CLARION, Pa. – The Clarion football team honored its seniors in a pregame ceremony on Saturday, but the Golden Eagles fell to Mercyhurst by a 57-10 score at Memorial Stadium.  Clarion (3-7, 1-6 PSAC West) will close their season next weekend when they face East Stroudsburg on the road.
 
The Lakers took early control of the contest and never allowed the Golden Eagles a foothold, with Clarion's first score coming just 47 seconds into the fourth quarter.  Tight end Jake Whitenight caught his third touchdown pass of the season and James Metzgar added a field goal with 2:14 remaining in regulation to represent the Golden Eagles' scoring.
 
Metzgar enjoyed a couple of highlights on his Saturday.  In addition to kicking the field goal, he also completed a pass to Sam Fareri on a fake punt in the first half to pick up a Clarion first down, making him 3-for-3 on converting fake punts into first downs this season. 
 
Clarion's offense did not pick up much traction until the second half, doing most of their damage in the final 30 minutes of action.  Quinn Zinobile had eight catches for 85 yards, while Kahliq Muhammad made a number of impressive sideline grabs in posting seven catches for 70 yards.  Zinobile was pressed into duty as a kick returner and did well, averaging 34.3 yards per return.
 
On defense, Sam Fareri had a game-high 10 tackles and recorded his first interception of the year, thwarting a Laker drive by picking off a pass in the end zone.  Saif Khan finished with seven tackles and a sack, while Chris GIldea had eight stops and a pass break-up.
 
Mercyhurst started fast by picking off a Jeff Clemens pass on Clarion's first drive of the game, and following it with a one-play touchdown drive to take the 7-0 lead.  The Lakers scored again before the end of the first quarter, with Doug Altavilla hitting Doug Armstrong for a touchdown pass to make it 14-0 after 15 minutes.  The lead expanded to 24-0 at the halftime break as the pressure kept coming, and Mercyhurst made it 43-0 with a touchdown by Cortez Watson.  Clemens walked Clarion down the field on the ensuing offensive drive, hitting Whitenight on 4^th-and-5 from the 8-yard line for a touchdown.