CLARION, Pa. – The Golden Eagles posted nearly 500 total yards of offense – including just shy of 400 through the air- in a dominant victory on Thursday, defeating the Lock Haven Bald Eagles 41-24 in front of a crowded Memorial Stadium in the season opener. Clarion (1-0) will hit the road for three straight, starting with a televised clash against Bloomsburg on Sept. 10.
Senior quarterback
Connor Simmons tore through the Lock Haven defense, completing 25-of-41 passes for 396 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions. Eight different receivers hauled in passes on the night, with
Kevin Genevro (two scores),
Matt Lehman (one) and
Seneca Williams (one) reaching the end zone.
Delrece Williams led a balanced rushing attack for Clarion, as the Golden Eagles finished with 101 total yards on the ground – 79 of which were courtesy of Williams. He also dove across the pylon for his first rushing touchdown of the year in the first half.
"In the first quarter, I think we were putting a little extra pressure on ourselves and couldn't get things going," head coach
Chris Weibel said. "We just kept plugging away, and as soon as we hit a big play things just started rolling.
Wade Stieren finished with a game-high 12 tackles, while the pair of
Jacob Craig and
Sam Fareri each forced fumbles.
Genevro provided the first of many big offensive plays on the evening. With the game tied at 3-3 after a Lock Haven field goal and with 9:26 to go in the first half, Simmons exploited a one-on-one mismatch in the secondary by launching a bomb to Genevro for a 43-yard touchdown to put the Golden Eagles ahead by a touchdown.
The Golden Eagles forced a three-and-out on the next LHU possession and again made their opponent pay with a touchdown. Taking over a short field at the 50-yard-line, Clarion marched down the field and broke into the red zone after a
Kyle Evans catch. Three plays later Simmons connected with Lehman on a diving play in the end zone, and
Phil Esposito booted the extra point through to make it 17-3.
Clarion tacked on one more score to end the half, with Williams accounting for 26 rushing yards on the drive as well as the tally. Williams spun off a tackler and dove over the right pylon with the ball outstretched to put the Golden Eagles ahead 24-3 entering the halftime break.
Simmons hit Genevro for another long score to make it a 31-3 advantage early in the third quarter, and Williams held off what could have been a late Lock Haven rally by scoring from 71 yards out in the fourth to put the final nail in the Bald Eagles' coffin. Lock Haven added another touchdown late to no avail.
