AZUSA — (Oct. 14) Marcus Cox raced 12 yards into the endzone with 32 seconds remaining in the game, capping an 85-yard drive that broke a tie and gave HSU a 31-24 win over Azusa Pacific on Saturday.

Plagued by penalties, turnovers, and even a breakdown with the team bus, Humboldt State continued its recent string of football success, improving to 5-1 with its first win in Azusa since 1994. The victory snapped the Cougars' string of four straight wins over HSU on its home field.

HSU head coach Doug Adkins was successful in his plan to better balance the Jacks' offense, which had been reliant on the passing game most of the season. This time, the Lumberjacks achieved 184 yards on the ground and 127 in the air, but the balance had a big negative side as the Jacks were flagged 8 times for 90 penalty yards.

The Jacks also provided the Cougars with opportunities by turning the ball over five times, three on interceptions and two more on fumbled punt receptions. Quarterback Blake Moorman showcased his versatility to overcome the miscues, helping the Jacks' running game with 59 yards on 8 attempts, while Marcus Cox picked up 64 yards on 16 carries.

"This was a rough roadtrip for us, and (Azusa) is a good football team that always plays us tough," Adkins said. "But at the end, our players knew what they needed to do to get it done, and they did it."

At the outset, the game looked like what may have been expected — a one-sided affair dominated by the Lumberjacks. Azusa's opening drive was quickly stopped when HSU's Derrick Andrews recovered a fumble on the APU 35-yard-line. Six plays later, Joevany Cueva danced five yards through the middle of the line for the game's first touchdown.

Following the kickoff, HSU linebacker Todd Eagle intercepted Lamkin's pass on the first play from scrimmage at the Azusa 18-yard-line, running it all the way in for another touchdown. That defensive score put the Jacks up 14-0 with 9:19 remaining in the opening quarter.

But the Cougars found success on their next possession, penetrating HSU territory primarily behind their running game with help from an HSU personal foul. From there, it only took one big play to cut the lead in half, wide receiver Jon Davis out-sprinting the Lumberjack secondary and hauling in a 40-yard pass from Chris Lamkin for the score.

Andrews set the Jacks up with great field position again, returning the kickoff all the way down to the APU 35. But on the Jacks' first play, Cougar linebacker Brian Casey intercepted Moorman's pass, returning it all the way to the HSU 38. The comedy of errors continued when, after Azusa was forced to punt, Humboldt State returner Kyle Killingsworth fumbled the ball back to the Cougars at the HSU 13.

Both Lamkin and Lampkin did the damage from there, keeping the ball on the ground. Lampkin finished the short drive off with a 4-yard burst across the middle, and the PAT wiped out Humboldt's early advantage, tying the game at 14-14 in the opening minute of the first quarter.

Humboldt put together a solid drive on its next possession, briefly interrupted again by penalties. Cox caught a screen pass to convert a big third down, and Milton White hauled in Moorman's 28-yard pass for the touchdown.

Even more penalties, mostly against the Jacks, preceded a Cougar punt, giving the ball back to HSU with 4: remaining in the half. HSU moved the ball crisply again, but the drive again ended with a turnover when Adrian Magallon intercepted Moorman at the APU 1-yard-line.

Punting seemed to be Azusa's best offensive play, as another muff set up the Cougar's tying touchdown. Killingsworth, ranked No. 2 nationally in punt returns coming into the game, fumbled the reception for the second time in the game, giving the ball back on the HSU 4-yard-line. HSU's defense held firm, holding the Cougars to a 23-yard field goal by Ben Hansen that cut the Jacks' lead to 21-17 with 8:16 remaining in the third quarter.

Azusa stopped Humboldt again, and drove the ball successfully on the ground during another drive that was enhanced by a 15-yard pass interference penalty against HSU.  But Diamond Francies picked up the Jacks' secondary with a big play-stopper, intercepting Lamkin in the endzone.

One good turnover deserved another, apparently, when Moorman was intercepted by Shamblin again on the Jacks' first play from scrimmage. Taking over on the Humboldt State 22, the Cougars used five plays before Lamkin found a hole and raced into the endzone to give Azusa Pacific a 24-21 lead.

Answering quickly, Moorman found Stein for a , providing another redzone opportunity. This time, the Cougars' defense held, forcing a 27-yard field goal by Ben Peterson that tied the game at 24-24.

Following the Jacks' go-ahead touchdown, the Cougars had one more chance to score, and moved the ball quickly into HSU territory to the 40-yard-line. But Lamkin's final pass to the endzone was intercepted by Nathan Turner to run out the clock on APU.

For Azusa, Lamkin proved the best weapon, finishing with 76 yards rushing on 19 carries.  He also completed 6-of-10 passes for 82 yards and one touchdown, while Lampkin generated most of the remainder of APU's offense with 66 yards rushing on 18 carries.

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