owens

WR
6' 1"
Redshirt Junior
Criminal Justice
A.J. Satcher

#32 A.J. Satcher

DB
5' 8"
Redshirt Junior
Computer Science
Melvin Blanks

#26 Melvin Blanks

RB
6' 0"
Freshman
Business
Shi

#84 Shi'Quan Likely

DB
5' 10"
Freshman
Business Management
Keith Thompson

#30 Keith Thompson

LB
5' 10"
Freshman
Finance

Players Mentioned

Jason Dambach

#13 Jason Dambach

6' 3"
Redshirt Sophomore
Business
QB
Martell Davis

#2 Martell Davis

5' 11"
Redshirt Senior
Sport Management and Entrepreneurship
DB
Noah Harris-Lyles

#44 Noah Harris-Lyles

6' 1"
Junior
Undeclared
DL
Marcus Jones

#4 Marcus Jones

5' 11"
Senior
Middle Childhood Education
RB
Dontae Owens

#8 Dontae Owens

6' 1"
Redshirt Junior
Criminal Justice
WR
A.J. Satcher

#32 A.J. Satcher

5' 8"
Redshirt Junior
Computer Science
DB
Melvin Blanks

#26 Melvin Blanks

6' 0"
Freshman
Business
RB
Shi

#84 Shi'Quan Likely

5' 10"
Freshman
Business Management
DB
Keith Thompson

#30 Keith Thompson

5' 10"
Freshman
Finance
LB