Nov. 8, 2003

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EASTON, Pa. (www.lafayette.edu) - Lafayette junior tailback Joe McCourt rushed 34 times for a career-high 209 yards and scored a career-best four touchdowns as the Leopards defeated Bucknell, 35-17, on Senior Day at Fisher Field.

After forcing Bucknell (5-5 overall, 3-2 Patriot League) to punt on its opening possession, Lafayette (4-5, 1-4) drove 67 yards in 10 plays with McCourt scoring from two yards out. Marko Glavic was 4-of-5 passing for 56 yards on the drive.

Following a Leopard punt, Bucknell's Ryan Korn connected on a 35-yard field goal to get the Bison on the board with 7:35 left in the first half.

The Leopards bumped the lead to 14-3 on McCourt's second score of the half, a two-yard run, just 1:49 before halftime. McCourt accounted for 64 of the 65 yards on the drive (57 rushing, seven receiving).

The Leopard defense forced a three-and-out on Bucknell's next possession and three Glavic completions moved the ball to the Bucknell 23 in the final minute. Mike Beatrice's 45-yard field goal attempt on the final play of the half came up short, and the Leopards took an 11-point lead into the locker room.

The second half began with three turnovers in the first four plays. Glavic threw an interception on the first play, a bad pitch by Bucknell quarterback Daris Wilson was recovered by John-Frank Stubits two plays later and on Lafayette's next play, McCourt fumbled the ball back to Bucknell.

Following the trio of turnovers, the Leopard defense forced a punting situation, and the snap sailed over Bucknell punter Ryan Berry's head, setting the Leopards up at the Bucknell five-yard line. Two plays later, Glavic found David Nelson for a two-yard scoring pass, the first touchdown of Nelson's career. Beatrice's third PAT made the score 21-3 with 12:32 left in the third quarter.

Bucknell answered with an eight-play, 80-yard drive, capped by a nine-yard touchdown pass from Wilson to Nisan Trotter. Korn's point-after was wide left, leaving the score 21-9 with 9:03 left in the third.

The Leopards put the game out of reach on the next possession, grinding out 61 yards in 12 plays and taking 5:24 off the clock. McCourt's third touchdown, a two-yard run, and Beatrice's PAT pushed the lead to 28-9.

Pinned at the five-yard line by a Bucknell punt on the ensuing possession, McCourt ripped off a 54-yard run to key a six-play, 95-yard drive that resulted in his fourth touchdown with 13:47 left.

Bucknell's Cole Ciesnolevicz tossed a 43-yard touchdown pass to Frank Lazio with 2:22 left, then hit Albert Marquardt with the two-point conversion to provide the final margin.

Glavic completed 16-of-23 passes for 203 yards for Lafayette. His favorite target was John Weyrauch, who caught five balls for a game-high 86 yards. Defensively, Maurice Bennett and Stubits each collected 11 tackles, while Bennett tallied two for a loss of 10 yards.

Ciesnolevicz, making his first career start for the Bison, completed 8-of-14 passes for 146 yards. Wilson came off the bench in the second half to completed 7-of-9 for 91 yards. Nine different Bison caught at least one pass.

Bucknell hosts Lehigh next Saturday, while Lafayette visits Holy Cross.