MILLERSVILLE, Pa. - Behind Jaheim Morris' career-high 156 yards and a late-game defensive stop, the Millersville Marauders won their second-straight game, holding off rallying East Stroudsburg 20-14 Saturday at Biemesderfer Stadium. 

Morris led a rushing attack that piled up 269 rushing yards against a Warriors defense that had surrendered just 119 total rushing yards in the previous two weeks. While Morris did the bulk of the damage by steamrolling defenders and breaking tackles, freshman quarterback Robert Footman Jr., making his first career start, totaled 58 yards, and Marcus Pierce Jr., matched that total. The effective running game and a swarming defense helped the Marauders to a 20-0 lead, and holding the Warriors to without a score for the game's first 49:22. 

All three phases of the Marauders' game worked in sync. The defense generated three turnovers. Two forced and recovered fumbles led to short fields and a pair of field goals by Eli Workinger and Christian Makanoeich, and KeShaun Jones sealed the victory with an interception on fourth-and-14 with fewer than two minutes remaining. Reigning PSAC East Special Teams Athlete of the Week Zach Banta was stellar as well, averaging 45.1 yards per punt, dropping five of his seven inside the 20, and his 65-yarder in the first quarter flipped field position after the Marauders had been backed up deep in their own territory. 

"That was as close to a completed team victory as you will see," said Millersville head coach J.C. Morgan. "We complimented each other, turned some turnovers into points. We needed both of those turnovers and field goals, and that was the difference in the day. Special teams coverage with our kick placements pinned them deep. I'm proud of the guys. The first part of the season we were trying to figure out how to close games out, and today we found a way to close it out."

HOW IT HAPPENED
• Millersville took its early lead on the second drive of the game, capitalizing on a poor ESU punt that sailed out of bounds at the ESU 30-yard line. Footman scrambled for 20 yards on second down, and two snaps later, Footman found Workinger for the tight end's first touchdown of the season. 
• Millersville held East Stroudsburg to five-straight three-and-outs to start the game, and with 7:25 left in the second quarter, the Marauders completed a five-play, 68-yard drive that came all on the ground. Footman had a rush for 21 on first down, and Morris did the rest, ripping off runs of 18, nine and 15--the last of which crossed the goal line for a 14-0 Millersville lead. 
• On the next ESU drive, Imir Lilliston forced a fumble that was recovered by Conner Snyder at the ESU 27. Millersville could not gain a yard in three plays, but Workinger drilled a 44-yard field goal for a 17-0 lead that was carried into halftime. 
• Snyder scored his second fumble recovery of the game on East Stroudsburg's second drive of the third quarter. It set up the Marauders at the ESU 44, and a key third-down pass from Footman to Hakim Melvin put Millersville on the 16 and into field goal range. Makanoeich hit from 33 yards to put Millersville in front 20-0. 
• After coming up empty on 11-straight drives, East Stroudsburg put the ball in the hands of Aaron Tobias. The junior had attempted just one pass previously this season, but he found a connection with tight end Beau Heyser immediately. Tobias completed five passes on a 95-yard drive, closing the third quarter with a TD pass to Jonathan Post. On the very next ESU possession, pinned on their own 3, the Warriors caught a break when a Marauder defender slipped and Heyser broke free for a 97-yard touchdown, making it a 20-14 game. 
• Millersville, however, answered with a 10-play drive, draining seven minutes off the clock. The drive included two third-down conversions on Footman passes, one of which was a 17-yard strike to Mekhi Alexander on third-and-nine. ESU took over on their own 20 with 4:11 to play and picked up one first down on a Heyser 12-yard catch. But the Warriors would go no further than their own 37. Passes on first and second down fell incomplete, and Snyder and Chase Alisauckas combined to dump Tobias for a four-yard loss on third down. On fourth down, Tobias tried to squeeze a pass across the middle to Heyser, but Jones slid in front of the receiver and ended the comeback attempt. 

MORE FROM COACH J.C. MORGAN
•  On Morris' performance: "He ran that ball today, didn't he? He was a guy that we targeted from day one in the recruiting process. We go to see him a lot during his days at Cedar Cliff. What you saw today is a continuation of his development. Today, he just refused to go down. Marcus Pierce and him developed a nice combination. That running back room is deep. We've got three or four guys who can run the ball. The line is starting to get confidence and picking up some steam. Great job by the guys blocking."
•  On bouncing back after the long touchdown pass: "The one thing that was important after that was getting a couple third-down conversions. Rob Footman found a way to convert two of those plays, and Jaheim ripped a decent run to flip field position and pin them back. Even after the two scoring drives, I still had the utmost confidence in the defense."
•  On the Footman in his first start: "I know when he looks back at the game he will see some plays he wishes he had back but that's part of a first career start as a true freshman in the PSAC. East Stroudsburg was a field goal from beating IUP and had four shots against Kutztown, and those are two teams regarded as the top of the conference. That's a good football team over there. But I've said it after every loss, that if we come out and play hard, we can play with anyone."
•  On stopping the run: "After the way Slippery Rock ran the ball the way they did, our guys starting taking it personally. You've seen that the last three weeks. It was a lot of basics and details we cleaned up. Coach (Matt) Sutjak did a great job with those guys, fitting the runs the right way. At the end of the day, those boys are playing hard. It's an attention grabber when you watch film."
•  On the confidence in the defense to make a stop: "A lot of confidence. That's reflective in the decisions that we made with punting the ball. I didn't lose faith in them, and they stepped up at the right time and made a play."

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
•  Footman completed 10-of-17 passes for 93 yards, throwing one interception to go with his TD pass to Workinger. Alexander led the Marauders with three catches for 39 yards. 
•  Lilliston led the defense with seven tackles, one tackle for loss and a forced fumble. Snyder's two recovered fumbles added to his half-sack. Randy Okungu forced a fumble, Garrett Cox recorded a sack, and freshman Gus Ross broke up a pair of passes. 

NOTES
•  Millersville has rushed for 526 yards in the last two weeks, and the 269 yards on Saturday were the most since rushing for 280 against Cheyney in 2008. It is the first time Millersville has rushed for 200 yards in back-to-back games since the final two games of the 2007 season.
•  Morris' 156 yards were the most by a Marauder since Tyrone Gibson totaled 183 at East Stroudsburg in 2017. 
•  Millersville's defense has forced eight turnovers in the last three games--three fumble recoveries and five interceptions. Millersville has also totaled 10 sacks in the last three games after totaling four in the first three games. 

UP NEXT
• Millersville faces a tough road test on Saturday, Oct. 15 with a trip to No. 4-ranked Shepherd.