Penguins can't handle Panthers

Youngstown fell into a three-way tie for first place in the conference.
By PETE MOLLICA
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa -- Youngstown State got a dose of its own medicine Saturday as Northern Iowa rushed past the Penguins, 21-7, handing YSU its first loss in the Gateway Conference.
The loss also puts the Penguins in a must-win situation next Saturday when they travel to Southern Illinois.
The Penguins (7-2, 4-1) are in a three-way deadlock for first place in the standings with the Salukis and Western Kentucky.
Northern Iowa (5-3, 3-2), on the other hand, kept its playoff hopes alive.
The Panthers used a ball-control offense that rolled up 280 yards on the ground, while keeping the Penguins in check, limiting them to just 79 yards rushing.
"We had some opportunities early that we didn't take advantage of," said YSU coach Jon Heacock.
"But it still comes down to fundamentals and we didn't block and tackle very well today," he added.
Straightforward
"We just didn't get it done and it's not going to get any easier the next two weeks," he said. "We've got to put it back together and quickly."
The Penguins, who trailed 14-7 at halftime, made only one real threat in the second half and that was on their opening drive.
Sophomore quarterback Tom Zetts drove the Penguins to the UNI 35, but on his second down pass to senior Kyle Smith he hit his hand on a defender's helmet and had to leave the game.
Sophomore Vince Gliatta came in and got the Penguins to the 27, but on second down threw a hard pass at senior Aaron Marshall, who couldn't hold on and ball ended up in Chris Parsons' hands for the Panthers.
Northern Iowa came back later in the quarter and began a 89-yard drive that went into the fourth quarter and most of it was on the ground behind the running of David Horne and Corey Lewis.
Horne capped the drive with a 1-yard run with 11:32 remaining, and the Penguins never threatened again until the final seconds.
On that final drive Zetts completed four passes, two to Marshall, but the killing play came with just 25 seconds remaining when the ball was snapped over his head from the 5-yard line and was recovered at the 19 and the Penguins had to use their final timeout.
Zetts was 20-of-38 for 264 yards and one touchdown and one interception, but with no running game he was forced to throw more.
Junior Marcus Mason's four-game 100-plus yard streak ended with 41 yards on 12 carries.
Horne finished with 142 yards on 26 carries and Lewis added 78 on 11 rushes. Horne scored all three touchdowns for the Panthers.
Smith caught five passes in the game and tied the YSU record of consecutive games with a pass caught at 28.
Offense struggles
The Penguins struggled offensively early in the first half getting only one first down and 17 yards rushing and 29 total yards in the first quarter.
Even an interception by senior defensive back Aaron Scales couldn't get the Penguins moving, who got a big break when the Panthers completed a long pass that was called back by a penalty.
Northern Iowa struck first as senior quarterback Eric Sanders, who missed the last two games with an ankle injury, got the Panthers rolling.
He connected on a 29-yard pass to Jamie Goodwin and then Jason Breeland raced 26 more on a reverse putting the ball at the YSU 7. Four plays later David Horne scored from the 1.
Zetts, who struggled early, hitting just 2-of-6 passes, finally came to life in the second quarter.
He drove the Penguins 83 yards, primarily through the air, connecting on 7-of-8, including the last seven in a row and even had to fight off an offensive interference call against YSU's Demetrius Ison.
He hit junior T.J. Peterson with a 29-yard pass in which Peterson made a great grab going up over the defender to put the ball at the UNI 14.
Two plays later Zetts found freshman tight end Derrick Bush wide open from the 10 for the touchdown.
mollica@vindy.com