ERIE, Pa. – It was all business as the seventh-ranked Kutztown football team hit the road across the state for its first away contest of the 2024 regular season. KU tallied a season-best in points offensively and the defensive unit was stout once again as Kutztown defeated Gannon 37-14 Saturday afternoon in a non-conference game featuring Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference East and West Divisional teams.
 
The Golden Bears (3-0 overall) have won their first three games all by at least 18 points and are off to their best start to a campaign since the 2019 season when they won the opening 10 contests. The 37 points is the most in a game since they scored 47 against Mercyhurst on Sept. 16, 2023.
 
Kutztown's offense amassed a season-best 408 total yards, including 218 on the ground, the most since the PSAC championship game victory last Slippery Rock last Nov. 11. Nine different Golden Bears received a carry, led by nine each from Jaedyn Stewart (Newfield, N.J./Delsea Regional) and Steven Burkhardt (Gloucester City, N.J./Gloucester City), with the former running for a team-high 66 yards and a touchdown on the opening drive, 3:17 into the game that gave his team a lead it would not relinquish.
 
Piotr Partyla (Lyndhurst, N.J./Lyndhurst) and Luke Maxwell (Estell Manor, N.J./Delsea Regional) both found pay dirt for the first time in their careers in Maroon and Gold, coming late in the second and third quarters, respectively. Malik Griffin (Philadelphia, Pa./Neumann Goretti) rushed eight times for 48 yards, a six yard average.
 
Following Stewart's opening drive rushing touchdown, Judd Novak (Manheim, Pa./Manheim Central) found Mekhi Gibson (Ewing, N.J./Ewing) for the first of two scoring connections in the first half, the first one coming on the second drive with 4:57 left in the first quarter.
 
Kutztown had its way on its opening two offensive drives, but was stopped on the third with a three-and-out. Just as it may have looked like the Golden Knights (0-3) were stealing some momentum, the Golden Bears defense took it right back with a safety, as Brandon Strausser (Reading, Pa./Governor Mifflin) sacked Jayden Whitaker in the end zone to push the KU lead to 16-0 early in the second quarter. It was the first defensive safety for KU since Nov. 5, 2022, at West Chester, with current junior, Brandon Hile (Winfield, Pa./Selinsgrove), in on that one. On the ensuing possession, Novak hit Gibson for another five-yard touchdown and all of a sudden the game is 23-0 in favor of the Maroon and Gold with 9:37 to go in the first half. Maxwell's one-yard score with 0:52 remaining extended the advantage to 30-0 at halftime.
 
Gannon had a pair of fourth quarter touchdowns as the Kutztown defense had a lot of their regulars resting on the bench with the game out of reach.
 
Novak finished 17-of-22 for 190 yards and the two touchdowns. He also ran twice for 12 yards. Noah Kracyla (Townsend, Del./Middletown) and Kurtis Ravenel Jr. (Carlisle, Pa./Carlisle) both had four catches.
 
Defensively, seven Golden Bears were credited with sacks, led by one a piece from Jake Davis (Plymouth Meeting, Pa./Plymouth Whitemarsh), Strausser and Brayden Pohlman (Egg Harbor Township, N.J./Mainland Regional). Davis and Strausser led the unit with five tackles each and combined for 1.5 tackles-for-loss. Eden Johnson (Philadelphia, Pa./Governor Mifflin), Freddie Retter (Quakertown, Pa./Quakertown), CJ Brown (Coatesville, Pa./Coatesville) and Drew Hensor (Fairless Hills, Pa./Pennsbury) all recorded 0.5 sack.
 
Kutztown will open up play in the PSAC with an Eastern Divisional game at East Stroudsburg next Saturday, Sept. 28, at 6:05 p.m. The two teams have played some close games over the last three seasons, with each game coming down to a one score advantage, all won by KU.

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