BLOOMSBURG—Freshman Bryant Stone (Norwich, CT/Worcester Academy) returned a first-half kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown and had an interception to help Bloomsburg University run its winning streak to nine with a 34-27 win over Slippery Rock. The win secured a spot in the NCAA Division II playoffs for Bloomsburg.

The Huskies, ranked third in the NCAA Northeast Region of Division II, got their third win of the season against a team ranked #1 in the region. Bloomsburg also has wins over Indiana (PA) and Millersville when those teams were top-ranked.

Bloomsburg began the game with a 12-play, 80-yard drive. Eric Miller (Clarks Summit/Abington Heights) hit Mike Lelko (Phillipsburg, NJ/Phillipsburg) with a 13-yard pass to open the game's scoring with 9:16 to go in the first quarter.

The teams traded punts before Dorrian Glenn dove in from a yard out to tie the game for Slippery Rock.

But on the ensuing kickoff, Stone broke tackles and danced his way through defenders to go the distance for the score. It was the first Bloomsburg kick return for a touchdown since Sean Smith ran one back 87 yards against East Stroudsburg in 1995.

Stan Kennedy scored on a 14-yard touchdown run on Slippery Rock's next possession, but the Rockets missed the extra point, and Bloomsburg held on to a 14-13 lead.

Miller hooked up with Lelko again, this time from 41 yards, with 11:30 to go in the second quarter. Bloomsburg's point after attempt was blocked however, and the Huskies led 20-13.

Bloomsburg's Matt Keys (West Fairview/East Pennsboro) intercepted Slippery Rock quarterback Randy McKavish in the Huskies' end zone to thwart a Rockets' scoring threat on the next possession. Keys had 13 tackles (11 solo) including a sack of McKavish to go with his interception.

Both teams had unsuccessful drives before the half and Bloomsburg went in to the intermission with a 20-13 lead.

Bloomsburg extended its lead to 34-13 in the third quarter with two rushing touchdowns. Arrastene Henry (Philadelphia/George Washington) ran one in from five yards out. His score was set up by a 70-yard run by Marques Glaze (Robesonia/Conrad Weiser).

Glaze ran for a one-yard score on the Huskies' next possession. He finished the game with 178 yards rushing on 26 carries. Henry ran 14 times for 67 yards.

Luke Murray had one of his two interceptions on the day in the third quarter, helping the Bloomsburg defense to keep Slippery Rock off the board during the third 15 minutes.

The Rockets kept the game interesting in the fourth quarter, though.

The teams traded punts, and then interceptions (McKavish picked off by Stone; Miller intercepted by Jason Hohman) before McKavish hit D.J. Flick with a 59-yard bomb to bring Slippery Rock within two touchdowns.

After the Huskies were forced to punt, the Rockets drove 52 yards in nine plays. McKavish took the ball in from the one-yard line to make the score 34-27 with 4:13 to go.

Bloomsburg ran 3:02 off the clock before being forced to punt again.

The Rockets took over with 1:06 to go but Murray grabbed his second interception on a third-and-20 pass and the Huskies ran out the clock from there.

Eric Miller completed nine-of-16 passes for 137 yards. Mike Lelko became the Huskies' career leader in receiving yardage. He had five catches for 97 yards, giving him 3,151 for his career, surpassing the old record of 3,134 held by Buck Eardley (1992-95) .

Bloomsburg finished the regular season 9-2. Slippery Rock is now 8-3.

The NCAA Division II Selection Show will be aired on the internet Sunday starting at noon. Both teams will learn the "whos, wheres, and whens" concerning their playoff aspirations then. Go to www.ncaachampionships.com for a link to the program.