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CALIFORNIA (Oct. 8) – The No. 15 Vulcans allowed only 16 rushing yards and scored 24-unanswered points in the second half on Saturday afternoon in a 33-6 victory over Gannon at Adamson Stadium in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West action.

With the win, the California University of Pennsylvania football team improves to 5-1 this season with a 3-0 mark in league play. The Vulcans have now 15-consecutive games against PSAC West opponents at Adamson Stadium and remain tied with Slippery Rock for first place in the divisional standings. Meanwhile, the Golden Knights fall to 2-4 overall and 1-2 in conference action.

Redshirt junior quarterback Peter Lalich (Springfield, Va./West Springfield) finished with 286 yards and three touchdowns against Gannon. He completed 27-of-41 attempts with two first-half interceptions. In the last four games, Lalich has now passed for 1,312 yards – the highest four-game total in recent program history (since 2002) – and 11 touchdowns.

Junior running back Lamont Smith (Penn Hills, Pa./Central Catholic) recorded his fourth-straight 100-yard game, rushing for 100 yards on 17 attempts (5.9 yards/attempt) on Saturday. Over the last four weeks, he has posted 497 rushing yards on 74 carries (6.7 yards/carry).

The Vulcans held the Golden Knights to a scant 16 rushing yards on 20 attempts after recording a season-high six sacks. In the win, Cal U also forced three turnovers and limited Gannon to 171 yards of total offense on 48 plays (3.6 yards/play).

On its first drive of the game, Cal U turned over the ball over on downs deep in Gannon territory. The Vulcans' defense capitalized on the field position, as junior defensive back Robby Green (New Orleans, La./John Curtis Christian) tackled Golden Knights' running back Alex Papson in the end zone for a safety. On the ensuing possession, the Vulcans expanded their lead to 9-0 when Lalich found senior wide receiver Thomas Mayo (Reston, Va./South Lakes) for a seven-yard touchdown with 6:33 left in the first quarter.

Mayo finished the game with six receptions for 65 yards and two touchdowns. Through six games, the 6-2 senior leads the team with 755 receiving yards and nine touchdowns on 42 catches.

Gannon responded on its next drive with a six-yard touchdown run by sophomore Jansen Jones to cut the deficit to 9-7 with 3:35 remaining in the quarter. The Vulcans moved inside the red zone twice in the remainder of the first half before the Golden Knights halted both drives with interceptions.

On their first possession of the second half, the Vulcans took a 16-6 lead when Lalich connected with Mayo for a nine-yard score with 10:55 left in the third quarter. Cal U capped a six-play, 80-yard drive later in the quarter with a three-yard touchdown run by freshman Jeff Knox, Jr. (Pittsburgh, Pa./DeMatha Catholic (Md.)) with 1:57 remaining in the third.

After a 20-yard field goal by redshirt freshman Cody Nuzzo (Bradford, Pa./Bradford) early in the fourth quarter, Cal U scored its final touchdown of the game when Lalich connected with sophomore wide receiver Mike Williams (Hershey, Pa./Milton Hershey) for a 12-yard score with 5:55 left in the game.

Defensively, sophomore linebacker Brian Justice (Cape Coral, Fla./Cape Coral) and senior defensive back Erik Harris (New Oxford, Pa./New Oxford) each led the team with seven tackles. Justice also finished with 2.0 tackles for loss (TFL) and 1.0 sack. Redshirt freshman linebacker Spencer Lynn (Belle Vernon, Pa./Belle Vernon) added six tackles (one solo) and one fumble recovery, while senior defensive lineman Kevin Crawford (Brooklyn, N.Y./Gar-Field (Va.)) finished with four stops (two solo), 2.0 TFL and 1.5 sacks.

The Vulcans continue league play on Saturday, Oct. 15, when they travel to face Slippery Rock at Mihalik-Thompson Stadium for a 2 p.m. kickoff. Cal U has won seven of the last eight meetings against Slippery Rock, including a 28-3 victory last season.

Notes:
Senior Chedrick Cherry (Cincinnati, Ohio/Moeller) led all players with 75 receiving yards on eight receptions … Harris also averaged 42.0 yards while serving as the Vulcans' punter with a career-long  56-yard punt … Senior Edwin Gowins (Bellport, N.Y. /Bellport) finished with 78 rushing yards on 13 attempts in his first appearance since Sept. 17 … In the loss, Gannon committed nine penalties for 82 yards and failed to convert a third down (0-for-9) … The Vulcans held a sizeable 15-minute advantage in time of possession (37:38-22:22)