CLARION, Pa. (Oct. 5) – The California (PA) football team scored a pair of touchdowns in the final four-plus minutes, highlighted by the go-ahead touchdown with 56 seconds left, to earn a 31-27 win at Clarion on Saturday afternoon in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West play.
NOTES
• Senior quarterback
Davis Black set a career high with 422 passing yards on 31-of-46 attempts with three touchdowns and no interceptions.
• He posted the sixth-most passing yards in single-game school history, and the most since 2017.
• Senior
Demonte Martin registered the first 100-yard game of his career, finishing with 189 receiving yards on seven catches with one touchdown.
• Junior
Eric Willis III totaled 100 yards on 10 receptions and senior
Omari Hopkins added 53 receiving yards and two touchdowns on five catches.
• Sophomore
Bobbie Boyd, Jr. led the team with 36 rushing yards and one touchdown on 13 attempts.
• Senior defensive back
Dominic Solomon, Jr. paced the defense with a career-high 12 tackles (nine solo) and recorded a game-sealing interception in the final seconds.
• Sophomore defensive back
Khalil Taylor added eight tackles and sophomore linebacker
Grant Hopple finished with seven stops.
GAME RECAP
• Clarion scored a touchdown on the opening possession of the game with a wide-receiver pass on fourth-and-goal.
• The Golden Eagles extended the lead to 13-0 with 12:38 left in the second quarter following a seven-minute drive.
• Cal (4-1, 2-0) blocked a field goal on the next drive by Clarion before senior
Anthony Beitko converted a 36-yard field goal with 36 seconds left in the first half, 14-3.
• The Vulcans cut the deficit to 14-10 with a two-yard touchdown run by Boyd at the 11:39-mark of the third quarter.
• Black later connected with Hopkins for a three-yard score with 1:52 left in the quarter to trim the deficit to 20-17.
• The Golden Eagles extended the lead back to double-digits, 27-17, at the 6:50-mark of the fourth quarter following a nearly eight-minute drive.
• Cal responded with a 23-yard touchdown pass from Black to Hopkins with 4:07 remaining after the Vulcans converted a third-and-10 and fourth-and-three on the drive.
• Clarion was then forced to a three-and-out and Cal regained possession with 2:20 left to play at its own 34-yard line.
• The Vulcans claimed their only lead of the game with 56 seconds remaining when Martin caught a 35-yard touchdown from Black.
• Clarion started the ensuing drive with a 33-yard pass to move to the Cal 42-yard line before Solomon sealed the victory two plays later with his fifth career interception.
NEXT
• Cal returns to action on Saturday, Oct. 12, when it travels to face Seton Hill in nearby Greensburg, Pennsylvania, at 4 p.m.
