Salisbury suffered its second straight loss on Friday, falling to Northern Lehigh 28-7.

The matchup saw each team take control for a half with the Bulldogs dominating the opening half of football.

Northern Lehigh lost a fumble on its opening possession but then found the end zone on its next four drives.

While the Falcons’ defense struggled to stop the Bulldogs, the offense failed to get much going.

The Salisbury offense was unable to sustain drives throughout the first half, with an interception, a lost fumble, and two turnovers on downs. The longest drive the Falcons managed was only 37 yards.

Heading into halftime Salisbury trailed 28-0 and it seemed likely Northern Lehigh would maintain momentum going into the second half.

Instead, the Falcons came out of the locker room and put together a touchdown drive to start the second half and grab back some of that momentum.

“They made a decision that no matter what, no matter the circumstances we’re going to go compete,” said head coach Andy Cerco.

A big kickoff return from senior Chase Fenstermaker had Salisbury starting the drive from its own 43-yard line.

A few runs from junior quarterback Nick Beck moved the Falcons over midfield. A couple plays later Fenstermaker carried the ball down to the Northern Lehigh seven-yard line and Beck punched it in from there bringing the score to 28-7.

The Falcons’ defense continued the grabbing back of momentum as it forced a fumble on the Bulldogs’ next drive.

Salisbury started the next drive on its own seven and was moving the ball well but the 15 play 59-yard drive ended in a turnover on downs.

Following that drive the Falcons’ defense stepped up again forcing another fumble.

This time the offense only managed 20 yards in six plays before turning the ball over on downs.

Northern Lehigh took possession with under two minutes and ran out the rest of the clock securing the victory for the Bulldogs.

Despite the loss and some passing struggles, Beck may have put together his best game of the season. Though he only managed to complete four of his 15 passes for 36 yards, he ran for an astonishing 220 yards and a touchdown.

“He puts in the time and effort and it shows out here,” said Cerco.

Salisbury now looks ahead to its final contest of the season, a game at Southern Lehigh this Friday.

The Spartans hold a record of 3-6 overall and a league record of 3-5.

Despite a less than .500 record, Southern Lehigh is currently on a roll as it has turned things around from its early blowout losses and is on a three-game winning streak.

Coming off a solid performance last week the Falcons will look to continue the momentum they built up in the second half and bring the Spartans winning streak to a halt.