Homecoming heartache: YSU loses on final play

By PETE MOLLICA
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
YOUNGSTOWN -- "Snake bit" aren't even the right words to describe the Youngstown State football team.
The Penguins, who have struggled all season, put on a tremendous fourth quarter comeback Saturday afternoon only to see it taken away from them on field goal after time had expired, as Northern Iowa pulled out a 22-20 victory on homecoming at Stambaugh Stadium.
YSU (2-5, 0-3 Gateway) trailed 19-7 with just over 10 minutes remaining in the contest.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Tom Zetts and junior tailback Josh Cayson rallied the Penguins to a pair of touchdowns and a 20-19 lead with 3:53 remaining.
The Panthers (2-4, 1-2), who had lost three straight games by a touchdown or less, drove to the YSU 27 with five seconds remaining.
Key play
Sophomore kicker Brian Wingert tried a 44-yard field goal as time expired, but YSU senior Nate Baston got a hand on the ball and it was well off the mark. While the Penguins were celebrating the victory the officials were marching off a 15-yard penalty against the Penguins for roughing the kicker.
Wingert got another chance from 31 yards out, this time after the game clock had expired, and was perfect to give the Panthers the victory.
"What can you say?" said YSU coach Jon Heacock, who was nearly in tears. "It's just frustrating to have played so hard and come back against a good football team and still come away with a loss."
Heacock argued with the officials that the ball was touched, thus nullifying the roughing penalty, but the ruling is that the player who touched the ball is the only one allowed to hit the kicker.
Both Baston and senior defensive back Herb Jones were airborne trying to block the kick. Baston got the ball, but Jones rolled into Wingert drawing the foul.
"It still should never come down to one play," Heacock said. The game is made up of so many plays and to blame it on one isn't right."
Northern Iowa coach Mark Farley, who finally got the monkey off his back with a close win, praised the Penguins.
"For them to fight back like they did in the final quarter took a lot of character," Farley said. "They were down 19-7 and could have just quit, but they played hard and gave themselves a chance to win the game."
Rough start
For three quarters the Penguins didn't play all that well. They had just 68 yards rushing and 181 total yards over that span and their only score came on a 73-yard pass from Zetts to senior wide receiver Matt Rycraft late in the opening quarter to give the Penguins a 7-0 lead.
YSU finished with 264 total yards, including 109 rushing, while Zetts was 16 of 22 for 155 yards and two touchdowns. Cayson finished with 91 yards on 23 carries and 70 of those came during the final 16 minutes.
"We've either played well in the first half or the second half all season long," Cayson said. "I thought we played four good quarters tonight, especially well in the second half. The line blocked exceptionally well tonight."
After the Penguins scored on the long pass to take the lead, Northern Iowa came right back with an 80-yard drive to score it first touchdown on a 1-yard run by Terrance Feeney, but Wingert's PAT attempt was blocked by Baston and the Penguins still led 7-6.
That lead lasted only another series as the Panthers stopped the Penguins and came back to drive down to the YSU 21 where Wingert kicked a 39-yard field goal to take a 9-7 halftime lead.
The Penguins couldn't get anything going in the third quarter and Northern Iowa, with the help of a pass interference penalty against the Penguins, took a 16-7 lead on a 31-yard pass from Eric Sanders to Justin Surrency.
Later in the quarter, Wingert added a 26-yard field goal to put the Panthers ahead, 19-6.
Late rally
YSU then put on a good drive rolling down to the Panthers 4 yard line, but on fourth-and-2 from the 3, sophomore Demetrius Ison got only a yard and a half and the Panthers took over.
YSU stopped them quickly and took over at its own 47. Zetts threw short passes to Ison and Kyle Smith, while Cayson started churning up yardage to give the Penguins a first and goal at the UNI 7-yard line.
It took the Penguins seven tries to score from there, but after a pass interference penalty against the Panthers gave them a first down at the 2, Ison eventually scored from a yard out.
On the first play after the kickoff Feeney was hit hard by freshman linebacker James Terry and fumbled with Terry coming up with the ball at the UNI 24.
This time it took just four plays with Zetts finding a wide open Mike Roberts at the 9-yard line and the senior tight end carried it easily to the end zone. Senior Nick Terracina's extra point gave the Penguins a 20-19 lead with 3:53 remaining.
mollica@vindy.com