EDINBORO, Pa. – Freshman corner
Obi Anyatonwu intercepted an Edinboro pass with 17 seconds to play to clinch a 13-6 road divisional win for the 22nd-ranked Crimson Hawks on a rainy Saturday afternoon at Sox Harrison Stadium.
The interception came on 4th-and-6 from the IUP 8-yard line, as junior linebacker
Damon Lloyd deflected Jarrod Kellar's pass into Anytonwu's hands.
It was the third interception of the day for the IUP defense, with two of those picks coming in the fourth quarter with the Crimson Hawks nursing that 7-point lead. Senior safety
Mike Pietropola intercepted the other pass midway through the quarter.
The IUP defense gave up just 287 total yards and also racked up four sacks on the afternoon, with five different players chipping in to bring down Kellar.
It was the fourth straight win for the Crimson Hawks, who improved to 8-2 overall and finished divisional play with a 5-2 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West mark.
After a scoreless first quarter, the Crimson Hawks took a 6-0 lead into the half with a pair of long field goals by junior
Dillon Sarka. He capped off two 50-plus yard drives with kicks of 39 and 43 yards.
Edinboro (6-4, 3-4 PSAC) did have a chance to take an early lead but a 40-yard field goal attempt in the first quarter was blocked by redshirt freshman lineman
Raunya Mitchell. The block directly led to Sarka's first field goal.
The Fighting Scots put together another successful drive after IUP's second field goal, getting all the way down to the Crimson Hawks' 12-yard line before Mitchell and senior end
Deandre Easterling combined for a huge sack on fourth down to preserve the first half shutout.
IUP's first second half possession ended in a fourth down fumble and led to a 1-yard touchdown run by Walter Fletcher. The ensuing point after kick was missed as the score remained tied at 6-6.
Fletcher was fed the ball often Saturday with 186 yards on 36 carries, an average of 5.2 yards per rush.
After a pair of failed IUP possessions, the Crimson Hawks put together a 10-play, 78-yard touchdown drive that ended with a 1-yard go-ahead score by sophomore back
Justice Evans. The key play on that drive was a 17-yard hookup between senior quarterback
Lenny Williams Jr. and junior receiver
Dom McNeil on third down, which set up the Evans' run.
Edinboro's last possession was its longest of the day, lasting 13 plays and 54 yards before Anytonwu's turnover.
Up next
The Crimson Hawks have one final chance to impress the NCAA selection committee as they host Shippensburg on Senior Day in the regular season finale. The Raiders are 5-5 on the year and went 3-3 in the PSAC East, wrapping up divisional play with a 48-7 win over East Stroudsburg today.
Notes
This was the third straight game IUP has held an opponent under 300 yards of total offense … It's the second straight game IUP has picked off three passes, doubling its season total over the last two weeks … Lloyd had a game-high 13 total tackles, with Pietropola and junior safety
Shaq Jones each adding 10 … Junior end
Dondrea Tillman had a sack to increase his season total to a PSAC-best 10.5 … The six points allowed is the fewest since Gannon managed just three points in a 48-3 IUP win on October 3, 2016 … IUP head coach
Paul Tortorella improved to 21-3 (.875) in his two seasons.
Follow
For up-to-date game information, visit IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP football on Twitter @IUPCrimsonHawk and @IUPfootball.
