Full Game Notes (PDF)

MERCYHURST (1-3, 0-1) @ #25/- CAL U (4-0, 1-0)
• When: Saturday, Oct. 2, 2021
• Where: California, Pa.
• Stadium: Adamson Stadium (6,500)
• Kickoff: 3 p.m.
• Live Video: PSAC Network (CUTV Feed) I CUTVSports1 (YouTube)
• Live Radio: WCAL (91.9 FM)
• Live Stats: Click HERE
 
GAME INFORMATION
• General Admission: $10 adults I $5 students I 12U FREE  ** NO TICKET PRESALE **
• Parking: $5
• Directions to Adamson Stadium I GPS Address: 170 California Road, Brownsville, PA 15417

SERIES BREAKDOWN
• All-Time Series: Cal U leads 8-4 I History
• First Meeting: Nov. 1, 2008 @ Mercyhurst – Cal U won 17-6 I Recap I Box Score
• Last Meeting: Oct. 26, 2019 @ Cal U – Cal U won 27-15 | Recap | Box Score I Video Highlights
• Streak: Cal U +5

NOTES
• Cal U returns to Adamson Stadium for Homecoming on Saturday following a 20-10 victory at Edinboro last week in which it allowed only 104 yards of total offense. Meanwhile, Mercyhurst suffered a 48-13 loss against IUP after allowing 35 points in the first half.
 
• The Vulcans forced three turnovers and scored on a defensive PAT and safety in a 20-12 victory at Edinboro last week. Cal U yielded just 42 rushing yards and limited Edinboro to only 62 passing yards. Linebacker Noah Dillow led the team with nine tackles and added 1.0 TFL, two pass break-ups and one blocked kick. Fellow linebacker Matt Tobey finished with eight stops and an interception. Junior quarterback Noah Mitchell finished with 263 passing yards on 26-of-40 attempts with one touchdown. Senior Tyson Hill led the team with eight catches for 67 yards.
 
• The Vulcans have won the last five meetings in the series and hold a 5-1 mark against the Lakers at Adamson Stadium. The two programs never met until Mercyhurst joined the PSAC in 2008.
 
• The longest tenured coach in the PSAC, Marty Schaetzle is in his 20th season as head coach at Mercyhurst. He has posted a 94-108 overall record with the Lakers and was named PSAC West Coach of the Year twice in his first three seasons in the league, including in 2010 when the program set the school record for wins and captured the PSAC Championship.
 
• Mercyhurst was tabbed to finish fourth in the preseason PSAC West poll while returning three All-PSAC West selections from the 2019 campaign. The Lakers sit in the bottom third of the league in most offensive categories this year. Junior quarterback Michael Lowery has thrown for one touchdown in each game this season while totaling over 650 passing yards in his first year as the starter. Senior tight end Jason Armstrong leads the team with 15 receptions after being an All-PSAC West First-Team honoree in 2019. He has totaled 165 receiving yards with one score this fall after leading the team with six receiving touchdowns as a sophomore. Wide receiver Cameron Barmore paces the team with 172 receiving yards on 12 catches with one touchdown. Mercyhurst is averaging only 57.0 rushing yards per game this season following the departure of Garrett Owens, who now plays at Duquesne. A trio of players have totaled over 70 rushing yards yet no Laker has a rushing touchdown this year. Defensively, Mercyhurst ranks third in the league by allowing less than 150 passing yards per game. Senior linebackers Jacob Hall and Thomas Zacharyasz pace the team with 30 and 24 tackles, respectively. Fellow linebacker Bradley Burrows ranks among the PSAC leaders with 4.0 sacks after receiving All-PSAC West Second-Team laurels in 2019. On special teams, junior Brian Alsobrooks has converted all six field goals this year with a long 39 yards while also serving as the team's punter.
 
• The Vulcans debuted in the AFCA Top 25 poll this week at No. 25 after opening the year with four-consecutive victories. Cal U is tied at No.25 with IUP after both teams totaled 80 points in the poll this week. The Vulcans are featured in the AFCA poll for the first time since sitting at No. 16 on Oct. 2, 2017. The PSAC currently boasts four teams in the AFCA Top 25 poll with three schools from the Western Division.
 
• Freshman Anthony Beitko repeated as the PSAC West Special Teams Athlete of the Week following one of the longest field goals in school history at Edinboro. He recorded 10 points in the victory behind three field goals with his 48-yard kick tying for the third-longest in program history. Beitko leads all NCAA Division II kickers this season with 43 points and paces the country with 2.50 field goals made per game.
 
• Cal U hosts Mercyhurst for Homecoming on Saturday for the second time in program history. The Vulcans have won 14 of their last 15 games on Homecoming with their only loss coming in 2018 against Gannon. In 2011, Cal U posted a 32-26 overtime victory against Mercyhurst after forcing overtime in the final minute of regulation and recording an interception on the overtime possession by the Lakers.
 
• Junior tight end Ian Edenfield set career highs with six receptions and 66 receiving yards last week at Edinboro. He entered the game with six catches for 33 yards in 17 career games. Edenfield was a target on a pair of third downs in the victory, both resulting in first downs.
 
• The Vulcans continue to feature one of the top defenses in the country this fall. Cal U leads NCAA Division II in total defense, allowing just 143.0 yards per game. The Vulcans also rank second in the country in passing defense at 84.0 yards per game and third in scoring defense at 6.5 points per game. Cal U has allowed only two offensive touchdowns over the opening four weeks of the season.
 
• Last week at Edinboro, Cal U accomplished the rare feat of scoring two points in two different ways. The Vulcans recorded a safety in the first quarter when the snap on a punt attempt went out of the end zone. Late in the third quarter, junior Jermal Martin, Jr. recorded an interception on a two-point attempt and returned the ball for a defensive PAT. Cal U last scored on a defensive PAT in Week 5 of the 2011 season at Lock Haven.
 
• The Vulcans entered last week with only one interception through three games. Cal U responded with three interceptions, including two in Edinboro territory, by three different players. In 2019, the Vulcans tied for third in the PSAC with 17 interceptions and tied for the league lead with three interception returns for touchdowns.
 
• Mercyhurst quarterback and kicker Brian Alsobrooks returns to the PSAC after playing at Cal U from 2017-18. Alsobrooks was selected a CoSIDA Second-Team Academic All-American at kicker as a sophomore. He finished with 68 points on nine field goals and 41 PAT attempts, plus averaged nearly 35 yards per punt, in 2018. Alsobrooks totaled 215 passing yards and two touchdowns while a reserve quarterback at Cal U.
 
• Cal U ranks second in the PSAC and among the top 10 in the country in time of possession this year, averaging over 35 minutes per game. Over the last two weeks, the Vulcans have recorded a combined 39-minute advantage in time of possession. Cal U maintained possession for over 10 minutes twice last week at Edinboro and in three quarters against Millersville two weeks ago.
 
• Over the summer, Mercyhurst head coach Marty Schaetzle announced his retirement following the end of the 2021 season. He is the winningest coach in program history with 94 victories while guiding the program for 20 years as members of both the GLIAC and PSAC. The Lakers have already announced that longtime assistant coach Ryan Riemedio will serve as head coach following Schaetzle's retirement.
 
• Junior defensive back Kavon Morman has been involved in three turnovers already this season. He recovered a fumble in each of the opening two weeks of the season before recording an interception last weekend at Edinboro. Morman has collected 12 tackles with 1.5 TFL this fall after playing primarily as a reserve from 2018-19. The Pittsburgh native tallied six stops in his first career start in 2018 at Mercyhurst.
 
• The Vulcans sit among the top 15 in the country this year with over 315 passing yards per game. Cal U has utilized a variety of wide receivers, running backs and tight ends in the aerial attack, as 13 different players have made at least one reception. The trio of senior Tyson Hill, sophomore JaQuae Jackson and junior Cam Tarrant have combined for nearly 70 catches and over 800 yards this season.