HTML BOX SCORE

CHEYNEY, Pa. – The Bloomsburg University football team scored six rushing touchdowns – three from senior running back Lawrence Elliott Jr. (Utica, N.Y./Thomas R. Proctor) – and took advantage of four Cheyney University turnovers en route to a 54-14 victory on Saturday afternoon at O'Shields-Stevenson Stadium. With the win, the Huskies improved to 3-1 overall while the Wolves dropped to 1-3. It was the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division opener for both teams.

Elliott Jr. accounted for four touchdowns on the afternoon – adding a 65-yard punt return for a score in the second quarter – but finished the day with a season-low 64 rushing yards on 13 carries. He did, however, become the latest running back to record 2,000 career yards on the ground with a 20-yard scamper in the second quarter. He entered the contest needing 49 yards to eclipse the milestone.

Redshirt freshmen Qmac Quiteh (Tobyhanna, Pa./Pocono Mountain West) and Alexander Arcangeli (Bensalem, Pa./Archbishop Wood) accounted for the other three rushing scores on the afternoon. Quiteh, the younger brother of Bloomsburg's all-time leading rusher Franklyn Quiteh, had his first two collegiate touchdowns in the fourth quarter while Arcangeli's first collegiate score came during a 23-point second quarter for the Huskies.

Cheyney played keep-away from the Huskies in the first half as Bloomsburg ran just 21 offensive plays and held the ball for only 9:24 in the opening thirty minutes. Despite the lopsided time of possession margin, the Huskies built up a 23-7 advantage at the break.

After a scoreless first quarter that saw the Huskies run just seven offensive plays, redshirt sophomore Ryan Abbott (Hagerstown, Md./Saint James School) put the first points on the scoreboard with a career-long 37-yard field goal with 12:01 left in the first half to give Bloomsburg a 3-0 lead. The three-pointer capped off an 11-play, 65-yard drive.

After the Wolves went three-and-out on their ensuing possession, Elliott Jr. caught a Brandon Van Demark punt at the Huskies' 35-yard line, broke a few tackles, regained his balance, and scampered up the left sideline for a 65-yard punt return for a score. It was the third punt return for a touchdown in Elliott Jr.'s career and was the Huskies' first since he returned one 70 yards at Mercyhurst on September 20, 2014. Abbott added the point after for a 10-0 lead.

On Cheyney's next drive, sophomore Nick Pellechia (Churchville, Pa./Council Rock South) forced a fumble from running back Erik Heller, which was recovered by redshirt freshman Alex Annan (Phillipsburg, N.J./Phillipsburg), on the Wolves' second play from scrimmage to give the Huskies the ball right back at the Cheyney 31-yard line. Two running plays from Arcangeli, the latter being a 24-yard powerful run in which he broke several tackles and carried defenders across the goal line, and Bloomsburg was back in the endzone with 7:27 left to play in the first half. Abbott again added the point after for a 17-0 advantage.

The hosts fought back and got on the scoreboard when Heller found paydirt from ten yards out with 1:19 left in the half to cut the Huskies' lead to 17-7 after Van Demark's point after was good.

But, the Huskies were not done. On the first play of the ensuing possession, redshirt junior Chris Palubinsky (Ringtown, Pa./Shenandoah Valley) hooked up with redshirt junior tight end Aaron Allison (Philadelphia, Pa./Frankford) on a 51-yard pass reception to give the Huskies a first-and-goal from the Cheyney eight-yard line. After Palubinsky hit freshman Ethan Price (Coopersburg, Pa./Southern Lehigh) on a six-yard pass play, Elliott Jr. finished off the drive with a two-yard run to put the Huskies ahead, after Abbott's point after was blocked, 23-7 at halftime.

On the first drive of the second half, Bloomsburg needed just two plays to get back into the endzone. Palubinsky connected with redshirt freshman Michael Allen (Oley, Pa./Oley Valley) on a 62-yard reception to get the Huskies down to the Cheyney seven. Elliott Jr. then went untouched across the goal line for a seven-yard touchdown as Bloomsburg took a 30-7 advantage with 13:41 left in the third quarter.

But, the Wolves again clawed back and drove 12 plays and 74 yards in seven minutes and, after Brandon French scored from four yards out, Cheyney found themselves trailing only 30-14 with 6:41 left in the third quarter.

The Huskies, however, scored the final 24 points of the game to come away with the 40-point victory.

Elliott Jr. started the scoring with a two-yard touchdown run – his third of the game – with 1:37 left in the third quarter to extend the lead to 37-14.

In the fourth quarter, Quiteh scored from five-yards out for his first career score as the Huskies took a 44-14 lead with 12:09 left. Abbott connected on a 21-yard field goal to cap off Bloomsburg's next drive and then Quiteh finished the scoring with a six-yard burst into the endzone with 6:52 left in the contest.

Despite the lopsided margin on the scoreboard, statistics were relatively even. Bloomsburg totaled 380 yards of offense – 209 on the ground and 171 through the air – while the Wolves finished with 305 total yards. Cheyney did have more first downs (21-15) and held the ball for 37:36 but committed four turnovers and 11 penalties. The Huskies ran only 48 plays and averaged 7.9 yards per play.

Elliott Jr. finished with 64 yards and three scores on 13 carries. Arcangeli had 54 yards on only four carries while Quiteh added 38 yards and two scores on five carries. Redshirt freshman Tre Green (West Chester, Pa./B. Reed Henderson) also saw his first collegiate carries and finished with 16 yards on four totes.

Palubinsky finished 7-of-12 for 159 yards passing while redshirt freshman Duffy Gilhool (Upper Chichester, Pa./Chichester) finished 1-of-3 for 12 yards. Allison had two catches for 60 yards while Allen had the lone catch for 62 yards.

Heller led Cheyney with 85 yards and one touchdown on 16 carries. Wolves' quarterback Dominick Trautz finished 14-of-23 for 142 yards and one interception – the first collegiate pick for redshirt sophomore Marquis Seamon (Philadelphia, Pa./Father Judge).

Defensively, redshirt senior Andrew Harris (Bethlehem, Pa./Whitehall) led the Huskies with eight total tackles while redshirt junior Eric Schwartz (York, Pa./Central York) added seven. Pellechia had six stops, a tackle for a loss, and a forced fumble. Annan recovered two fumbles on the afternoon and sophomore Chris Gary (Philadelphia, Pa./Archbishop Wood) had both of Bloomsburg's sacks to give him five through four games this season.

Jamiel Hines led Cheyney with six stops.

Bloomsburg extended its winning streaks to 27 straight against the Wolves in the all-time series and 17 straight in Cheyney. Bloomsburg has not lost to its PSAC East-rival since 1989.

The Huskies return to Redman Stadium next Saturday, October 1 when they host Millersville University in another PSAC East matchup. Kickoff is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.