Box Score 11/6/22    
 
STAFF REPORT – Lackawanna College had three sports in action on Saturday, November 5^th, with the football team playing Hocking College in Ohio, and both men's and women's basketball in action in their respective pre-season tournaments.
 
Football
The eleventh-ranked Falcons fell behind early, but roared back for a 44-30 road win against the nationally-ranked DIII squad from Hocking College on Saturday afternoon at Nelsonville-York HS in Nelsonville, OH.
 
The Falcons (6-1) trailed 17-7 to the Hawks (6-3) after Hocking scored on a 99-yard fumble return for a touchdown, then an 83-yard kickoff return for a score. But, thanks to the stellar play from Barry Brown (Philadelphia, PA), Lackawanna College mounted a comeback. Brown, for the first time this year, looked like the 2021 NJCAA 2^nd Team All-America, passing for a season-best 320 yards and two touchdowns, while running for 28 yards and three more scores.
 
Lackawanna College piled up 438 yards of total offense, picking up 27 first downs on the afternoon. Ten different Falcons caught a pass on the day, with James Westry (Newark, NJ) leading the Falcons with a team-high six receptions for 107 yards. Kyree Hinton (Somerville, NJ) had five catches for a team-best 116 yards. Ray Poremba (Phillipsburg, NJ) caught his first two passes of the year in the second half, and Joshua Dodd (Seven Oaks, MD) and Justin Thompson (Ambridge, PA) each caught the touchdown passes from Brown.
 
Defensively, the Falcons worked hard to limit the Hawks to field goals, only giving up one touchdown to the Hawks offense. The Falcon defense blocked the fourth and final field goal attempt of the day, and had a combined ten tackles-for-loss and three sacks, while forcing three turnovers from the Hawks.
 
Willie Matthews (Montclair, NJ) led the way for the Falcons, with a team-high six solo tackles, one assisted tackle, 2.5 tackles-for-loss, and a half-a-sack on the day. Andrew Vines (Garner, NC) had five solo tackles and two tackles-for-loss, while Keeno Arrington (Pittsburgh, PA) had four solo tackles, a pair of assists, and a sack on the day.
 
It seemed like the Falcons might start the game on the right foot, right away. After a booming Brown punt pinned the Hawks on their own five, they fumbled on their first play from scrimmage, and Donnel Henriquez (Harrisburg, PA) scooped up the loose ball and raced to the one. But, things took a wild turn, when an errant snap sailed by Hamas Duren (Sicklerville, NJ) and was picked up by Hocking, running the other way 99 yards for a touchdown out of nothing, not even five minutes in.
 
After a Falcon drive was stalled out because of penalties, the Hawks got good field position in Lackawanna territory, and marched the ball to the Falcon nine-yard line. The Lackawanna defense stiffened, and forced a 26-yard field goal. Hocking canned it, one of three field goals on the day for the Hawks, making it 10-0 at the 6:20 mark in the first quarter.
 
The Falcons quickly responded on the ensuing possession. Brown connected with Hinton on a long pass for 47 yards down the right sideline to get Lackawanna into Hocking territory. After a Hawks penalty moved the ball to the 13, Two straight runs, capped by a nine-yard scamper by Brown, made it 10-7.
 
Hocking would add another touchdown without having to go through the Falcon defense, this time returning the kickoff 83 yards to the house to make it 17-7 with 5:12 remaining in the first. Lackawanna College responded with a drive that ended in a field goal from Benjamin Paserk (Batavia, NY) from 25-yards out, making it 17-10 with 2:39 to go.
 
Hocking then took possession and chewed up six minutes of clock on a ten-play drive that spanned the first and second quarter and ended in a 23-yard field goal to push the Hawks' advantage to 20-10 with 10:35 to go in the half.
 
Later in the quarter, after the Falcon defense forced a three-and-out, Lackawanna took over on its own 42 with 5:31 to play in the half, and Brown, who passed for over 200 yards in the first half alone, took over, completing three passes that went for chunks of yardage and first downs to get the Falcons into Hawks territory. Brown converted a fourth-down on a pass to Worthy, and then ran it in two plays later from one yard out, cutting into the lead at 20-17 with 2:22 to go.
 
The Falcons then caught a break when they caught a ball, picking off Hocking, and allowing Ambrose Fletcher (Bethlehem, PA) to return it to the Hocking 20. The Falcons capitalized, converting on a 4^th-and-goal from the two-yard line on a pass from Brown to Thompson, giving the Falcons a 24-20 lead just as halftime closed in.
 
Hocking got off to a quick start after the interval, taking the opening possession of the second half and kicking a 42-yard field goal to cut the lead to just one, then intercepting Lackawanna to get the ball back at midfield, and then converting on a 3^rd-and-8 from the LC 17 with a touchdown pass in the corner of the end zone that made it 30-24, Hawks back in front.
 
Both teams traded punts, and it seemed as if the Falcons were in danger of spoiling possession on at the Hocking 30 after a nice return by Dodd. The offense converted on third down when Brown hit Poremba for a 14-yard pick-up. The Falcons moved the ball into the red zone, but it initially looked like Hocking would hold, until a pass interference on fourth down gave the Falcons a fresh set from the six, and Brown ran it into pick up six (and eventually, seven) to put the Falcons back in front, 31-30.
 
More punts were traded as the Falcons pushed it to the fourth, and Hocking had another one play possession, as the Hawks fumbled on their own 15-yard line, thanks to pressure from Diandre Smith (Jersey City, NJ), who recovered the ball. Two plays later, Worthy was in the end zone with a 38-30 lead for the Falcons.
 
Later, with a little less than 9:30 to play, Hocking had a drive cooking, and were set to try a 48-yard field goal, when Smith swatted that attempt down, and the bouncing ball caromed downfield, until Vines recovered it at the Hocking 49.
 
Lackawanna responded with a scoring drive that was highlighted by Brown finding Westry on the left sideline for 36 yards, and then punctuated by Brown hitting Dodd with a pretty jump ball in the corner that Dodd made a great move to go up and grab over the defender. The extra point was blocked, but the Falcon lead had swelled to 44-30 with 5:20 remaining.
 
Hocking mounted one last drive, starting at its own 36 and marching all the way to the Lackawanna 10, but the Falcon defense forced two straight incompletions on third and fourth down to force the turnover on downs. The Falcons knelt out the last 2:33 of the game to escape with the victory.
 
Lackawanna College is home for its final two games of the regular season. First up is a rematch with #6 Georgia Military, who defeated the Falcons back in September by a 34-12 score down in Milledgeville, GA. The Bulldogs will come to Scranton's Memorial Stadium for the 1:00pm ET kick on Saturday, November 12^th.