Bald Eagles edged by ESU 37-34

AdminSeptember 26, 2015

3 minutes read

Walton & Swales Have Career Days

LOCK HAVEN – Caleb Walton (Manheim, Pa./Manheim Central) totaled five touchdowns and Beau Swales (Clearfield, Pa./Clearfield) rushed for a career-high 193 yards, but the Lock Haven University football team (0-4, 0-1 PSAC East) was edged by visiting East Stroudsburg University (2-2, 1-0 PSAC East), 37-34 in a thrilling Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division opener.

Walton was 20 of 38 passing for 234 yards and four touchdowns. He also rushed for a score. Walton’s four touchdown passes matched his career-high for a single game and pushed his career total to 32, which is the third most in school history.

Swales recorded his third career 100-yard rushing game in dominating fashion. He carried the ball 27 times for 193 yards, the 11^th most total rushing yards ever recorded by a Bald Eagle in a single game. It marked the most rushing yards for a Bald Eagle in a single game since 2005.

Jeremy Cornelius (Harrisburg, Pa./Temple), Shaun Jones (Harrisburg, Pa./Kentucky Christian), David Cook (Boiling Springs, Pa./Boiling Springs) and Shawn Seif (Harrisburg, Pa./Kutztown Univ.) all caught TD passes.

Seif caught seven passes for 72 yards, while Cook and Dan Krupko (Homeworth, Ohio/Urbana University) each made five catches.

Daniel Strawbridge (Harrisburg, Pa./Harrisburg), Rahjeir Miles-Eubanks (Coatesville, Pa./Coatesville) and Tony Ballon (Jersey City, N.J./Harrisburg) led a strong Bald Eagle defense that came up with several huge plays, and stops throughout. Strawbridge finished with a game-high 13 tackles, while Miles-Eubanks and Ballon each made 10.

The Bald Eagles sacked ESU quarterback Matt Soltes three times and Charlos Balkom (Harrisburg, Pa./Harrisburg) picked him off once.

Walton and Cornelius hooked up with 10:04 left in the first quarter to put the Bald Eagles up 7-0. Cornelius caught a 22-yard TD pass from Walton to cap a seven-play, 68-yard drive.

With 2:28 left in the first quarter, LHU was called for a holding penalty in the end zone, giving ESU a safety. ESU scored a TD just 58 seconds later and led 9-7.

The Warriors scored an early second quarter TD and tacked on another with 7:50 left in the first half to take a 23-7 lead.

The Bald Eagles however ended the half on a tear, scoring three touchdowns in the final 3:51.

Lock Haven led 28-23 at halftime.

After a high-scoring second quarter, both teams failed to crack the scoreboard in the third.

ESU gained a 29-28 lead with early score in the fourth, but Seif’s 38-yard catch-and-run score put the Bald Eagles back on top at 34-29. With just 1:32 left, Stoles hit Gerard Wendowski on a nine-yard pass to give the Warriors the 37-34 lead.

A last-second LHU field goal attempt, which would have tied the game, just missed.

Soltes threw for 314 yards and five TDs for ESU. He rushed for 115 yards.

Lock Haven hosts West Chester next Saturday, October 3 at noon.

LHU Notes:

The loss to East Stroudsburg dropped Lock Haven to 0-4 (0-1 PSAC East) … Despite the Week 4 loss to ESU, there were a number of highlights for the Bald Eagles and first-year head coach Dave Taynor(LHU, 0-4; 37-44 career) … QB Caleb Walton threw for 234 yards and four TDs (he also rushed for one TD) … The four passing TDs match his single game career-high (also vs. ESU, 2013) … Walton threw for three TDs last season vs. ESU …Walton now has 32 career passing TDs, the third most in school history (3 away from No. 2) … Eleven of Walton’s 32 career TD passes have come vs. ESU … Walton’s 4,169 career passing yards also move into No. 4 all-time … Beau Swales rushed for a career-high 193 yards on 27 carries … The 193 rushing yards at the most by a single play since 2005 when John Kaluzny rushed for 233 vs. Mansfield … Swales’ 193 rushing yards are the 11^th most in a single game … It was Swales’ third career 100-yard rushing game ..The 260 team rushing yards the most since for LHU since 2013 (Week 11 vs. Gannon) … Backup QB Shaun Jones, who has also lined up a times at WR & RB caught his first career TD pass today … Walton made his 20th career (20^thconsecutive) start for LHU … Senior Luke Erdman (center) made his 34th career (34^th consecutive start); he’s started every game since Week 4 of his freshman year in 2012 … Cornelius and Cook both caught their first TD passes of the season.