ERIE, Pa. (Oct. 19) – Sophomore quarterback Noah Mitchell (Euclid, Ohio/Euclid) accounted for five touchdowns (one rushing) and junior wide receiver Tyson Hill (New Kensington, Pa./Valley) registered three touchdowns, as the Vulcans rolled to a 54-14 win at Gannon on Saturday afternoon in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West play.

With the victory, the California University of Pennsylvania football team improves to 5-2 overall and remains tied for second in the PSAC West standings with a 3-1 mark in divisional action. Meanwhile, the Golden Knights fall to 2-5 this season and are one of four teams with a 1-3 record in league play.

Mitchell matched his career high of four touchdown passes for the third time this year, while finishing with 295 passing yards on 20-of-35 attempts with one interception. He helped the Vulcans build a 26-7 lead at halftime behind 220 passing yards and three touchdowns. Mitchell has posted 1,774 passing yards and has equaled his total of 19 touchdown passes from last year with four games left in the regular season.

Hill established career highs of 10 receptions, 167 receiving yards and three touchdowns on Saturday. He now leads the PSAC this season with 677 receiving yards and has already matched his career high of five touchdown receptions. Senior wide receiver Jordan Dandridge (Duluth, Ga./Duluth) finished with 54 receiving yards on five catches, while redshirt freshman wide receiver Jackson Daugherty (Laughlintown, Pa./Ligonier Valley) posted six receptions for 66 yards and one touchdown.

The Vulcans yielded just 206 yards of total offense on 51 plays in the victory, including only 20 rushing yards on 28 attempts. Sophomore defensive back Jermal Martin, Jr. (South Philadelphia, Pa./Academy Park) led the team with eight tackles (six solo) on Saturday. Senior defensive back Lamont McPhatter II (New Castle, Pa./New Castle) and sophomore defensive lineman Gerald Brown (Duquesne, Pa./West Mifflin) both finished with five stops and Brown also registered 1.5 sacks.

Gannon needed just four plays to race out to a 7-0 lead on a 13-yard touchdown pass that immediately followed a 40-yard completion. The Vulcans countered with a touchdown on their initial drive of the game, as Mitchell found senior running back Nelson Brown (Salisbury, Md./Wicomico) for an eight-yard score on a screen pass while facing third down. Midway through the first quarter, Cal U took a 13-7 lead when Mitchell connected with Hill for a four-yard touchdown on third-and-goal. The Vulcans started their next drive at the Gannon 23-yard line following a three-and-out, short punt and an unsportsmanlike conduct.

Cal U capitalized on the short field and took a 16-7 lead with a 29-yard field goal by freshman kicker Keaton Hier (Harrison City, Pa./Penn-Trafford) on the opening play of the second quarter. The Vulcans forced another three-and-out on the next drive by the Golden Knights and looked to immediately add to the lead on the first play of the drive before offsetting penalties negated a lengthy touchdown. Cal U responded to close the seven-play drive with a 23-yard touchdown pass from Mitchell to Hill with 9:35 left before halftime. The Vulcans extended the lead to 26-7 late in the second quarter on a 29-yard field goal by Hier that capped a drive that lasted nearly five minutes. After forcing a turnover on downs, Cal U looked to again stretch the lead before the Golden Knights recorded an interception off a tipped pass at their own 31-yard line in the closing seconds of the first half.

The teams traded touchdowns on back-to-back drives midway through the third quarter with the Vulcans holding a 33-14 lead. Mitchell and Hill connected for their third touchdown of the game at the 7:03-mark with Hill catching a three-yard score on third-and-goal. Gannon then answered with a one-yard touchdown run with 4:18 left in the quarter after the drive started with a 69-yard completion. Mitchell stretched the lead to 40-14 on the next drive with a one-yard touchdown run on fourth-and-goal.

Early in the fourth quarter, sophomore quarterback Josh Dale (Concord, N.C./Jay M. Robinson) found Daugherty for a six-yard touchdown to give Cal U a 47-14 lead. On the second play of the ensuing drive, redshirt senior linebacker Julian Cox (New Castle, Pa./New Castle) scored his second touchdown of the season with a 17-yard fumble return, 54-14.

Cal U returns to action on Saturday, Oct. 26, when it hosts Mercyhurst with kickoff set for 1 p.m.

Notes:
The Vulcans forced three turnovers in the victory and recorded an interception for the seventh-straight game … Nelson Brown posted a team-high 74 rushing yards on 19 attempts … Cal U benefited from an average starting field position of its own 46-yard line after starting six drives in Gannon territory … The Vulcans are now allowing just 30.7 rushing yards per game this year … Cal U finished with nearly a 13-minute advantage in time of possession … Aside from its two scoring drives, Gannon managed only 53 yards of total offense on 42 plays over 12 drives in the contest … The Vulcans have scored over 50 points in three games this season