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September 24, 2002

Bald Eagle Gridders To Match Up Against Mansfield Mountaineers
Game #4 -- at Mansfield University -- Van Norman Field -- Mansfield, PA -- 1 p.m.

>>>Full Game Release (PDF) >>>2002 LHU Roster >>>Mansfield University Athletics Website

THE GAME
    The Bald Eagles (1-2) will attempt to even their record with a road trip to Mansfield University (1-2) on Saturday, September 28. Kickoff at Van Norman Field is slated for 1 p.m. The game can be heard locally on WBPZ-1230 AM and online at http://www.redzonemedia.com.

THE SERIES
     Lock Haven owns a 38-18-4 advantage in games played against the Mountaineers, a series that started back in 1906. The Bald Eagles have won the last five games, last taking a 22-13 victory at Van Norman Field during the 2001 campaign.
     The last time Mansfield won against LHU was in 1996, when the Mountaineers defeated The Haven, 6-3. Lock Haven has won five out of the last six match-ups played on Van Norman Field, including the past five. The most recent Mansfield win at home against the Bald Eagles was in 1991, a 28-7 victory.

THE LAST TIME VERSUS VERSUS MANSFIELD
      The Mountaineers out-gained Lock Haven in nearly every statistical category but it was the Bald Eagles with the 22-13 point advantage at the end in the season finale for both teams. LHU’s Rob Carey came up big, scoring once off an 82-yard interception return and again off an 80-yard kickoff return to put the Bald Eagles over the top.
      Carey’s interception and touchdown put the first points on the scoreboard for LHU, but a failed extra point attempt and a touchdown strike from Mansfield’s Travis Motley to Quame Patterson moved the Mountaineers into the 7-6 lead. In the second quarter, Lock Haven’s Bill Witmer found Derrick Shields for a 58-yard touchdown reception, but Mansfield countered with another touchdown from Motley to Patterson to tie the game at 13-13. With 14 seconds remaining in the half, Rob Carey ran back the kickoff to paydirt to give Lock Haven the 19-13 lead at the intermission.
     The only scoring in the second half belonged to the Bald Eagles near the end of the third period, as kicker Jonathan Miller hit a 27-yard field goal to bring the final score to 22-13.
     The Bald Eagles were led by Carey, who recorded nine total tackles, two interceptions, including one returned for the score, along with 142 yards in returns, including the 80-yard kickoff return for touchdown. Running back Maurice Walker posted his third game of the season over 100 yards rushing, earning 105 on the ground on 21 carries.
     Mansfield was paced by 338 passing yards and two touchdown throws from quarterback Travis Motley. MU receiver Joe Bennett added 150 yards, making 11 receptions on the game. Defensively, Dan Holland recorded a game-high of 14 stops.

SCOUTING MANSFIELD
     The Mountaineers of Mansfield University have a 1-2 overall mark, defeating Buffalo State 20-19 while falling to Eastern Division rival East Stroudsburg University, 31-14, and Westminster College, 24-21. Last Saturday the Mountaineers game versus Westminster came down to the final minutes, down by three with 1:10 left to play. Mansfield drove the whole way to the Westminster nine-yard line, but a 27-yard field goal attempt went wide right.
     Junior quarterback Travis Motley directs the Mountaineer offense, having accrued 733 yards on 64-of-110 passing to rank fifth in the PSAC in pass efficiency (123.07). He has thrown six passes for touchdown on the season, including three last Saturday.
     With injury dotting the lineup at the wide receiver position, there are several possibilities that could come into play this Saturday. Freshman Mike Zulkowski set a new school record in his first collegiate start last week with three touchdown receptions, and has a total of 221 yards on nine catches in two games this season. Senior Steve Smith has 13 catches for 118 yards and one touchdown, while Ryan Geishauser has also reeled in 13 passes for 82 yards and a score. Questionable players in the lineup due to injury include Arnaldo Santiago (13 catches, 152 yds, 1 TD), Quame Patterson (4 catches, 37 yds), and Joe Bennett (2 catches, 36 yds).
     On the ground, junior fullback John Loiselle has taken the ball on 51 carries, gaining 196 yards along with one touchdown. Geishauser, a running back, accounted for 34 yards on 18 carries.
    The Mansfield offensive line is piloted by three-year starter Steve Pozella at center. He is flanked by Chris Farris and Ryan McClellan on the left and Al Gulitus and Lucas Ingersoll on his right.
    A strong linebacker unit highlights the Mountaineer defense led by two-time first team All-PSAC East Dan Holland. Holland currently leads the PSAC with 41 total tackles for an average of 13.7 each time out, and has also recorded five tackles for loss along with two sacks. Outside linebackers Randy Reinert and Ricky Woods chip in as well, Reinert with 24 stops, six of those for loss, and 2.5 sacks and Woods with 17 tackles including 3.5 for loss.
     Up front, Mansfield is relatively young, expecting to start red-shirt freshman Mike Donati (13 TT) and sophomore Brian DeCecco (9 TT) along with senior Bob Evans (7 TT, 2.5 TFL, 2 sacks) and junior Brodie Warner (5 TT) on the outsides.
     The MU secondary consists of senior Conway Brown (11 TT, 2 INT) and freshman Ronnie Montgomery (7 TT) at cornerback, strong safety Joe Frick (17 TT), and free safety Mike Reed (5 TT).
     Freshman Jeff Mimm is 7-for-8 on point after kick attempts, and has yet to hit a field goal, 0-for-2 during the early portion of the season. Punter Mike Reed is among PSAC leaders averaging 36.0 yards per kick including four inside the 20-yard line. Conway Brown is MU’s leading kick returner, averaging 22.3 yards per run-back. On punt returns, the Mountaineers position Kody Crispell deep. He has averaged 2.7 yards per return on eight attempts.

Haven linebackers Charles Cannon (#55)
and Derrik Metz (#41) in action
against Bloomsburg last Saturday.

THE COACHES

	Lock Haven Head Coach Mark Luther (Penn State, ‘92) enters his third season. Luther’s gridders compiled 3-8 overall and 1-5 PSAC West marks in both of his prior two seasons at the helm of the Bald Eagles.
He assumed the lead role following five years of service as a Bald Eagle assistant coach from 1994-98, acting as defensive coordinator in the 1997 and ‘98 seasons, recruiting coordinator and administrative assistant to former head coach Nick Polk.

	Second-year Head Coach Chris Woods (Davidson, ‘91) guides the 2002 Mountaineers after leading them to a 2-8 record in 2001, the program’s most wins since the 1996 season.
Woods arrived in Mansfield in 2000 as defensive coordinator before becoming the head coach in March of 2001. Prior to his move to Division II, he worked at several of the top Division III programs in the nation, including Wittenberg University and Plymouth State College.

BALD EAGLE NOTES...

THE OFFENSE
     Scoring early will be a priority on Saturday -- the Haven offense has already proven it can put points on the board late with 32 of the team’s 42 offensive points coming in the fourth quarter. All six of Lock Haven’s touchdowns have been via the pass, including two from freshman Rob Kristiniak (Flourtown/Springfield Township) last weekend. Kristiniak is slated to start for the Bald Eagles this Saturday after entering the game as a back-up against Bloomsburg and throwing two passes for scores in the fourth quarter. Tim Storino (Pittsburgh/Bethel Park) will be waiting in the wings if needed. Storino has 331 yards on 23-for-53 passing along with four touchdowns.
     There is no shortage of receivers to compliment either Haven signal caller with five different players recording touchdown receptions in the past two games. Marcus Burkley (Pittsburgh/Woodland Hills) has 137 yards on eight catches and one touchdown, while Scott Anderson (Cortland, Ohio/Lakeview) has six receptions for 51 yards. Inserting cornerback Rob Carey (North Braddock/Woodland Hills) into the Bald Eagle offense has been a successful game plan in certain situations and has generated two touchdowns, including a 48-yarder against Bloomsburg. John Caldwell (Va. Beach, Va./Fork Union Military Academy), Adam Angelici (Bethel Park/Bethel Park), and Ryan Lightner (Elizabethtown/Lower Dauphin) have all caught one touchdown pass.
      Lock Haven’s rush offense has struggled to produce, having to settle for small gains. Melvin Kirby (Pittsburgh/Penn Hills) has carried the ball on 29 occasions for 112 yards (37.3 ypg), while Maurice Walker (North Braddock/Woodland Hills) has rushed for 72 yards on 31 carries (24.0 ypg). Fullbacks Dave Mottin (Snow Shoe/Bald Eagle Area) and Josh Stadulis (Willow Grove/Academy of the New Church) continue to contribute.
    Setting up on the frontline will be senior center Jason Popp (Hummelstown/Lower Dauphin), senior guard Josh Clair (Manheim/Manheim Central), sophomore guard Kris Kishbaugh (Berwick/Berwick), and junior tackles Keith Boyer (Elizabethtown/Elizabethtown Area) and Bill Cook (York/Central York).

THE DEFENSE
     The Bald Eagle linebackers are paced by LHU tackle leader Derrik Metz (Roaring Spring/Central), who is also fourth in the PSAC with 34 total stops including 25 solo tackles. Metz pestered the Bloomsburg offense last Saturday for seven tackles including one for loss, two pass break-ups, and an interception. Fellow linebackers Jon Nalewak (Shamokin/Shamokin Area) and Charles Cannon (Braddock Hills/Woodland Hills) are also among Haven leaders, Nalewak with 19 stops including two for loss and Cannon with 14 stops and two for loss.
     The secondary operates under the direction of junior cornerback Rob Carey (North Braddock/Woodland Hills), senior strong safety Jim Hanzely (DuBois/DuBois), freshman cornerback Ngoyi Mukusa (Jim Thorpe/Jim Thorpe), and sophomore free safety Kellen Bush (Pittsburgh/Penn Hills). Mukusa shared the team-high of seven tackles versus Bloomsburg, upping his season total to 19 stops. Hanzely had six tackles, including one for loss, to improve his season tally to 16 with a team-best three pass-breakups. Carey added five tackles and two break-ups to move his total to 15 stops, while Bush now has eight total tackles.
    In the trenches are tackles Warren Whitaker (Wilkes-Barre/GAR Memorial) and Jason Kasheta (Carbondale/Carbondale Area). Alongside Whitaker and Kasheta are defensive ends Nathan Eck (Jersey Shore/Jersey Shore) and Jarrod Hendricks (Rockton/DuBois Area).

SPECIAL TEAMS
     Rob Carey is second in the PSAC in punt return average, running back four punts for an average of 15.5 yards. He is also among conference kickoff return leaders, averaging 25.3 yards after covering 278 yards on 11 attempts. Punting for LHU will be either Greg Knauss (Laurys Station/Parkland) or Chris Keefer (Reedsville/Indian Valley), while placekicking duties will most likely be maintained by Knauss. Knauss was 2-for-2 on point after kick attempts and hit a 25-yard field goal versus Bloomsburg.

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