SLIPPERY ROCK — Slippery Rock had seen this script before.

Less than a touchdown lead, final minutes, other team has the ball. Only this time, The Rock wrote a different ending.

Roman Denson made a circus catch on an interception with 1:56 remaining and Isiah Neely scored on a 28-yard run two plays later. SRU snapped a three-game losing streak with a 33-21 football victory over Seton Hill Saturday at Mihalik-Thompson Stadium.

“As soon as that (Seton Hill) possession started, I'm thinking, 'Here we go again.' I'm sure a lot of people were,” SRU coach Shawn Lutz admitted.

The Rock (6-4, 3-4) lost the past two weeks to Edinboro and Clarion on final-minute scoring drives by the opposition.

Seton Hill (5-5, 2-5) played most of the game with sophomore backup quarterback Cory Cavanaugh as starter Christian Strong suffered a shoulder injury in the first quarter. SRU took a 19-0 lead into the fourth quarter.

“Our defense was putting up an outstanding effort,” Lutz said.

Then the Griffins struck with some big plays.

Khalil Howard broke loose with a 64-yard run — he had 194 yards rushing on the day — and Ty George caught an 8-yard scoring pass from Cavanaugh to cap a 94-yard drive.

Just two minutes later, Ardell Brown caught a 56-yard bomb from Cavanaugh and it was 19-14 with 12:03 still to play.

“I was happy with Cory's play,” Seton Hill coach Isaac Collins said. “He didn't get many reps during the week, but he ran the offense well.”

While Strong was out for the Griffins, senior Don King III was back for The Rock. The quarterback was medically cleared Thursday after missing last week's game with a concussion.

King threw for 322 yards and two scores, including a 14-yard TD toss to Marcus Johnson with 9:55 remaining. That capped a 75-yard drive and gave The Rock a 26-14 lead.

“It's just a brotherhood with this team and I wanted to get back in there,” King said. “The young quarterbacks did a great job while I was out.

“We got the points when we needed them. I didn't want to let the team down.”

When Drew Scales — who broke the SRU record for career kick return yardage earlier in the day — returned a punt 33 yards to help put the ball on the Seton Hill 12, victory was seemingly in the bag.

But Jake Chapla's 34-yard field goal attempt was blocked and Brown rambled 66 yards to paydirt with a flare pass to pull the Grifffins within 26-21 with 5:10 to go.

That's when Denson and Neely finally sealed the deal.

Neely rushed for 44 yards on SRU's final two offensive plays. The team had rushed for a net 24 yards in the game beforehand.

“They were stacking everyone in the box, blitzing through the middle, forcing us to throw the ball,” Lutz said.

Butler graduate Bob Vernick had a career day at linebacker for SRU, making 18 tackles — nine solos — and intercepting two passes.

“I'd never had two picks in a game at any level,” Vernick said. “Defensively, we had not played to our standards the past few weeks. We wanted to get back to that standard today and I think we did that.”

Denson had a pair of picks, Derrick Fulmore and Anthony Zappone one each as SRU set a school record with six interceptions in one game.

“With a backup quarterback in there, you have to live with the interceptions,” Collins said.

SRU lost linebacker Zappone (lower leg) and cornerback Titus Howard (stinger) to injuries during the game. They became the 11th and 12th SRU starters to go down to injury this season.

“It's been a crazy year, one of the craziest I've seen,” Lutz said. “I feel like we just won the championship with this win. I feel that way because I care about these guys and what they've been through.”

[naviga:h3]SRU 33, Seton Hill 21[/naviga:h3]

Seton Hill 0 0 0 21 — 21

Slippery Rock 0 14 5 14— 33

SH SRU

28 First Downs 23

33-175 Rushes-Yards 28-68

342 Passing Yards 322

35-66-6 Comp.-Att.-Int 33-54-1

517 Total Yards 390

3-0 Fumbles-Lost 1-0

9-82 Penalty Yards 8-66

Second Quarter

SRU — Dontez Rash 1 run (Jake Chapla kick), 9:03

SRU — Drew Scales 11 pass from Don King III (Chapla kick), :57

Third Quarter

SRU — Marcus Martin tacked Cory Cavanaugh in end zone for safety, 13:57

SRU — Chapla 30 field goal, 10:44

Fourth Quarter

SH — Ty George 8 pass from Cavanaugh (Santiago Henao kick), 14:07

SH — Ardell Brown 56 pass from Cavanaugh (Henao kick), 12:03

SRU — Marcus Johnson 15 pass from King III (Chapla kick), 9:55

SH — Brown 66 pass from Cavanaugh (Henao kick), 5:10

SRU — Isiah Neely 28 run (Chapla kick), 1:12

Individual Statistics

Rushing: Seton Hill, Khalil Howard 22-194, Norman Drarden 1-13, Christian Strong 1-4, Evan Byrd 2-(-1), Cory Cavanaugh 4-(-14), TEAM 3-(-21). SRU, Isiah Neely 15-62, Don King III 11-10, Dontez Rash 1-1, TEAM 1-(-5).

Passing: Seton Hill, Cory Cavanaugh 32-63-323-6, Christian Strong 3-3-19-0. SRU, Don King III 33-54-322-1.

Receiving: Seton Hill, Norman Drarden 10-80, Ardell Brown 6-141, Michael Elardo 5-38, Kurt Adkins 5-38, Ty George 4-27, Khalil Howard 2-15, Mike-Benton Ferguson 1-3, Evan Byrd 1-2, William Tearney 1-(-2). SRU, Drew Scales 8-42, Marcus Johnson 7-78, Cornelius Raye 6-69, Leroy McClain 5-36, Carnel Harley 4-72, Brian McNally 1-13, Isiah Neely 1-9, Dontez Rash 1-3.