ERIE, Pa. – The 20th ranked Slippery Rock University football team scored 14 points in the fourth quarter to earn a 35-24 victory at Mercyhurst University Saturday in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division action from Tullio Field.
 
The Rock improved to 6-1 overall and 3-1 in divisional play with the victory and keeps themselves in the driver's seat for a fourth PSAC West title in the last five years. If Slippery Rock wins its next three games, it will be guaranteed a fourth appearance in the league title game in the last five years. Mercyhurst, which was picked to finish third in the preseason coaches poll, dropped its fourth straight game to fall to 3-4 overall and 0-4 in divisional play.
 
Saturday's game was a tale of two different stories for the offenses with The Rock pounding the ball on the ground and the Lakers being forced to gain all their yards through the air. Slippery Rock finished the game with a 406-401 advantage in total yardage after rushing for 252 yards and passing for 154. Mercyhurst threw for 412 yards but finished with only 401 yards of offense after being held to negative 11 rushing yards.
 
Slippery Rock fought off four turnovers and 11 penalties for 123 yards to rally back for its first-ever win on the road at Mercyhurst after the Lakers led 24-21 entering the final quarter.
 
Shamar Greene led the rushing attack with 167 yards and one touchdown on 26 carries. Julian Durden added 17 carries for 65 yards and two touchdowns and Isiah Neely chipped in two carries for 10 yards and one score.
 
Dante Nania completed 16-of-26 passes for 154 yards with one touchdown and one interception, which came on a fluky play when Greene bobble a screen pass for 10 yards before being hit and the ball popped up in the air to a defender.
 
Leroy McClain caught a perfectly thrown 38-yard touchdown pass just inches from the back of the end zone with 14:30 left in the game that put Slippery Rock on top for good. He finished with four catches for 66 yards. Drew Scales caught six passes for 48 yards and also returned four kickoffs for 117 yards, including a 50-yarder to open the game.
 
The Rock defense entered the game ranked fifth in the country in takeaways and came up with three more turnovers Saturday as Derrick Fulmore, Alfon Cook and Teven Williams each recorded one pick.
 
Williams led the team with 11 total tackles, including one sack and two tackles for loss, in addition to his interception that came after Cook deflected a pass into the air. Marcus Martin was in the backfield all day and finished with 10 tackles, two solo sacks, three tackles for loss and five credited quarterback hurries. Deonte Flemings added eight tackles, Cook finished with seven tackles and three pass breakups and Mike Grata added six tackles and one tackle for loss.
 
Mercyhurst was led by quarterback Zach Emerick, who set a school record for completions and nearly broke the Mercyhurst record for attempts in the game. He completed 39-of-65 attempts for 412 yards with three touchdowns and three interceptions.
 
Jaquan Williams caught eight passes for 137 yards and one touchdown and FJ Williams caught 10 passes for 97 yards and one score.
 
The Lakers all-time leading rusher, Brandon Brown-Dukes, was held to negative 16 rushing yards on nine carries and averaged a loss of more than one yard per attempt.
 
Saturday's game featured a variety of weather conditions from sunny with little wind early in the game to rain, sleet and snow during portions of the second half.
 
The Rock won the opening toss and took the ball with the good weather. Scales took the opening kickoff 50 yards to begin the first possession in Mercyhurst territory and Greene and Durden did all the work from there as SRU went 44 yards in nine plays before Durden punched it in to take a 7-0 lead just 3:04 into the game.
 
Slippery Rock added to the margin on its next possession with a 71-yard drive that took 13 plays and was capped by a Neely touchdown run from nine yards out to make it 14-0 with six minutes left in the opening quarter.
 
It looked as if The Rock were going to run away with the game after Cook recorded an interception and the offense marched down the field with ease late in the opening quarter, but officials ruled Taishan Tucker fumbled on the Mercyhurst 16-yard line after a reception over the middle and the Lakers took over and built momentum from there.
 
Mercyhurst scored to make it 14-7 with 13:32 to play in the first half after an 84-yard drive that was helped by one of four personal foul calls against SRU in the game.
 
The Lakers tied the game two possessions later after Slippery Rock turned the ball over on downs. Emerick hit TJ Latimer out of the backfield for a 16 yard score to cap a 71 yard drive that made it 14-14 with 2:35 left in the half.
 
Mercyhurst capped a 17-0 run in the third quarter with a 26-yard field goal from Dylan Kondis to take its first lead of the game, 17-14 with 8:28 to play in the period.
 
Slippery Rock responded with its first long, sustained drive since the opening quarter. After a block in the back call on the kickoff made The Rock start the drive on their own eight-yard line, the offense marched the ball 92 yards in 11 plays and capped the drive with a one-yard TD plunge from Durden to take a 21-17 lead with 5:07 to play in the third. Greene rushed for 60 yards on that drive alone.
 
Merychurst answered right back, this time with a 75-yard drive that was aided by a pass interference call on Slippery Rock on a third down pass that fell incomplete. Emerick found FJ Williams for a 20-yard TD on a catch and run down the sideline that put the Lakers back on top, 24-21 with 52 seconds left in the third.
 
The fourth quarter belonged to The Rock and began with Nania connecting with McClain in the back of the end zone from 38-yards out just 30 seconds into the period. That score put SRU back on top, 28-24.
 
On Merychurst's first offensive play after SRU retook the lead, Emerick's pass was deflected by Cook into the arms of Teven Williams for the interception inside Mercyhurst territory. On the next play, with snow starting to fall, Slippery Rock fumbled the snap and the Lakers recovered near midfield as the team's traded turnovers. Later in that drive Martin came up with a sack on fourth down to stall the drive at the Slippery Rock 43 and give SRU the ball with 12 minutes to play.
 
The Rock went 57 yards in six plays, capped by an 18-yard run from Greene to make it 35-24 with 10:17 to play.
 
Mercyhurst threatened one more time in the game, but was intercepted by Fulmore at The Rock nine-yard line on one drive and turned the ball over on downs after another sack on another drive. SRU ran out the clock after Greene broke free for a 15-yard gain later in the fourth.
 
Slippery Rock will now turn its attention to next Saturday night when rival Indiana (Pa.) visits Mihalik-Thompson Stadium for a 6 p.m. nationally televised game. The Rock will honor all past, present and future military personnel and their families at the game.
 
 
 
NOTES: Slippery Rock entered 2015 without a win in the city of Erie since 2008 when Gannon and Mercyhurst joined the PSAC and defeated both schools on the road this year … SRU is now 4-4 all-time against Mercyhurst and no team in the series has won two games in a row … this marked the first time the visitor has won a game in the series … George Mihalik recorded his 191st career victory at SRU … Shamar Greene ran for more than 100 yards for the fourth time in five games this year … Greene now has 2,814 rushing yards in his career and passed Chuck Sanders for ninth all-time at SRU … Andrew Huska handled placekicking duties with Mike Wainauskis injured and was 5-for-5 on PAT attempts and is now 12-for-12 on the year … Marcus Martin's two sacks give him 22.0 sacks in just 19 career games and moved him up to eighth on the all-time list at SRU … Derrick Fulmore's fourth interception of the year, a one-handed diving catch, is the 11th of his career and moves him up to eighth on the all-time list at SRU … Julian Durden now has 12 rushing TDs this year … he entered the game ranked sixth in Division II with 10 TDs.