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INDIANA, Pa. (Oct. 29) – Behind three touchdown passes from redshirt junior quarterback Peter Lalich (Springfield, Va./West Springfield), the No. 24 Vulcans took sole possession of second place in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West standings with a 28-10 victory in snowy conditions over rival IUP at George P. Miller Stadium in the third-annual Coal Bowl.

With the victory, the California University of Pennsylvania football team improves to 7-2 overall with a 5-1 mark in divisional play. The Vulcans have now won six of the last seven meetings against the Crimson Hawks, including all three Coal Bowl contests. Meanwhile, IUP falls to 5-3 this season and 4-2 in league action.

Lalich was named the Joy Mining MVP after passing for 224 yards on 9-of-17 attempts with three touchdowns and no interceptions. He now ranks second in the conference with 2,446 passing yards behind only East Stroudsburg's Ray Wagner, who was second in the country entering the weekend, and is tied for third with 18 touchdown passes.

Junior Lamont Smith (Penn Hills, Pa./Central Catholic) and freshman Jeff Knox, Jr. (Pittsburgh, Pa./DeMatha Catholic (Md.)) each finished with 100-plus yards on the ground, marking the first time since Dec. 2007 in which two players surpassed the century mark in the same game. Smith totaled 147 rushing yards on 24 attempts (6.1 yards/attempt) for his fifth 100-yard game of the season (10th career). Knox amassed 106 yards and one touchdown on 25 carries after entering the game with only 38 rushing yards this year.

The Vulcans limited the Crimson Hawks to a season-low 218 yards of total offense, which is over 130 yards less than their season average. IUP managed just 90 passing yards, while completing 5-of-17 attempts and sophomore Harvie Tuck was held to 84 rushing yards after entering the game ranked in the top 20 in the country in rushing.

With blustering snow flurries early in the game, IUP took a 3-0 lead on a 37-yard field goal by redshirt freshman Brett Ullman with 6:45 left in the first quarter. The score was set-up on a miscue on a Vulcans punt attempt and a 35-yard pass completion, which was the longest play from scrimmage by the Crimson Hawks.

Early in the second quarter, Cal U claimed a 7-3 lead on a 44-yard touchdown pass from Lalich to senior wide receiver Thomas Mayo (Reston, Va./South Lakes) with 10:24 left before the half. The score capped a nine-play, 93-yard drive that was started with a 23-yard rush by Smith.

Mayo finished the game with 72 yards on two receptions. With his performance, the 6-2 senior became only the 16th player in NCAA Division II history with 4,000 career receiving yards. Mayo also has now recorded three-consecutive 1,000-yard seasons (previous two at Concord) and is the fourth different Cal U wide receiver in the last five years to surpass the 1,000-yard mark.

On their next drive, the Vulcans expanded the lead to 14-3 when Lalich connected with senior wide receiver Chedrick Cherry (Cincinnati, Ohio/Moeller) down the sideline for a 41-yard touchdown with 6:21 remaining in the second quarter. The Crimson Hawks countered with a nine-play touchdown drive when quarterback Pat Smith rushed three yards for a score with 3:06 left in the first half.

After both teams went three-and-out, Cal U had the final possession of the first half near midfield with one timeout and just 10 seconds left. Lalich found junior tight end Blake Williamson (Houston, Pa./Chartiers-Houston) for a 24-yard gain with five seconds remaining and Cal U quickly called a timeout. Lalich then threw a jump ball into the end zone and after a few deflections senior wide receiver Josh Gumbert (Beaver Falls, Pa./Blackhawk) caught the pass as time expired to give the Vulcans a 21-10 lead at halftime.

Cal U posted its final touchdown with 5:52 left in the third quarter when Knox scored his seventh rushing touchdown of the season. The score was set-up by a 27-yard completion from Lalich to Mayo on fourth-and-25 from the IUP 33-yard line.

In the fourth quarter, the Vulcans used nearly eight minutes of clock time on a drive that featured 12-consecutive rushing attempts by Smith and Knox before turning the ball over on downs near the red zone.

The quartet of junior Greg Cochrane (Chandler, Ariz./Chandler), sophomore Brian Justice (Cape Coral, Fla./Cape Coral), redshirt freshman Spencer Lynn (Belle Vernon, Pa./Belle Vernon) and junior Rontez Miles (Braddock, Pa./Woodland Hills) each finished with a team-high seven tackles. Senior defensive lineman Steve Santia (Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield) recorded five stops (two solo) and 2.0 sacks, while classmate Erik Harris (New Oxford, Pa./New Oxford) also added five tackles (two solo) and 1.0 sack.

Cal U concludes divisional play on Saturday, Nov. 5, when it hosts Edinboro for Senior Day at 3:30 p.m. The Vulcans have won the last six meetings against the Fighting Scots, including a 14-0 victory last season.

Notes:
Cal U finished with 229 rushing yards on a season-high 52 attempts … The Vulcans committed five penalties for 25 yards after being penalized for nearly 240 yards in the last two games … IUP didn't commit a turnover and committed only three penalties in the loss … Cal U played its first game in the snow since the NCAA Semifinals against Minnesota Duluth in Dec. 2008