Ace Hunt
GoSycamores.com

YOUNGSTOWN, OHIO -- Indiana State used a 28-yard field goal by Eric Heidorn at the end of overtime to come away from a road contest at No. 15/16 Youngstown State with a 27-24 victory in front of 9,642 fans on a chilly afternoon at Stambaugh Stadium.

The Sycamores improved to 7-4, 4-3 MVFC while the Penguins now have the same record. Indiana State has seven wins ties a high-water mark that has now been reached just three times in 29 seasons of Missouri Valley Football Conference membership. The Sycamores have now won consecutive MVFC road contests for the first time since taking three in a row in 2012. Most importantly, the Sycamores victory over No. 15/16 Youngstown State is their school record fourth win over a ranked team this year (4-3 record) and the program's third-ever victory in a ranked vs. ranked game -- with all three of those coming this season.

Mark Sewall led the Sycamores to victory with an impressive defensive stat line and the play that turned the momentum in Indiana State's favor. He tallied 12 total tackles, including seven solos, recovered two YSU fumbles and recorded the big interception in overtime which propelled the team to victory. He also broke up two passes and recorded a quarterback hurry.

Also key was the play of senior quarterback Mike Perish who completed 29-of-42 passes for 353 yards. Perish also threw a touchdown pass in the second quarter to Jamar Brown. That scoring toss gives Perish 41 touchdown passes for his career -- which is a new Indiana State record, passing the previous best of 40 from Jeff Miller (1982-85).

His top target was Gary Owens who made nine receptions for 102 yards. Buck Logan rushed 18 times for 99 yards and a touchdown while Dimitri Taylor added 10 rushes for 38 yards and another rushing touchdown.

The Sycamores owned a 463-330 edge in total yards gained. Indiana State had 353 through the air and 110 on the ground. The Sycamores also won the turnover battle with a +3 margin and a 7-0 edge in points off turnovers.

Connor Underwood is now one quarterback sack away from Dan Brandenberg's single-season record of 13 which has stood since 1993. Underwood now has 12 for the year and he added two tackles for a loss to move him within 5.5 of Kyle Mitchell's career record. Kendall Walker forced two fumbles while Phil Wilson and Underwood did the same. Overall the Sycamores had six tackles for a loss, four forced fumbles, three recoveries, one interception and four pass breakups.

Indiana State faced its first overtime test since a 38-35 victory over Missouri State in 2010. On the first play, Youngstown State attempted a pass play and the ball was tipped an intercepted by Mark Sewall to give the Sycamores a chance to score.

And that is what they did as Buck Logan broke off a 12-yard rush on second down and then had a six-yarder to the Youngstown State 7-yard line. Perish then took a knee at the 10 to middle the football and set the stage for Eric Heidorn to win the game. Heidorn's attempt from 28 yards sailed through the uprights for the 27-24 overtime victory.

The Sycamores trailed 14-10 at the half but received the second half kickoff and needed used a big 48-yard pass reception from Perish to A.J. Johnson to move to the Youngstown State 23. From there, Buck Logan gashed the Penguin defense on a 20-yard touchdown rush and the Sycamores owned their first lead of the game at 14-10 with 13:23 remaining in the third quarter.

Youngstown State then was set up with a short field on the ensuing kickoff. They drove towards the red zone before Jody Webb fumbled on the tackle by Kendall Walker and Jameer Thurman pounced on it to thwart the drive. After a YSU penalty, the Sycamores' offense took the field and quickly drove across midfield on long pass plays to Gary Owens and Robert Tonyan. Facing third down at the YSU 23, Perish found Tonyan for a reception across the middle which moved the ball down to the one. From there, Dimitri Taylor posted his third career touchdown with 6:40 remaining in the third quarter to take a 21-10 advantage.

The Sycamore defense once again faced a short field and one again were able to get a stop, thanks in large part to a third down quarterback sack from Travis Starks which pushed the Penguins back onto their own side of the field. YSU was forced the punt and the Sycamores took over at their own 20-yard line with 4:22 on the clock in the third quarter.

From there, the Sycamores benefitted from a 20-yard completion to A.J. Johnson and the period ended with a seven-yard completion to Tonyan. Perish continued to push the issue with a 14-yard completion to Johnson which moved the ball into the red zone. On the next play, a pass to Logan was incomplete, but the ball still moved forward on a Youngstown State unsportsmanlike penalty. The 14-play drive which chewed up over six minutes of game time ended with a 25-yard Eric Heidorn field goal with just under 13 minutes remaining and the Sycamores enjoyed a 24-10 cushion.

Youngstown State converted one fourth down and a trio of third downs in order to score on third and goal with 4:51 remaining on a two-yard pass completion to Nate Adams as the Penguins drew within 24-17. After a three-and-out, Youngstown State moved the ball 41 yards to score on a four-yard rush by Martin Ruiz with 1:20 remaining to tie the score at 24.

The Sycamores moved to YSU territory on their final drive of the fourth quarter with a pair of first down runs. Regulation ended with an attempted hail mary which fell to ground in the end zone.

The Sycamore defense struck first in the contest when Kendall Walker forced a Joey Webb fumble which was recovered by Mark Sewall at the Indiana State 10-yard line. The Indiana State offense was then stopped before the Penguins took over their own 43-yard line. From there, it took five plays for the Penguins to move 57 yards to take a 7-0 lead with 7:35 remaining in the first quarter.

Each team traded punts until Phil Wilson forced a Martin Ruiz fumble and set the Sycamores up with good field position at the YSU 31. An apparent touchdown by A.J. Johnson was called back due to penalty before the Penguins got the ball back at their own 18-yard line on an interception.

A 69-yard rolling Youngstown State punt stopped at the one-yard line to pin the Sycamores back. A pair of Dimitri Taylor rushes gave the Sycamores breathing room and then Perish found Gary Owens for 21 yards to move out of the shadow of the end zone. Completions to Owens and Jamar Brown moved the ball across midfield before a tip-toe connecton from Perish to Kyani Harris put the ball at the YSU 15. A middle screen from Perish to Brown capped an 11-play, 99-yard drive to level the score at 7 with 5:52 remaining before halftime.

A 52-yard kickoff return from Webb set the Penguins up with good field position at the Indiana State 37. YSU picked up a first down and moved into the red zone before a Hunter Well's pass on third down fell incomplete and Joey Cejudo came on to hit a 34-yard field goal with 3:25 on the clock. Cejudo's field goal gave Youngstown a 10-7 advantage.

Each team traded three-and-outs and Indiana State took over at its own 38-yard line with 2:04 on the clock. The Sycamores moved the ball as deep as the 26-yard line before a chop block pushed the Sycamores out of field goal range and punted as the first half ended with the Sycamores trailing Youngstown State 10-7.

The Sycamores will travel to Western Illinois for the regular season finale on Saturday, November 22. Kickoff is set for 2:00 p.m. (ET) and will be televised live on ESPN3.