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Edinboro University Athletics

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Scoreboard

A.J. Turner vs. Gannon
Matt Durisko
A.J. Turner hauls in game-winning touchdown pass from Andrew Tomko.
24
Gannon GAN 0-5 , 0-2
31
Winner Edinboro EDIN 4-1 , 1-1
Gannon GAN
0-5 , 0-2
24
Final
31
Edinboro EDIN
4-1 , 1-1
Winner
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
GAN Gannon 14 3 7 0 24
EDIN Edinboro 7 10 7 7 31

Game Recap: Football | | Bob Shreve, Sports Information Director

Fighting Scots Rally for 31-24 Homecoming Win over Gannon on Late Tomko-to-Turner Hookup

THE GAME FACTS
  • Score:  Edinboro 31, Gannon 24
  • Records:  Edinboro (4-1, 1-1 PSAC West), Gannon (0-5, 0-2 PSAC West) 
  • Location:  Edinboro, Pa. – Sox Harrison Stadium
  • The Short Story:  Edinboro trailed the entire game but scored the final two touchdowns to prevail over Gannon in front of over 4,600 Homecoming fans at Sox Harrison Stadium. James Clark made an outstanding diving catch of Andrew Tomko's pass for a seven-yard touchdown midway through the third quarter to knot the score at 24-24. Tomko completed the comeback when he hooked up with a wide-open A.J. Turner for a 16-yard touchdown pass with 1:43 remaining. The Edinboro defense stopped Gannon on downs to clinch the win as Edinboro improved to 4-1 overall and 1-1 in the PSAC West. Gannon is now 0-5 and 0-2, respectively.  
GAMEDAY MEDIA CENTER  
HOW IT HAPPENED
  • Gannon scored on two of their first three possessions to jump out to a 14-0 lead less than 12 minutes into the game. Following a short Edinboro punt, the Golden Knights drove 47 yards on eight plays on their opening possession, with quarterback Jason Dambach accounting for the final six yards on a keeper. Gannon led 7-0 with 9:19 left in the opening period.
  • The two teams exchanged punts before Gannon registered the first of three interceptions at the GU 40. Four plays later Marcus Jones, the 2017 Division II rushing leader, scored on a 29-yard run with 3:28 left for a 14-0 lead.
  • Edinboro would score before the first quarter ended, as Kyle Galyk, filling in for Ta'nauz Gregory, returned the ensuing kickoff 79 yards to the Gannon 17. Facing a 3rd-and-12, Tomko threw the first of his three touchdown passes. The 19-yard TD reception was the first career TD catch for redshirt freshman A.J. Turner, as he made a leaping grab in the back corner of the end zone with 1:41 left in the first quarter.
  • The Fighting Scots would pull to within 14-10 thanks to another first – the first made field goal for Jake Monroe. The freshman kicker converted on a 32-yard field goal with 13:03 left in the second quarter to cap a nine-play, 62-yard drive.
  • Gannon answered with a field goal of their own, as Brian Strybel booted a 24-yard field goal after the Edinboro defense and held Gannon after a 1st-and-goal at the six yard line. Strybel came into the game 1-for-6 on field goals. Gannon led again by a touchdown at 17-10 with 8:31 left in the half.
  • A seven-play, 73-yard drive showcasing Walter Fletcher pulled Edinboro even at 17-17 with 6:20 remaining. The number two rusher in Division II a year ago, Fletcher carried four times for 25 yards, including the final yard for his ninth TD run of the season. The redshirt junior added a 30-yard gain on a pass.
  • The Golden Knights would regain the lead on Jones' second TD run of the day with 8:48 left in the third period. Another short punt gave Gannon the ball at the EU 40, and Dambach burst 25 yards on the first play from scrimmage. Four plays later, Jones was in the end zone for a 24-17 lead.
  • Edinboro needed less than two minutes to knot the score at 24-24 on a five-play, 65-yard drive with 7:01 left in the third quarter. The big play was a 39-yard hookup with James Clark on 3rd-and-2 that carried down to the GU 7. On the next play, the duo combined again, this time on a spectacular 7-yard TD pass. Tomko was flushed out of the pocket to his right. He drilled a pass to Clark, who made a diving grab just inside the pylon for his 25th career TD reception.
  • Neither team would score again until less than two minutes remained. In between, the Edinboro defense rose up several times as Gannon started three drives inside the Scots' territory. The first ended in an interception by Zuril Hendrick, the second on downs at the EU 23, and the third on a punt after a Gannon penalty.
  • Edinboro took over after that third possession at their own 20 with 6:45 to play. Tomko and Fletcher combined to march the Fighting Scots 80 yard on 11 plays, eating up 5 minutes, 2 seconds. Fletcher carried six times for 25 yards. Tomko, meanwhile, came up with two big passing plays. The first was a 37-yard catch and run for a first down by Andre Dowdell to the GU 29 on a 3rd-and-6 play. It featured another Tomko scramble, and Dowdell followed with a great open field run. The second pass play also came on third down.  Facing a 3rd-and-7, Tomko found a wide-open Turner in the right corner of the end zone for the game-winning 16-yard TD pass with 1:43 to play.
  • Gannon had one last possession, but the Edinboro defense again turned away the Knights, with the last three plays incomplete passes.
BY THE NUMBERS
  • While the score said somewhat otherwise, the two defenses played well.  Edinboro finished with 346 yards, with 102 yards rushing and 244 through the air. The Golden Knights were held to 277 total yards, with 166 of that on the ground and 111 passing.
  • Edinboro lost the turnover battle for the first time in 2018. The Fighting Scots came in leading Division II in turnover margin, interceptions, and fumbles recovered. Edinboro would turn the ball four times, three on interceptions, while Gannon threw a pair of interceptions.
  • Gannon dominated time of possession – until the fourth quarter. After holding an advantage of over 11 minutes through three quarter, Edinboro held the ball for 11 minutes, 49 seconds in the fourth quarter, while Gannon showed 3 minutes, 11 seconds.
  • Penalties continued to hamper both teams. Edinboro was guilty of 12 penalties for 121 yards, while Gannon committed 11 for 115 yards.
  • The battle between the top two rushers in Division II a year ago saw both excel. Walter Fletcher posted his fourth 100-yard rushing game in five games, finishing with 111 yards on 25 carries with 1 TD. He gained the edge, though, thanks to his second career 100-yard receiving game. The redshirt junior caught a career-high 7 passes for 109 yards as he finished with 220 all-purpose yards. Gannon's Marcus Jones was "held" to 133 yards on 31 carries with 2 TDs.
  • Andrew Tomko had an up-and-down day but finished on a high note. The redshirt sophomore would complete 15-of-27 passes for 244 yards with 3 TDs and 3 INTs. He hooked up with James Clark four times for 60 yards and a touchdown. A.J. Turner caught 2 passes for 35 yards, with both going for six points.
  • Jason Dambach completed 9-of-28 passes for 111 yards with 2 INTs for Gannon. His favorite target was Montae Owens, who pulled in 5 passes for 62 yards.
  • Brandon Anderson led the Edinboro defense with 11 tackles, including a pair for losses and a pass broken up.  Trey Hall added 10 stops, with a TFL. Maurice Sims added 7 tackles, with 2.5 TFL.
  • Boro defenders had eight passes broken up, including three by Zuril Hendrick. The senior cornerback added an interception, his fifth of the season and 19th career pickoff. Derek Dorr knocked down two passes at the line of scrimmage. DeAndre Dowdell, making his first career start, also had an interception.

DID YOU KNOW
  • The Fighting Scots improved to 4-1 overall for the second time in three years. Prior to that, Edinboro had not won four of its first five games since 2011.
  • The 14-point comeback marked the largest since Edinboro also trailed by 14 against Seton Hill in 2016 before rallying for a 42-34 win. Seton Hill had led 21-7.
  • Edinboro has now won four straight Homecoming games and is a perfect 5-0 all-time in Homecoming contests against Gannon.
  • This marked the first game in the rivalry since 2011 that neither team reached 40 points. In the previous six meetings, at least one of the teams had scored 40-or-more points. Edinboro now holds a 9-4 lead in the all-time series with Gannon, and has won six of seven meetings at Sox Harrison Stadium.
  • When LT Alex Molik left the game with an injury, Justin Kasmierski stepped in and saw his first extended action. Kasmierski is a redshirt freshman, leaving the Fighting Scots with three redshirt freshmen on the offensive line for the majority of the game.
     
THE RECORD BOOK
  • Walter Fletcher registered his fourth 100-yard rushing effort of the season and the 14th of his career, finishing with 111 yards rushing on 25 carries with a touchdown. He added his second career 100-yard receiving effort on seven catches.  A redshirt junior, he now has 2,825 career rushing yards, which ranks fifth all-time at Edinboro. He is fourth in career carries (484), and fifth in career rushing TDs (33).
  • Zuril Hendrick intercepted a pass for the fourth straight game. The senior cornerback entered the game ranked fifth in Division II and first in the PSAC. He now has five for the season, giving him 19 career pickoffs, just one shy of the school record of 20 held by Chris Avery.
  • James Clark continued his quest to break Darren Massey's career receptions record. With 4 catches for 60 yards and a TD, Clark now has 187 career receptions. He needs eight more to break Massey's record of 194. He boosted his career receiving yards total to 2,555 yards, which ranks second, and his seven-yard TD reception was the 25th of his career. That also ranks second.
     
UP NEXT
  • The Fighting Scots are back on the road again, but with only a short journey up I-79 to play another local rival, Mercyhurst. Kickoff at Tullio Field is set for 12 noon.
  • The contest is the second of two Edinboro contests on the SPORTSfever Network in 2018. Among the outlets, the game will be broadcast live on ESPN3
  • Mercyhurst was 1-3 entering their contest today at Slippery Rock. That contest did not start until 6 p.m.
  • A year ago, Edinboro won a 28-25 decision over Mercyhurst at Sox Harrison Stadium on Homecoming. The series record is tied at 7-7, with Edinboro winning the last two meetings.
 
21429
Zuril Hendrick with an interception. 

21423
NG Nick Pettigrew

21419
RB Walter Fletcher

 
 
21425
Zuril Hendrick escorts Kyle Galyk on kickoff return.

  
 

 
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