ERIE, Pa. – Clarion outscored Gannon 21-10 in the second half to affect a comeback effort, but the Golden Eagles could not finish off the rally in falling 51-35 to the Golden Knights at McConnell Family Stadium on Saturday.   They will look to get back in the win column next week when they host Seton Hill for Homecoming.
 
Turnovers burned the Golden Eagles in the first half, as Clarion saw two first-half drives end in interceptions and another in a blocked field goal.  They played to the Golden Eagles' advantage in the second half as they forced three fumbles in the second half, but they were only able to turn one of those breaks into a touchdown. 
 
After failing to crack the century mark last week, Mylique McGriff went right back to work against the Golden Knights to the tune of 146 rushing yards and his fourth rushing touchdown of the season.  His day would have been better, but he had two long first-half touchdown runs negated by penalties.  McGriff now needs just 10 yards on the ground to crack 2,000 career rushing yards.
 
Clarion quarterbacks went a combined 23-of-50 for three touchdowns and four interceptions on the day, with Jeff Clemens producing the best line of 11-of-21 for 173 yards, two touchdowns and a pick.  Terrell Ford finished with eight catches for 152 yards and a touchdown, and Kahliq Muhammad and Marcus McCoy also hauled in scoring grabs.
 
The Golden Eagle defense had flashes of success on Saturday, highlighted by Vaughn Wallace's strip sack and 48-yard return for a touchdown in the third quarter.  Facing a 1^st-and-10 from the Clarion 45, Wallace brought down Jimmy Keefe and pried the ball out, rushing 48 yards for the score that made it 41-21.  The Golden Eagles followed up with a score on their next possession, with McGriff scoring from one yard out to make it 48-28. 
 
Saif Khan added another strip sack in the third quarter, this time sacking Keefe near midfield with Mark Lanier plucking the loose from the playing surface.  The Golden Eagles got down to the 10-yard line but were unable to finish off the drive.  Quarterback Michael Proios eventually did lead a scoring drive, connecting with Muhammad from 20 yards out on 4^th-and-10 to make it 48-35, but Gannon did enough to keep Clarion at bay for the rest of the game.
 
The Golden Knights scored touchdowns on each of their first three possessions and on four of their first five, taking a 27-0 lead before McCoy's touchdown in the second quarter put Clarion on the board.  Gannon tacked on two more touchdowns before the half to make it 41-7, but the Golden Eagles took a short field and turned it into paydirt before the end of the half.  After McGriff rushed Clarion into Gannon territory with a 19-yard gain, a personal foul against the Golden Knights put the Golden Eagles at the 23-yard line.  Clemens and Ford did the rest, hooking up on a 23-yard pass with 25 seconds left in the half to cut the deficit to 41-14.