SLIPPERY ROCK — Travis Lauster squared his shoulders and plowed ahead for three rushing touchdowns.

But the senior running back for the Slippery Rock High football team put the credit squarely on others' shoulders: the wide ones of his big offensive line.

“They block for us,” Lauster said. “We run for them.”

Slippery Rock ran often behind the line, racking up 414 yards on 59 rushing attempts, as the Rockets rolled to a 47-21 win over rival Grove City at Mihalik-Thompson Stadium at Slippery Rock University Friday night.

The running game was just the way Lauster and the rest of the Rockets like it a week after the unit struggled against Greenville.

“We went to work this week at practice and spent a bunch of time on O making adjustments,” said Lauster, who rushed for 107 yards on 13 carries in the first half and finished with 109 yards. “Also, when the line plays well, we play well.”

The line opened up plenty of running room for a slew of Rocket runners.

Lauster was the early beneficiary with TD runs of 19, 27 and 10 in the first 13 minutes of the game for a 21-0 Slippery Rock lead.

Fullback Jared McDowell rumbled 60 yards for a score late in the first half and finished with 98 yards on just six carries as Slippery Rock led 27-7 at halftime.

While the big plays did come for Slippery Rock (3-0, 2-0), it wasn't the focus this week.

“We talked a lot about not looking for the big play,” said Slippery Rock coach Brendan Hathaway. “Four- and 5-yard plays are good. We had a 10-play drive that first drive and that was beautiful. I think that set the tone for our guys that, alright, 4- and 5-yard runs are good.”

Grove City (0-3, 0-2) wouldn't go quietly, however, thanks to big plays of its own.

Jared Graham, who moved from quarterback to running back last week, caught a slant from sophomore quarterback Kameron Patterson, shook a couple of tackles, and ran 84 yards for an Eagles' score late in the second quarter.

Graham also added a 77-yard touchdown run in the second half, bouncing off more tackles on the way.

“I'm as proud of them now as I have been all season,” said Grove City coach Sam Mowrey. “There's a lot of teams and a lot of kids who would have quit. And we didn't.

“I wasn't happy with everything,” Mowrey added. “We made mistakes and had a lot of mental errors, but we have a lot of kids who are going to fight for four quarters, and you can work with that.”

Lauster added a fourth touchdown early in the second half on a 43-yard interception return that put the Rockets up 34-7.

Jake Whitmer added a 5-yard scoring run before Graham's long TD bolt.

Graham accounted for 180 of Grove City's 294 total yards with 76 rushing yards and three receptions for 104 yards.

Patterson was 12-of-22 passing for 199 yards and two touchdowns, including a 13-yard pass to Nick Davies that closed the scoring after Ryan Lauster had scored on a 2-yard run for Slippery Rock to make it 47-14 early in the fourth quarter.

Slippery Rock had 11 players with at least one rushing attempt. Trenton Porter had 76 yards on five carries, all in the second half.

“The offense they run, they are creating one-on-one matchups and you need 11 guys doing the job every time,” Mowrey said. “Even when you do, they break a tackle and make a play. Their offense, they don't take a lot of negative plays.”

Travis Lauster said for the seniors, it was a chance to leave with one more win over their arch rivals.

“We wanted to make it a good one,” Lauster said, “and remember it as adults one day.”