Edinboro Fighting Scots roll over visiting Gannon 41-17 on homecoming

Approximately 20 players involved in first half fight

The Edinboro Fighting Scots football team moved to 5-1 on the season following a 41-17 victory over Gannon on homecoming weekend. 

“I’m never satisfied, we got to play better, [and] there are a lot of things we can clean up penalty wise and play wise to get better,” head coach Justin Lustig said after the game.

The Fighting Scots got off to a quick start as they scored from 1 yard out on a Walter Fletcher run at the 11:46 mark in the first quarter. A couple of stalled drives then ended with Austin Reese field goals to put Edinboro up 13-0. Gannon finally got on the board in the second quarter on a Karch Holland field goal.

Edinboro answered back as Alex Caratelli caught a 41-yard pass from Sisson to put six more points on the board, pushing it to 20-3 with a little over seven minutes to go in the first half.

It was on the ensuing Gannon drive that Gannon quarterback Zach Phillips was picked off by Edinboro’s Gabe Tillman at the Gannon 26-yard line. Tillman would return the ball to the Gannon 6-yard line. Normally this would be cause for celebration, but it was action away from the play that got the attention, as Edinboro’s Mitch Thomas got tangled up with Gannon’s Nathan Adams. A brawl ensued and cleared the benches on both sides.

It was the quick action by Edinboro’s head coach Lustig that followed, quickly regaining control over his players that calmed the situation. Both Thomas and Adams were ejected from the game and 20 other players from both teams were cited in the action as the referees reviewed the footage at halftime. Those designated player’s names and the footage were passed on to the PSAC for a further ruling.

The Edinboro coaching staff declined to comment on the situation as it is still developing.

In the third quarter T’Nauz Gregory would catch a pass from Sisson for a 40-yard touchdown. It would take until the fourth quarter for Gannon to answer back with a 3-yard run from running back Marcus Jones for a touchdown.

Not to be outdone, Walter Fletcher would break free on a 21-yard run for a touchdown of his own. Gannon again would answer with a pass from Phillips to Richard Makowski for an 80-yard score. However, Edinboro would be unfazed as Sisson would again find Caratelli, this time for a 23-yard pass and touchdown.

Sisson would have a 400-yard game, adding to this stellar season. Sisson would have 33 completions on 56 attempts. The 56 attempts were the most passing attempts in school history, according Edinboro’s Sport Information department. 

Sisson’s favorite target on the day was Caratelli, who had 13 receptions for 188 yards and two touchdowns. Gregory would be another favorite target of Sisson’s with 10 receptions for 136 yards and a touchdown.

“Our offense has moved really well all year. We scheme up every week what they [the defense] is going to give us and we exploit those weaknesses and holes,” Sisson said.

With all the passing Sisson did during the game, he had help from his big guys up front, as for the second week in a row they gave up no sacks. 

The running game was working well for Edinboro as Fletcher had 135 yards on 13 carries for two touchdowns and averaged 10.3 yards per carry. Brenden Rios would join in for three carries and 35 yards.

On defense, the Fighting Scots did well shutting down the running attack of Gannon, holding them to a meager 82 yards. Josh Kibbie led the defense with two sacks. Mike Shansky led the defense in tackles with three solo tackles and 12 assisted.

The Fighting Scots now look to take on Mercyhurst next Saturday in Erie.

“We didn’t [play] 100 percent; we didn’t play our best, but we will take the momentum of this win into next week,” said Sisson.

George Schmidt is a sports writer for EdinboroNow. He can be reached at sports.spectator@gmail.com.

 

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