GATEWAY CONFERENCE YSU's house of horrors

The Penguins fell into a 30-3 hole at the UNIDome and never climbed out, losing 30-11 to Northern Iowa.
By PETE MOLLICA
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa -- What a difference a week makes.
After trouncing Western Illinois last Saturday, the Youngstown State football team was beat up pretty good itself in a 30-11 setback to Northern Iowa Saturday.
Before 12,518 at the UNIDome, the Penguins (3-1, 1-1 Gateway Conference) suffered five turnovers and never took advantage of four Northern Iowa (3-1, 1-0) turnovers.
"We knew coming in that we were facing one heck of a football team and they showed it," said YSU coach Jon Heacock, who suffered his first head coaching defeat.
"The game is made up of how you handle success and how you handle adversity," he said. "We didn't handle success very well and next week we'll see how we handle adversity."
Late prosperity: The Penguins finished with 364 total yards, but half of those came in the fourth quarter when they scored their only touchdown.
Senior quarterback Jeff Ryan was intercepted twice, both times after the ball was tipped at the line of scrimmage.
Ryan, who was 15 of 24 for 152 yards and one touchdown, also led the team in rushing for the second straight week with 85 yards on 19 carries.
Backup quarterback Colby Street, who played only the final series, finished with 45 yards rushing on four carries. He also threw an interception on YSU's final possession.
Only TD: The Penguins' only touchdown, with Northern Iowa already head 30-3, came with 14:19 remaining and culminated an 80-yard drive.
Ryan connected with wide receiver Sean Guerriero three times on the drive, then found junior Jerald Burley with a 5-yard scoring pass.
Northern Iowa recovered an onside kick but was forced to punt.
Ryan ran for 17 yards on first down, then passed for 8. But, on second down his pass was batted into the air by the Panthers' Terrell Morgan, who caught the deflection.
Northern Iowa finished the game with 414 yards, including 300 rushing.
Red-shirt freshman quarterback Tom Petrie was also intercepted twice, but he completed 12 of 17 for 114 yards and one score.
Running back Adam Benge rushed for 161 yards on 17 carries and one TD, while Richard Carter added 79 yards on 21 carries and one touchdown.
Strong first half: In the first half Northern Iowa out-gained YSU 249-98.
The Panthers took the opening kickoff and used a 15-play drive, settling for a 37-yard field goal by Makenzie Hoambrecker.
After a YSU punt, Northern Iowa drove 69 yards in nine plays, with Petrie finding a wide-open Marlus Mays for a 20-yard touchdown pass.
After a shanked punt by YSU, the Panthers reached the Penguins' 27, where on first down Petrie found tight end Ryan Hannam, who was cutting across the field, at the 5. However, Hannum fumbled the ball when he was hit and YSU's Bruce Hightower recovered in the end zone for a touchback.
Drive stalls: Ryan then drove YSU to the Panthers' 32-yard line, but the drive stalled there. Jake Stewart then split the uprights for a 49-yard field goal, his career long.
After a missed Northern Iowa field goal, the Penguins' Jerald Burley fumbled and Robert Hamre recovered for UNI.
The Panthers made it to the YSU 6, but with time running out, Petrie's pass was intercepted in the end zone by Hightower.