CLARION, Pa. --- The Golden Eagle football team rushed the ball effectively to build a 13-point second-half lead, but Clarion was beaten on a desperation play by Lock Haven as the Bald Eagles won 21-20 at Memorial Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
 
Clarion led 20-14 late in the fourth quarter but was forced to punt the ball away to Lock Haven with 1:34 remaining. The Bald Eagles took over at their own 42-yard line and drove it down to the Golden Eagle 31-yard line, with Clarion forcing three straight incompletions to force a fourth down. With 16 seconds remaining and facing a 4^th-and-10, the Bald Eagles ran a flea flicker, with receiver DeAaron Lawrence getting the ball to quarterback Danny Sanchez just before being tackled. Sanchez lofted the ball to Chris Hicks, who pulled down the jump ball at the three-yard line and reached the end zone for the score. Lock Haven's extra point was good, giving the Bald Eagles a 21-20 lead.
 
The Golden Eagles would have one final play at their disposal, after Shane Brockett pulled in a squib kick and returned it to the Clarion 46-yard line. Quarterback Anthony Guercio took the shotgun snap but could not find an open man, going down on a sack by Jyair Thomas.
 
That was the only lead the Bald Eagles enjoyed in the game, as Clarion scored 10 points in the first quarter and later held a 20-7 advantage early in the fourth quarter. The Golden Eagle ground game was effective throughout, racking up 166 yards and affording Clarion a significant advantage in time of possession. Most of those yards came courtesy of Guercio's feet, with the sophomore quarterback posting a team-high 105 yards.
 
Guercio scored his first career rushing touchdown on Clarion's second offensive possession, capping a seven-play, 38-yard drive. Aided in part by a roughing the passer call against Lock Haven, Guercio scored from 15 yards out, sprinting to the left side of the line and finding a clear lane to the end zone. Andrew Kurtas – who kicked a 30-yard field goal on the Golden Eagles' first drive – booted the point-after try to make it a 10-0 game.
 
 The Bald Eagles got right back in it midway through the second quarter, connecting on a couple of deep pass plays and scoring from 23 yards out to make it 10-7. Kurtas made it a six-point game heading into the locker room, punctuating a 55-yard drive with a 25-yard field goal as time expired at the half.
 
Early in the fourth quarter, it seemed as though an interception by Che Trevena – the only turnover for either side in the game – had permanently swung momentum in favor of the Golden Eagles. Lock Haven was in Clarion territory when Trevena jumped a pass intended for Chase Holmes, taking it 15 yards to the Golden Eagle 25-yard line. Eight plays and 75 yards later, Guercio delivered a bullet pass to Trenten Smith at the goal line, hitting his man at the lefthand pylon to put Clarion ahead 20-7.
 
Lock Haven responded with a quick strike on their next drive, with running back Chris Collier ripping off a 62-yard rushing touchdown to make it again a one-score game. The Golden Eagles failed to convert on third down on their final two drives.
 
Khalon Simmons saw significant action for the first time this season and acquitted himself well, recording 51 rushing yards on 13 carries while also catching two passes for 38 yards. Ryan Stahl and Jake Tarburton finished with eight tackles apiece, with the former racking up stops on special teams and the latter also contributing half a sack a tackle for loss and two quarterback hurries. Elroe Yohnnes had 1.5 sacks as part of his four stops.
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