SELINSGROVE, Pa. – In their final road contest of the season, the Wilkes University football team fell 26-3 to the Susquehanna University River Hawks at Amos Alonzo Stagg Field on Saturday afternoon.

With the loss, Wilkes falls to 5-4 overall and 3-2 in Landmark Conference play, while Susquehanna moved to 7-2 overall and 5-0 in conference play and clinched the Landmark championship.

The Colonels opened the game strong, driving down the field with a 21-yard catch by Juju Fears (Easton, PA/Easton Area) and a 15-yard run by Cooper King (Northampton, PA/Northampton), setting up Nick Volpone (Delco, PA/Ridley) to drive in a 42-yard field goal to give Wilkes the early 3-0 lead. The kick marks a career high for Volpone, besting his 38-yard kick set earlier this year against King's College.

The River Hawks were then held to a three and out on their first offensive possession, but would not be denied on their second, as Carter McCauley put the hosts on top 7-3 with a touchdown reception early in the second quarter.

On the ensuing possession, Daniel Pigga (Dunmore, PA/Dunmore) put Wilkes in a position to respond with a massive 46-yard reception that set the Colonels up in the redzone. The Colonels would not come up with points as King's pass in the endzone was intercepted, intended for Rahmel Terry (Bethlehem, PA/Bethlehem Catholic).

As Wilkes' offense struggled, the River Hawks scored 19 more unanswered points throughout the rest of the game to take their third conference title in as many years.

King led Wilkes with 14 completions for 136 yards and continued to show his dual threat ability with a team-high 40 rushing yards. Through the air, his top target was Pigga, making two catches for 58 yards. On defense, Tallen Murray (Vineland, NJ/Saint Joseph Academy) led the team with 15 tackles, one off of his season best, 2.5 for loss, and 0.5 sacks. Tyler Wetzel (Sellersville, PA/Pennridge) also reached double-digit tackles registering 12 of his own with 0.5 for loss and 0.5 sacks.

Josh Erlich led Susquehanna with 22 completions for 170 yards and two touchdowns, while Rahshan La Mons led the team in both rushing and receiving yards with 86 and 39 respectively. Luke Hughes led the River Hawk defense with nine total tackles.

The Colonels close the regular season at home on Saturday, November 15^th against Landmark Conference newcomer Western Connecticut State with a spot in the Chesapeake Bowl Challenge on the line at Schmidt Stadium. Kickoff is set for 12:00 p.m.