10/7/23

SCRANTON, Pa. -- Needing a spark late in the first quarter, Lackawanna College football had a surge of electricity, powering past visiting Monroe College on its way to a 41-18 victory at home on Saturday evening in Scranton.
 
Lackawanna College compiled 436 yards of offense and converted 28 first downs on the night, while holding Monroe to just 53 yards rushing on the night, but things were tight early, and the upset-minded Mustangs had the Falcons on the ropes.
 
The #15 Falcons (5-1) trailed 12-7 late in the first, and faced a 4^th-and-1 deep in their own territory on the 36. Rather than punt, the Falcons took a page out of the Philadelphia Eagles' playbook and pushed quarterback Hamas Duren (Sophomore; Sicklerville, NJ) across the line for a first down. That kept the drive going, and, despite the drive not ending in points to start the second quarter, it gave the Falcons a little juice. They'd squeeze that juice on the next possession, when Duren finished off a ten-play drive with a five-yard touchdown run that put the Falcons up 14-12.
 
Multiple personal foul penalties forced Lackawanna to kick from its own ten-yard line, but the subsequent kick bounced off a Monroe receiver and landed in the arms of the Falcons on the Monroe 45. Lackawanna immediately capitalized four plays later, when Duren found Avohn Cross (Sophomore; Philadelphia, PA) for a 24-yard touchdown.
 
From there, Lackawanna held onto the lead, despite numerous penalties and some missed opportunities. Benjamin Paserk (Sophomore; Batavia, NY) kicked two field goals, one on either side of the halftime break, and Maxwell James (Sophomore; Burke, VA) caught a 21-yard touchdown pass form Duren early in the fourth, with the Falcons clinging to a 27-18 lead, that broke things open. Terence Folkes (Sophomore; Belleville, NJ) added his second touchdown in as many weeks, securing an interception deep in Monroe territory off a deflection and returning it for a 10-yard touchdown that finished off the scoring for the day.
 
Terrez Worthy (Sophomore; Salisbury, MD) ran for 200 yards on 27 carries and scored the game's first touchdown, coming on the Falcons' opening drive of the game. Worthy's rushing performance puts him at 1,028 yards on the year, the first time since 2008 that Lackawanna College has had a running back go over 1,000 yards in a season.
 
Monroe (3-2) kicked back-to-back field goals on their first two possessions, then intercepted a Falcons pass late in the first quarter, and scored on an eight-yard touchdown pass to take a 12-7 lead. That would be all they'd get until mid-way through the third, as the Falcon defense bent, but didn't break.
 
Duren finished 13-for-25 for 182 yards and two touchdowns, while James caught four passes for a team-high 53 yards and a score. Robert Rossi (Sophomore; Scranton, PA) was second on the team with three catches for 45 yards. Folkes led the defensive effort with eight solo tackles, including a sack, and his touchdown. Saint McLeod (Sophomore; Philadelphia, PA) was second on the team with six total tackles, while Antonio Alfano (Sophomore; Colonia, NJ) had four tackles, three of which were sacks.
 
Lackawanna College is next in action on Saturday, October 14^th, when the Falcons are set to host Hocking College. It's Homecoming Weekend, and the game is set for a 1:00pm ET kickoff at PenFed Field at Scranton Memorial Stadium.