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John Schademan
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Football

#18 Rock drop 42-38 decision to #12 Bloomsburg in PSAC title game

Bloomsburg (10-1) scored the game-winning points with 0:27 left in Saturday's game

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BLOOMSBURG, Pa. – Hosting Bloomsburg University scored a touchdown with 27 seconds to play Saturday afternoon to beat 18th-ranked Slippery Rock University, 42-38, and win the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference football championship game at Redman Stadium.

Franklyn Quiteh's 10-yard touchdown run capped an eight-play, 70-yard drive by the 12th-ranked Huskies (10-1) that began with 2:11 on the game clock.

The game-winning drive came immediately after Rock junior kicking specialist Mike Wainauskis booted a 24-yard field goal to put SRU on top by a 38-35 score.

SRU, which had an eight-game win streak snapped and saw its record fall to 9-2, had one last chance to score the winning points but those hopes evaporated when senior quarterback Nigel Barksdale's pass over the middle was picked off at the Bloomsburg 19-yard line on the final play of the game.

Quiteh's game-winning run gave him three touchdowns on the day. The shifty senior running back finished the game with 231 yards on 27 carries.

Behind Quiteh's lead, the Huskies rushed for 360 yards and outgained The Rock by a 533-494 total yardage margin.

Barksdale completed 24 of 41 passes for 343 yards and two TDs with one interception and rushed for 78 yards on 27 carries to lead The Rock attack.

Senior wide receiver John Schademan caught 10 passes for 169 yards and one TD for The Rock.

In the process, Schademan set a new SRU single-season pass receiving yards record. Saturday's performance gave Schademan 1,411 yards on 73 receptions. The former school-record yardage total was 1,283 yards by All-American Greg Hopkins in 1994.

Junior free safety Austin Miele and senior linebacker Bob Westerlund each recorded 11 tackles and junior cornerback Admire Carter picked off two passes to lead The Rock's defensive effort.

Saturday's loss puts The Rock's bid for their first NCAA Division II playoff berth since 1999 somewhat in jeopardy. SRU entered the game as the No. 5 team in the Super Region 1 rankings. The NCAA office will announce Sunday which six Super Region 1 teams will advance to postseason competition.

Bloomsburg, which was the No. 3 team in the latest super-region rankings, solidified its hold on an NCAA playoff berth with Saturday's win and could wind up with one of the two first-round byes that will be awarded to an SR-1 team.

Bloomsburg scored the game's first points with a three-play, 91-yard drive highlighted by an 82-yard sprint by Quiteh to The Rock 8-yard line. Joe Parsnik scored on the next play and Dan Fisher added the extra point to put the Huskies up, 7-0, at the 12:18 mark of the first period.

That lead lasted just over three minutes as The Rock responded with a 13-play, 75-yard scoring drive to knot the score at 7-7 with 9:01 left in the first period. Barksdale hit senior wide receiver Ken Amos for a 31-yard TD to cap the drive.

Neither team scored on their next two possessions before Rock junior cornerback Admire Carter picked off a pass at The Rock 44 to end a Huskies drive.

The Rock offense made the most of the shift in momentum and drove 56 yards in seven plays to give the guests their first lead of the game. Junior running back Teddy Blakeman burst into the end zone from a yard out with 8:29 left to play in the second period to cap the drive.

SRU's non-huddle, Air Raid offense came right back on its next possession to go 50 yards in eight plays, redshirt freshman running back Shamar Greene sprinting the final four for the touchdown. Junior kicking specialist Mike Wainauskis' extra-point kick made the score 21-7 with 4:34 left in the half.

Bloomsburg's offense came storming right back, though, to move 62 yards in six plays and cut the difference to 21-13 with 2:12 left before the intermission. Quiteh dashed the final 10 yards to cap the drive before Rock junior defensive end Cody Conway burst through the line and batted down Fisher's extra-point kick to make it a 21-13 game.

The blocked snapped a string of 51 consecutive extra-point successes by Fisher.

SRU had a chance to extend its lead in the final minute of the second period, but the potential scoring drive ended when Barksdale fumbled inside the Bloomsburg 10 yard line with 0:51 left before halftime.

The Rock had a 289-235 total yardage advantage at the end of two periods behind 100 rushing yards and 199 passing yards. Bloomsburg had 171 rushing yards and 64 passing yards in the first half.

Barksdale collected all the aforementioned passing yards and Schademan caught seven passes for 79 yards in the opening two periods to lead The Rock's first-half attack. Quiteh had 115 yards on 13 carries to lead Bloomsburg.

SRU extended its lead to 28-13 with a three-play, 75-yard scoring drive capped by a 74-yard Barksdale-to-Schademan TD toss with 5:13 left in the third quarter.

Bloomsburg came right back with a nine-play, 64-yard scoring drive to bring the margin back to one TD, 28-21, with 0:26 left in the third period. Connor Gades caught a six-yard pass from Tim Kelly to account for the points and Parsnik was successful on a two-point conversion run.

One play from scrimmage following the ensuing kickoff, the Huskies had the ball back, thanks to a fumble after the catch on a pass reception by Rock sophomore wide receiver Jaimire Dutrieuille at the Rock 24.

Bloomsburg needed only two plays to find the end zone and tie the score at 28-28 with 14:57 left to play in the game. Parsnik scored from a yard out to cap the drive.

The Rock regained the lead at 35-28 at the end of Bloomsburg's next offensive possession as freshman Drew Scales returned a punt 44 yards for a touchdown.

SRU's lead lasted less than three minutes, though, as Bloomsburg took the ensuing kickoff and marched 75 yards in five plays to re-knot the score at 35-35 with 8:32 left to play. Quiteh's two-yard run capped the drive.

Two Rock possessions later, Wainauskis' field goal put the Rock back on top and set the stage for the final two minutes of excitement.






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