EASTON, Pa. – Lafayette submitted a dominant defensive performance in the Leopards' first Patriot League win, shutting out Bucknell 27-0 on Saturday in the 99^th meeting between the two schools.
 
The Leopard defense, led by 16 tackles from junior LB Marco Olivas, limited Bucknell to 89 rushing yards and 80 yards passing at Fisher Stadium. Junior DL Damon Washington finished with seven tackles, and like Olivas, added a sack. Senior DL Malik Hamm registered a sack of his own along with a forced fumble on the same play.
 
The Leopards ran up 316 yards of total offense, churning out a season-high 194 rushing yards with senior Selwyn Simpson and freshman Michael Hayes each accounting for 74 yards and a touchdown. Junior WR Joe Gillette contributed 50 yards and his own rushing TD to go along with three catches for 72 yards.
 
The Leopards took the opening kick and ran off their longest drive of the year, covering seven and a half minutes. Lafayette converted a pair of fourth downs and used 12 plays to span 72 yards. Gillette's seven-yard run exactly halfway through the first quarter gave the Leopards the 7-0 lead.
 
On Bucknell's first and only drive of the first quarter, Damon Washington sacked Bucknell QB Scott Semtimphelter to turn over the Bison on downs. Lafayette held Bucknell to 3-of-7 on fourth down.
 
The Leopards offense took advantage. Freshman QB Ah-Shaun Davis connected with Gillette for a 45-yard strike to the Bucknell 22. Davis followed with a 15-yard completion to Julius Young. On the next play, Simpson's second effort propelled him into the end zone. The Micah Pettit PAT made it 14-0 with 11:38 left in the half. 
 
Lafayette showed the ability to pound the ball on the next offensive drive. Hayes carried the ball five times, the final time for five yards and a touchdown. He had 26 yards on the drive and caught a pass for 11 yards. The Leopards, who had 113 rushing and 113 passing yards in the first half, led 21-0.
 
In the second half, Pettit added a 45-yard field goal nine minutes into the second half, the third longest of his career.
 
The third quarter looked like it ended with a 70-yard plus punt return by Gillette, but the Leopards were whistled for a pair of penalties with a game-high five hankies on the field that brought it back.
 
Lafayette added another Pettit field goal, this time a career-long 49-yarder, with 3:51 left in the game as Lafayette closed out the 27-0 final. Pettit's field goal was the fourth-longest in school history and the longest since 2010. The freshman is 4-for-4 on kicks of 40 to 49 yards and 6-of-8 overall on the season.
 
Saturday marked the first shutout for Lafayette since Nov. 4, 2017, when Lafayette topped Georgetown, 7-0. The Leopards will play their final non-conference game on Oct. 16 at Harvard (4-0).

NOTES
During the game, friends and family of Chris LaPietra '89 gathered in the PardZone to remember the captain of the 1988 Colonial League title team. A scholarship, originally named for the 1988 team, has been re-named in his honor.
 
Lafayette also remembered former Leopard head coach Bill Russo who passed away on Sept. 29. The program's all-time winningest coach won conference titles in 1988, 1992 and 1994 and was selected as the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year in 1988.
 
Russo's protégé and John Garrett's predecessor, Frank Tavani, was in attendance on Saturday for the LaPietra event. 
 
The Leopards did not turn over the ball for a second straight game.

The Leopards lead the all-time series with Bucknell 55-38-6.