In their home opener, the Gannon University football team defeated the University of Charleston with a final score of 48-13.

 The Knights left West Charleston in the dust when they gained two touchdowns in seven plays in the first quarter, leading up to a pass from junior Melvin Blanks to senior Sam East to a 20-yard touchdown within the first three minutes of the game to take the lead 6-0.

 West Charleston’s specials teams’ error led to the Knights gaining control of the ball after a fumbled punt. After picking up the play from Charleston, the Knights scored their second touchdown in the first quarter with 6:24 left making the score 13-0.

 While the Knights finished the first quarter with a strong lead of 13-0, their defense left it open for the Golden Eagles to take advantage. The Knights forced the Golden Eagles to settle for field goals. West Charleston made two field goals — the first at 43 yards and the second at 31 yards with 10:44 in the second quarter, making the score 13-6.

 Gannon took control of the ball in the last five minutes of the second quarter and scored two more touchdowns. Wide receiver Sam East completed a diving catch on their first down in the 3rd-and-10. After four more runs, 49 yards reached, East and quarterback Kory Curtis completed another pass for a touchdown, making the score 20-6 with 4:52 left in the second quarter. The first half of the game ended with Curtis passing to East who was wide open in the back end of the left corner of the endzone leading to another touchdown with 37 seconds left in the second half.

The first half of the game ended with a score of 27-6.

 The third quarter resulted in Curtis passing to Alex Whittaker and tight ends completing a touchdown with 4:48 left in the third quarter, making the score 33-6. Yet, West Charleston attempted for a comeback and completed a touchdown with 1:38 left in the third quarter. The third quarter ended with a score of 33-13.

 In the fourth quarter, West Charleston was unsuccessful in trying to make a comeback against the Knights. Instead, the Knights ended the game with two more touchdowns. Curtis successfully ran a touchdown with 7:52 left in the game, making the score 40-13. The final touchdown was achieved by first-year defensive lineman Myron Green. Green picked up a 42-yard fumble finishing the game with a whooping score of 47-13 with 1:21 left in the game.

Kory Curtis completed five touchdowns. Curtis successfully passed for three touchdowns and ran for the other two. Curtis was successful in making 4-of-5 of the punts for the extra points.

KIRAS RIOS

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