LOCK HAVEN, PA – Luigi Lista-Brinza (McKees Rocks, Pa. /Central Catholic) ran for 114 yards and two touchdowns and the IUP defense held Lock Haven to 47 rushing yards as the Crimson Hawks held off the Bald Eagles' comeback attempt for a 21-16 win on Saturday at Hubert Jack Stadium.
 
The Crimson Hawks - now 2-1 on the year and an even 1-1 in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) – held a 14-3 halftime lead over Lock Haven and finished the day with a 33:09 to 26:51 time of possession advantage. That can be attributed to the 47 total rushing attempts for 195 yards from IUP. In addition to Lista-Brinza's 114 yards on 25 attempts, Chris Temple (Malvern, Pa. /Great Valley) ran for 74 yards on 16 carries.
 
IUP held a 21-3 lead over the Bald Eagles (0-3, 0-2) after a seven yard scoring strike from Chase Haslett (Clayton, Mo./Clayton) to Drew Carswell (Pittsburgh, Pa. /Sto-Rox) on the opening drive of the third quarter. Lock Haven responded with a 14-play, 69-yard drive that saw Caleb Walton connect with Bernard Smack for a 12-yard touchdown to cut the deficit to 21-10.
 
The Crimson Hawks couldn't get the ball out of their own territory on their next three possession, with the third one ending in an interception that was returned to the IUP 31-yard line. Lock Haven took advantage of that turnover, turning it into points with a seven-play drive that resulted in a two-yard touchdown toss from Walton to David Cook. The two-point conversion failed and IUP held onto a 21-16 lead with 5:52 left in the game.
 
Lista-Brinza was swallowed for a four-yard loss on IUP's opening play of the next drive, but Haslett promptly hooked up with Carswell for a first down on a 21-yard pass play that got the ball to the Lock Haven 39-yard line. After another run by the Crimson Hawks, Lock Haven picked off Haslett again, this time at its own 16-yard line.
 
The Bald Eagles took over 84 yards from going on top with 3:46 to go in the game. They were able to move up 36 yards to the IUP 48 in just four plays before calling a timeout with 2:16 left. Coming out of the break, Myles Catlin (Pittsburgh, Pa. /Obama) came up with a huge sack of Walton before Matthew Mowad (Easton, Pa. /Easton) pressured him into an incomplete pass on third and long. With 1:44 on the clock and Lock Haven facing a fourth and long, it was Catlin and Mowad again making the play, tackling running back Beau Swales for a one-yard loss to end the Lock Haven threat.
 
IUP held the Bald Eagles to 268 yards of total offense while totaling three sacks, including one each by Mowad and Catlin. Jerell McFadden (Manassas, Va./Osbourn) and Kevin Clarke (West Mifflin, Pa. /West Mifflin) led the Crimson Hawks with eight tackles apiece, with McFadden breaking up three of Walton's passes.
 
The Crimson Hawks totaled 12 tackles-for-loss on the day, with Lock Haven taking 27 carries to get to those 47 rushing yards.
 
IUP got on the board first, scoring on its second possession of the game with a 16-yard jaunt by Lista-Brinza. He got his second score with just over three minutes left in the second quarter, converting a four-yard run to cap off an 11-play, 65-yard drive. Lock Haven then put together a 60-yard drive in 10 plays, getting a field goal from 21 yards out by Alex Boumerhi to make it an 11-point game going into the half.
 
Haslett finished the game 14-for-20 for 176 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. Carswell caught six of those passes for 103 yards and that third quarter score while Walt Pegues (Philadelphia, Pa. /Central) had 33 yards on five catches.
 
The win by IUP was the 32nd straight over Lock Haven, a streak that started in 1982.
 
The Crimson Hawks return to Miller Stadium next weekend for their second home game of the season as they host Mercyhurst in their annual Hall of Fame Game.