CLARION, Pa. – Khalon Simmons rushed 14 times for 84 yards and four touchdowns to lead Clarion (4-0) to a 51-38 win over Shepherd (0-3) in football action at Clarion on Saturday.

Shepherd took a 7-0 lead when graduate student quarterback Michael Hardyway (Winchester, Cal./Oceanside/Bucknell) fired a 12-yard scoring strike to junior wide receiver Kordell Batten (Waldorf, Md./St. Charles) with 9:13 left in the first quarter. Sophomore kicker Max Barba (Rock Hall, Md./Kent Island/McPherson College) added the extra point.

Clarion answered back with a 28-yard field goal by Andrew Kurtas with 5:31 left in the first quarter to cut the lead to 7-3.

Redshirt junior running back Jordan Barnett (Fredericksburg, Va./Colonial Forge/FUMA/Southern Utah) raced 96 yards for a score with 12:35 left in the second quarter to up the lead to 14-3.

Barba connected on a 38-yard field goal with 7:29 left in the second quarter to give the Rams a 17-3 advantage.

Simmons ran 15 yards for a score with 4:15 left in the half to cut the lead to 17-10.

Anthony Guercio teamed with JaTawn Williams on a 46-yard score to tie the game at 17-all with 1:33 left in the second quarter.

The half's final minute featured a pair of scores as Shepherd got a 36-yard scoring strike from Hardyway to junior wide receiver Jaden Ashby (Cross Junction, Va./James Wood/Southern Utah) with 57 seconds left and Clarion tied the game at 24-24 with four seconds left on a two-yard run by Simmons.

Barnett broke several tackles and galloped 77 yards for a score with 11:49 left in the third quarter to give the Rams a 31-24 lead.

Guercio teamed with Davon Jones on a nine-yard score with 10:22 left in the third quarter to tie the game.

The Golden Eagles took advantage of a Shepherd turnover and took a 38-31 lead on a five-yard run by Simmons with 9:20 left in the third quarter.

Simmons ran three yards for a score with 4:28 left in the quarter to give the Golden Eagles a 45-31 advantage.

Kurtas connected on a 32-yard field goal with 27 seconds remaining in the quarter to give Clarion a 48-31 lead going into the final quarter.

Hardyway fired a nine-yard scoring strike to redshirt senior wide receiver Marcus Nicholson (Baltimore, Md./Dundalk) with 5:54 left to cut the lead to 48-38.
Kurtas booted a 30-yard field goal with 1:52 left to complete the scoring.

Hardyway completed 27-of-39 passes for 306 yards and three scores. Guercio was 26-of-35 for 413 yards and a pair of scores for the Golden Eagles.
Barnett rushed 15 times for a game-high 212 yards to pace the Rams.

Redshirt junior tight end Caysen Lanza (Charles Town, W.Va./Jefferson) led the receiving corps with nine catches for 99 yards. Graduate student running back Grant Swinehart (Bridgewater, Va./Turner Ashby/VMI) added eight grabs for 74 yards. Jones had eight grabs for 103 yards and Holt Egan added six catches for 121 yards for Clarion.

Shepherd totaled 530 yards of total offense and Clarion totaled 603.

Junior defensive back Makai Young (White Plains, Md./North Point) had 11 tackles (seven solos) and redshirt senior Geo-Di Tolbert (Upper Marlboro, Md./Frederick Douglass/Fairmont State) added nine stops (four solos). Griffin Buzzell had 13 tackles for the Golden Eagles.

The Rams return to action on Saturday when they host Kutztown at noon for Hall of Fame Day in the home opener.

Notes: Barnett's 96-yard run from scrimmage is the second longest in program history behind Bryan Wright's 97-yard run against Merrimack on Nov. 25, 2006 …  Shepherd falls to 5-1 in the all-time series with Clarion.