ASHLAND — Early miscues haunted the Eagles on Saturday against heavyweight Grand Valley.

Ashland had a pass intercepted in the end zone on its first possession and misfired on a short field goal in the second quarter in a 20-10 loss to the sixth-ranked Lakers at Jack Miller Stadium.

Photos by Tom Theodore

“If we take care of business and execute the way we’re supposed to, then it’s 20-20 in the fourth quarter,” Ashland coach Doug Geiser said. “We threw a pick as we’re going in … on the first drive of the game and missed a chip-shot field goal.

“That’s a really, really good football team, but so are we.”

Early Control

The Lakers (3-0) took a quick 7-0 lead when tight end Evan Furtney reeled in an 18-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Andrew Schuster, last week’s Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Week.

Ashland (0-2) drove the length of the field but quarterback Drew Novak’s second-down pass intended for Issaiah Ramsey near the goal line was picked off by GVSU’s Chris Little for a touchback.

The Lakers took over at their own 20 after the turnover and put together a 16-play, 80-yard drive. Standout receiver Kellen Reed capped it with a 5-yard TD pass and a 14-0 GVSU advantage.

Grand Valley upped the lead to 17-0 on a 40-yard field goal by Mathew Bacik. 

Ashland marched to the GVSU 22 yard line on its ensuing possession before the drive stalled. Nate Russell’s 39-yard field goal attempt was wide and the Lakes took a 17-0 lead to halftime.

“I’m tired of shooting ourselves in the foot,” Geiser said. “We need to tighten the ship up.”

Second Half Fight

The Eagles got on the board when Russell booted a 33-yarder with 8:53 remaining in the third quarter to make it 17-3.

Bacik’s 39-yard field goal gave GVSU a 20-3 lead early in the fourth. 

Novak’s 6-yard run with 1:15 remaining in the fourth made it 20-10. The Lakers recovered the onside kick to seal it.

“The defense really tightened up and did a great job,” Geiser said. “The offense kept fighting, they kept battling.”

Defense

Ashland limited Grand Valley to 295 total yards and allowed just 2.7 yards per rush. Linebacker Jack Talkington made 15 tackles and returned an interception 22 yards, setting up AU’s first score.

For a second straight week, however, the Eagles struggled to get off the field on third down. GVSU was 9-of-17 on third-down conversions and 1-of-2 on fourth downs.

IUP was 7-of-16 on third downs last week.

“We addressed it last week and we’ll continue to address it, continue to work on it,” Geiser said of his defense’s third-down struggles. “It’s something we’re aware of  and whether it’s (changing scheme) or making a personnel change, we’ll find the answer to it.”

Warrior Mentality

Novak was 12-of-27 passing for 130 yards in his second career start. The redshirt junior was one of Ohio’s greatest high school quarterbacks, throwing for 14,127 yards at Western Brown High School.

“Drew Novak is a warrior,” Geiser said. “He took some shots tonight and he took some shots last week and those are two of the best defensive teams in the country.”