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CHEYNEY, Pa. (Nov. 12) – Behind a career-high five touchdown passes from redshirt junior quarterback
Peter Lalich (Springfield, Va./West Springfield), the No. 18 Vulcans closed the regular season with a 43-3 victory at Cheyney on Saturday afternoon.
With the win, the California University of Pennsylvania football team improves to 9-2 overall after winning the final four games of the year. The Vulcans entered the weekend as the fourth-ranked team in the region and await news on a possible selection to the NCAA Playoffs for the fifth-consecutive year. Meanwhile, the Wolves finish the year at 1-10 with their lone win coming in the season-opener.
Lalich finished the game for 252 passing yards on 15-of-22 attempts (68.1 percent) with five touchdowns and no interceptions. For the season, he ranks second in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) with 2,987 passing yards and third with 26 touchdowns. Lalich entered the weekend having passed for three touchdowns in a game five times this season.
Senior wide receiver
Chedrick Cherry (Cincinnati, Ohio/Moeller) posted his second 100-yard game of the season, and sixth of his career, finishing with 129 yards and two touchdowns on five catches. With his two scores, Cherry moved into a tie with Vic Shandor (1989-92) for second place in school history with 22 career receiving touchdowns.
The Cal U defense limited Cheyney to just 172 yards of total offense after registering 6.0 tackles for loss (TFL), including 3.0 sacks. Senior defensive back
Erik Harris (New Oxford, Pa./New Oxford) collected a team-high six tackles (five solo) with 1.0 TFL, 1.0 sack, one interception and one fumble recovery. Junior defensive back
Greg Cochrane (Chandler, Ariz./Chandler) and redshirt freshman linebacker
Spencer Lynn (Belle Vernon, Pa./Belle Vernon) each finished with four stops and senior defensive back
Patrick Swearinger (Waldorf, Md./Thomas Stone) made his second interception of the year (seventh career).
After losing a fumble deep in the Wolves' territory on their first possession, the Vulcans took a 7-0 lead with 7:23 left in the first quarter when Lalich connected with junior
Blake Williamson (Houston, Pa./Chartiers-Houston) for a three-yard touchdown. Cheyney later countered with a 32-yard field with 2:29 remaining in the first quarter to cut the deficit to 7-3.
Early in the second quarter, Cal U earned a safety when the Cheyney punter stepped on the backline of the end zone. After the free kick, the Vulcans capped an eight-play drive with a 10-yard touchdown pass from Lalich to junior running back
Lamont Smith (Penn Hills, Pa./Central Catholic) with 10:22 left in the first half. On the first play of their next drive, Lalich found Cherry for a 55-yard touchdown to stretch the lead to 22-3 with 8:18 remaining in the second quarter. With less than a minute before halftime, senior defensive lineman
Thomas Mulabah (Sterling, Va./Parkview) had a 12-yard fumble return for a touchdown to give the Vulcans a 29-3 halftime lead.
On the first drive of the second half, Cal U capped a 49-yard drive with a 12-yard touchdown pass from Lalich to senior wide receiver
Mario Washington (Boiling Springs, N.C./Crest). Lalich added another touchdown strike on the next Vulcans' possession, connecting with Cherry for a 46-yard score with 7:49 left in the third quarter to expand the lead to 43-3.
The NCAA will announce the field for the playoffs tomorrow evening, Sunday, Nov. 13, with a webcast selection show on NCAA.com at 5 p.m.
Notes:
The Vulcans forced six turnovers (four fumbles, two interceptions) in the victory … Cal U finished with only 72 rushing yards on 34 attempts (2.1 yards/attempt) … Cheyney committed 13 penalties for 122 yards and had four drives result in zero or negative yards … The Vulcans have won the last 15 meetings against the Wolves
