(Posted October 7, 2006)

Juniata 34, Susquehanna 9 HUNTINGDON, Pa. â?? Senior running back Duane J. Ehredt Jr. (Bellwood-Antis/Altoona) rushed for 119 yards and three touchdowns and the Juniata defense forced four turnovers, two of which led to touchdowns as Juniata earned its first victory of 2006 with a 34-9 victory over Susquehanna University in Middle Atlantic Conference action at Knox Stadium on Saturday. Juniata raised its record to 1-5 overall and 1-4 in the MAC while the Crusaders are now 1-4 on the season and 1-3 in the conference. The victory snapped an 17-game losing streak for Juniata, which dated back to the 2003 season. The Eagles also took possession of the Goalpost Trophy, which goes to the winner of the game between Juniata and Susquehanna, for the first time since 2001. Everything went Juniata\'s way in the first half as the Eagles jumped out to a 27-0 lead. Juniata got started early as Kiel G. Knisely (Claysburg-Kimmel/Queen) returned the opening kick-off 58 yards into Susquehanna territory. Seven plays later Ehredt plunged in from five yards out to put Juniata in front 6-0. David Nicklaus\' (Lampeter Strasburg/Lancaster) kick gave Juniata a quick 7-0 lead. Special teams came through for Juniata again on its next possession. After the Eagles\' defense forced a punt, Tyler Hall (Juniata Valley/Alexandria) returned the punt 22 yards to give Juniata the ball at the Crusaders 44. A 38-yard pass from Jay Leonard (Big Spring/Newville) to Nicklaus brought the ball to the four yard line, and Ehredt went in again to make it 13-0 Juniata with 8:09 remaining in the first quarter. Juniata missed the extra point, keeping the score at 13-0. Leonard was 12-22 passing on the day for 156 yards and finished with a pair of touchdowns. Juniata\'s defense provided the next boost as Susquehanna got the ball back and rode the rushing of Dave Paveletz inside the Juniata 10-yard line. But Juniata held the Crusaders out of the end zone, and then a missed field goal kept Juniata\'s lead intact with three minutes left in the first quarter. Susquehanna moved into Juniata territory again on its next drive but Andy Miller (Manheim Township/Lancaster) corralled his first career interception to halt the drive. Susquehanna forced a Juniata punt following the drive, but the Eagles got the ball back when Josh Roy (Northern Lebanon/Fredericksburg) picked off Susquehanna quarterback Derek Pope gave Juniata the ball at the Crusaders 20. The Eagles capitalized quickly as Leonard hit Jason Koch (Kutztown/Kutztown) with a 18-yard completion, and Ehredt plowed in from two yards out for his third score, giving Juniata a 19-0 lead. Nicklaus\' point made it 20-0 Juniata with 8:46 left in the first half. The defense again came up with a big play on Susquehanna\'s ensuing drive as Brandon Spayd (Huntingdon/Huntingdon) picked off another Crusader pass, this time from Dennis Robertson who had entered the game on that drive. Spayd returned the pick 25 yards to the Susquehanna 34, giving Juniata excellent field position again. Leonard found Knisely for a 25-yard completion to bring the ball to the 19. On second-and-goal from the nine Leonard found Travis Sumner (Penn Cambria/Ebensburg) in the flat who ran to the one-yard line and then fumbled into the end zone where the ball was recovered by Juniata offensive lineman Mohammad Ali Khoshnevisan (Seneca Valley/Germantown, Md.) for another Juniata touchdown. The extra point gave the Eagles a 27-0 lead with 5:05 left in the first half. The Crusaders would not go empty-handed in the first half as quarterback Keith Howell came on and led the visitors on a 12-play 54-yard drive that ended with a Brian Wimmer 33-yard field goal to make the score 27-3 just 48 seconds before the half. The story of the second half was the Juniata defense which managed to preserve the lead by keeping the visitors out of the end zone on two trips inside Juniata\'s 10 yard line. The two teams traded punts on the first two drives of the half, before a 55-yard rush by Howell brought Susquehanna deep into Juniata territory on Susquehanna\'s second drive. The Crusaders would take four shots inside the 10 but a tackle for a loss from Andrew Knittle (Hamburg/Hamburg) and Ryan Calabrese (C. Milton Wright/Bel Air, Md.) on third down and then an incompletion on fourth down quelled the drive. The Eagles took advantage of the opportunity moving 90 yards on 11 plays after getting the ball back. The drive was aided by a running into the kicker penalty that gave Juniata a first down in its own territory. After the penalty the Eagles rode the legs of Ehredt into Susquehanna territory, and then Leonard found Nicklaus for a 25-yard touchdown pass to give Juniata a 33-3 lead. The point put Juniata in front 34-3. The Crusaders again moved deep into Juniata territory on the next drive, with a 44-yard rush from Howell providing the big yards. But after reaching the Eagles 11, Juniata\'s defense held again, forcing a turnover on downs. The Crusaders did get on the scoreboard on their next drive, as the visitors moved 60 yards on eight plays. Several more rushes from Howell and four carries for Paveletz brought the ball to the one, where Charlie Henry plunged in for the Crusader touchdown. The two-point conversion attempt failed, leaving Juniata in front 34-9 with 6:47 remaining in the game. Juniata burned more than five minutes off the clock on its next drive before turning the ball over on downs. The Eagles then sealed the win as Hall picked off Howell on Susquehanna\'s ensuing possession. Juniata\'s offense finished with 298 yards on the day, with Ehredt topping the 100-yard mark for the fifth-consecutive game. Leonard connected with seven different receivers on the day, with Nicklaus leading the group with three catches for 73 yards and a touchdown. Junior punter Tyler Templeton (Central Cambria/Ebensburg) also enjoyed a strong day as he punted four times for a 48.4-yard average. Defensively Hall led Juniata with 12 tackles, including eight solo stops and an interception. Roy, Alex Waleski (Huntingdon/Huntingdon), Bryan Jung (Notre Dame/Bethlehem) and Spayd each finished with six tackles. Juniata\'s defense limited the Crusaders to nine completions on 28 attempts for 66 yards with four interceptions. The last time Juniata held a team to fewer than 100 yards passing was the final game of the 2004 season. For Susquehanna Howell finished with 172 yards rushing on the day on just 12 carries for an average of 14.3 yards per rush. Paveletz finished with 86 yards rushing on the day. Howell was 5-18 passing for 36 yards. Justin Wutti led the Crusaders with three catches for 30 yards. Defensively for the Crusaders Eddie Jones led the team with eight tackles. Tom Eisenhart finished with six stops, including or for a loss and had a pass break-up. Four Crusaders posted five tackles, with John Salvatore and Rob McGarrigle each producing a tackle for a loss. Juniata will look to stay on the winning track as the Eagles travel to play MAC foe King\'s next Saturday. Susquehanna will be at home against Widener. ###

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