On Saturday afternoon at Hubert Jack Stadium, the Bald Eagles made history, clinching a winning season for the first time since 1981 and doing so in emphatic fashion. Behind a well-rounded effort that saw its offense chalk up 689 yards and defense hold Gannon to seven points through three, Lock Haven (6-5) defeated the Golden Knights, 49-28, to secure its momentous sixth win and close out the campaign on a high note.

In his first season at the helm, head coach Joe Battaglia helped the program accomplish history, putting the mentions of 1981 to bed and granting the Haven their best campaign in over four decades. The milestone meant a lot to him and the world to the seniors, especially those that of 2020 and 2021.

“Just proud of all these guys, especially the graduating class. The guys that are done that came in with us at 1-10,” expressed Battaglia. “To be able to do this in Year 4 with clear belief in us, with everyone staying from this past year after the head coaching change, I’m just so proud of them.”

“A lot of emotions coming from 1-10 my freshman year, 5-6, 5-6, just the grit and the grind that we brought every single day, every morning lift, every morning practice,” expressed senior Davien Vernon. “It’s emotional. I can cry you a reverend right now, honestly. It’s hard to explain, but it feels good.”

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Lock Haven's Markel Morgan (7) celebrates with pom-poms during a football game against Gannon on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025, at Hubert Jack Stadium. The Bald Eagles won, 49-28, to clinch their first winning season since 1981.

While Lock Haven’s absurd offensive statistics stole the show late, the defense warranted its flowers, holding Gannon without a first down through the first quarter and scoreless through the first half.

That effort, coupled with two first-half picks from Rocco Daugherty, consistently set up the Bald Eagle offense with great field position. And while it didn’t take advantage immediately, it did from the second drive onwards.

After finishing the first drive 1-of-4 with an incompletion on fourth down, quarterback Jackson Ostrowsky quickly found his groove before catching fire through the last three quarters. The result was one of the best performances of his college career, which saw him compile 459 yards and five touchdowns on a 72-percent completion rate.

“Just the preparation, the way we prepared, attacked the week and the trust that was built over the last two years and last 11 weeks with the receivers and line,” said Ostrowsky when discussing what fueled the performance. “Everything just happened to click right when we needed it to. It feels great to get this win for the community.”

His first touchdown came on the team’s second drive.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Lock Haven defenders swarm a Gannon runner during a football game against Gannon on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025, at Hubert Jack Stadium. The Bald Eagles won, 49-28, to clinch their first winning season since 1981.

After starting at their own eight-yard line, big rushing contributions from Ezequiel Johnson, Cureem Hathcock and Ostrowsky set Lock Haven up just outside the red zone. And on a flea-flicker variation that granted Ostrowsky plenty of time, he found Justin Popovich wide open in the back of the endzone.

“It actually wasn’t supposed to go to me, but I was wide open,” said Popovich, who finished with seven receptions for 128 yards. “I just feel like we went off from there.”

From there, the Lock Haven offense would dominate, scoring touchdowns on all but two of its remaining drives and going up 21-0 by halftime.

Two plays into the second quarter, Mehki Watson (10 receptions, 169 yards) scored his first of three touchdowns on a jet sweep to the left, breaking paydirt behind a cavalry. And Damir Green would cap a 16-play, 94-yard drive by punching it in at the goal line after Ostrowsky and Watson connected to convert a fourth-and-three.

The Gannon offense would finally get going in the third, scoring a touchdown on all four of its second-half drives. But Green opened the second half with a 46-yard run to carry to set up another Ostrowsky passing touchdown that bolstered Lock Haven’s cushion to 28 points and from there, the Bald Eagles matched Gannon each time it responded.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Lock Haven's Jackson Orlowsky (11) passes the ball under pressure during a football game against Gannon on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025, at Hubert Jack Stadium. The Bald Eagles won, 49-28, to clinch their first winning season since 1981.

In a practically perfect half of passing, Ostrowsky threw four of his five touchdowns on the day while falling one pass short of a perfect 16-of-16 completion wise. Two of those touchdowns went to Watson, and the other two went to tight end Jaiden Huntington (7 reception, 104 yards).

“He’s definitely a guy you want leading your squad, brings the team together, includes everyone,” said Popovich on Ostrowsky. “I just love him. He’s a hell of a leader.”

Three of his receivers – Popovich, Watson and Huntington – surpassed 100 yards and caught at least one touchdown pass. Watson put together a career outing, falling 11 yards short of 200 yards alongside his three touchdowns, and Huntington’s 107 yards surpassed his previous career high by one.

All the while, Lock Haven’s rushing attack ran efficiently, led by an 85-yard outing from Damir Green in his final hoorah. On top of its 459 passing yards, the run game added 228 while averaging just under seven yards per carry. To say the offense closed out the campaign on a high note would be an understatement, as it averaged almost nine yards per play while picking up 30 first downs.

“I guess we saved the best for last,” laughed Battaglia, who was pleasantly surprised to hear about the final stat line. “I took us a while to click. But once we started that three-game win streak, things really started clicking and then obviously today, it blew up.”

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express The Lock Haven defense celebrates a stop during a football game against Gannon on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025, at Hubert Jack Stadium. The Bald Eagles won, 49-28, to clinch their first winning season since 1981.

It all culminated in the program posting a barrier-shattering victory, ending a 44-year drought in the winning season category and quieting the disappointment that surrounded back-to-back 5-6 campaigns. With that barrier out of the way, the Bald Eagles will look to break new ones in the years that follow.

Lock Haven 49, Gannon 28

Gannon 0 0 7 21 – 28

Lock Haven 7 14 14 14 – 49

First Quarter

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Lock Haven's Mekhi Watson (19) gets lifted in the air by Christian Bundra (73) after a touchdown during a football game against Gannon on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025, at Hubert Jack Stadium. The Bald Eagles won, 49-28, to clinch their first winning season since 1981.

LH – Jackson Ostrowsky to Justin Popovich 26 pass (Caden Bauer kick), 2:27.

Second Quarter

LH – Damir Green 1 run (Bauer kick), .

LH – Mehki Watson 20 run (Bauer kick), .

Third Quarter

LH – Ostrowsky to Jaiden Huntington 10 pass (Bauer kick), 13:45.

G – Ty Hurst 10 run (Bryson Costa kick), 11:24.

LH – Ostrowsky to Jaiden Huntington 1 pass (Bauer kick), 5:36.

Fourth Quarter

G – Hurst to James Faulkner 7 pass (Costa kick), 12:00.

LH – Ostrowsky to Watson 20 pass (Bauer kick), 8:12.

G – Rolando Perez 73 run (Costa kick), 7:31.

LH – Ostrowsky to Watson 33 pass (Bauer kick), 4:59.

G – Hurst 15 run (Costa kick), 1:47.

TEAM STATISTICS G LH

First downs 18 30

Rushes-yards 27-215 34-228

Passing yards 125 459

Total yards 340 689

Comp.-att.-int. 12-21-2 31-43-0

Fumbles-lost 0-0 1-0

Penalties-yards 9-90 8-110

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING–Gannon, Rolando Perez 11-156, TD; Ty Hurst 10-59, 2 TDs; Tristen Kenan 3-7; Damario Moore 2-2; Jay’Den Birch 1-2. Lock Haven, Damir Green 11-85, TD; Lorenzo Robinson 3-42; Ezequiel Johnson 8-40; Cureem Hathcock 8-27; Mehki Watson 1-20, TD; Jackson Ostrowsky 3-14.

PASSING–Gannon, Ty Hurst 12-21-2 125 yards, TD. Lock Haven, Jackson Ostrowsky 31-43-0 459 yards, 5 TDs.

RECEIVING–Gannon, James Faulkner 6-48, TD; Matt Cannone 1-21; Eric Steinle 1-20; Chase Holmes 2-14; Rolando Perez 1-13; Damario Moore 1-9. Lock Haven, Justin Popovich 7-128, TD; Jaiden Huntington 7-104, 2 TDs; Mekhi Watson 10-169, 2 TDs; Justin Roberts 3-37; Cureem Hathcock 1-4; Ezequiel Johnson 1-1.

INTERCEPTIONS– Gannon, none. Lock Haven, Rocco Daugherty 2.

Records: Gannon 1-10 (1-6 PSAC); Lock Haven 6-5 (5-3 PSAC).

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Lock Haven's Damir Green (5) runs the ball during a football game against Gannon on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025, at Hubert Jack Stadium. The Bald Eagles won, 49-28, to clinch their first winning season since 1981.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Lock Haven celebrates a Justin Popovich (2) touchdown during a football game against Gannon on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025, at Hubert Jack Stadium. The Bald Eagles won, 49-28, to clinch their first winning season since 1981.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Lock Haven's Mekhi Watson (19) sprints into the end zone as Jackson Orlowsky (11) celebrates alongside him during a football game against Gannon on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025, at Hubert Jack Stadium. The Bald Eagles won, 49-28, to clinch their first winning season since 1981.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Lock Haven's Jaiden Huntington (87) gets lifted in the air by Devante Embrey-Banks (77) after a touchdown during a football game against Gannon on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025, at Hubert Jack Stadium. The Bald Eagles won, 49-28, to clinch their first winning season since 1981.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Lock Haven fans celebrate in the stands during a football game against Gannon on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025, at Hubert Jack Stadium. The Bald Eagles won, 49-28, to clinch their first winning season since 1981.