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LOCK HAVEN, Pa. - The Bloomsburg University football team allowed 19 points in the span of 7:20 in the second half and suffered a 26-18 loss at the hands of Lock Haven University on Saturday afternoon at Hubert Jack Stadium. The Huskies dropped to 5-4 overall and 3-3 in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division while the Bald Eagles improved to 3-6 overall and 3-3 in the PSAC East.

The Huskies entered the contest having won six straight meetings against the Bald Eagles dating back to a 17-15 Lock Haven victory on September 20, 2003.

Lock Haven jumped out quickly, outgaining the Huskies 156-24 in the first quarter and getting the only points on the scoreboard when Caleb Walton found Cameron Tobias from eight yards out with 45 seconds left in the opening 15 minutes. Ethan Harro added the extra point to cap off a 14-play, 78-yard drive that took 6:50 off the clock.

In the first quarter, the Bald Eagles held the ball for 10:34 and ran 23 plays compared to eight offensive snaps for Bloomsburg.

The second quarter, however, proved to be a complete reversal. The Huskies knotted the game at 7-7 with an 11-play, 70-yard drive that took 5:29 off the clock. Senior running back Lawrence Elliott Jr. (Utica, N.Y./Thomas R. Proctor) found paydirt for the 18th time this season when he scampered around right end from three yards out with 10:11 left in the opening half. Redshirt sophomore Ryan Abbott (Hagerstown, Md./Saint James School) added the extra point.

In the second quarter, Bloomsburg held the ball for 9:33 and outgained the Bald Eagles, 141-49, as the teams went to their respective locker rooms at halftime tied at 7-7.

Lock Haven took control of the game in the third quarter when it scored two touchdowns in less than four minutes to take a 20-7 advantage after three quarters. John Ford gave the Bald Eagles the lead for good with a one-yard touchdown plunge with 5:31 left in the third. Harro, however, missed the extra point, as Lock Haven held a 13-7 lead. Then, after an interception, the Bald Eagles converted the turnover into seven points when Walton hit Shawn Seif on a 48-yard catch-and-run down the right sideline with 1:37 remaining in the third. Walton was actually called upon to kick the extra point and he nailed it through the uprights.

The Bald Eagles would tack on another touchdown to start the fourth quarter as they built up a 26-7 lead when Lukius White scampered in from four yards out. Walton, however, missed the extra point with 13:11 remaining.

Bloomsburg righted the ship and made things interesting down the stretch thanks to long passing plays. On the Huskies' first drive of the fourth quarter, redshirt junior tight end Aaron Allison (Philadelphia, Pa./Frankford) took a backwards pass from redshirt sophomore Duffy Gilhool (Upper Chichester, Pa./Chichester) and then launched a pass for a 58-yard completion to freshman Kieron Smethers (Wellsboro, Pa./Wellsboro Area) to set up a first-and-goal from the Lock Haven seven. The drive stalled but Abbott made it a two-possession game when he nailed a 24-yard field goal with 10:07 left, cutting the lead to 26-10.

The Allison-to-Smethers play marked the first career passing attempt by Allison and the first career reception for Smethers.

After the Huskies' defense forced a Lock Haven punt, Gilhool connected with freshman Ethan Price (Coopersburg, Pa./Southern Lehigh) on a 72-yard pass play down the left sideline on Bloomsburg's ensuing possession to again set up a first-and-goal. This time, the Huskies got into the endzone when the Gilhool-to-Price connection hooked up on a five-yard pass with 4:24 left in regulation. It was Price's first career touchdown. Gilhool then found Allison for the two-point conversion to cut the Lock Haven lead to 26-18 with plenty of time remaining.

However, Lock Haven played keep away over the final 4:24 and ran out the clock to hang on for the eight-point victory.

Lock Haven outgained Bloomsburg, 439-345, for the contest but ran 15 more plays than the Huskies (74-59). The Bald Eagles held the ball for 33:33, marking the sixth time in nine games this season that Bloomsburg has not won the time of possession battle. The Huskies were limited to 101 yards rushing - one week after rushing for a season-high 283 yards against East Stroudsburg.

Redshirt senior Joe Parsnik (Wilkes-Barre, Pa./Coughlin) was the leading ball carrier for the Huskies, finishing with ten carries for 62 yards. Gilhool added 38 yards on 11 carries. Elliott Jr. was limited to just 19 yards on only eight carries - both season-lows. Gilhool completed 14-of-27 passes for 186 yards and one touchdown but was picked off three times. His first interception in the second quarter snapped a string of 51 consecutive passes at the start of his career without throwing a pick. Redshirt freshman Michael Allen (Oley, Pa./Oley Valley) was the main target as he hauled in six passes for 57 yards.

John Ford was a workhorse for Lock Haven all afternoon as he carried the ball 35 times for 144 yards and one touchdown. He also had one catch for 20 yards during the final drive that ran out the clock for the Bald Eagles. Walton, who had 35 yards rushing, was 14-of-26 passing for 242 yards and two touchdowns. Seif led the way with three catches for 92 yards.

Defensively, redshirt senior Jerrin Toomey (York, Pa./West York) led the Huskies with nine total tackles (six solo). Redshirt sophomore Marquis Seamon (Philadelphia, Pa./Father Judge) and redshirt senior Andrew Harris (Bethlehem, Pa./Whitehall) had eight tackles apiece. Kevin Chapple had nine tackles, three tackles for a loss, and two sacks to lead the Lock Haven defensive corps.

The Huskies will return to action on Saturday, November 5, when they host Shippensburg in the final home game of the regular season. Kickof is set for 2:00 p.m. from Danny Hale Field at Redman Stadium.