Pittsburgh, Pa. -- In an up-and-down first outing for the 2009 season, the Youngstown State football team surrendered 390 yards to Pitt's offense, while managing 159 yards of their own, en route to a 38-3 loss at Heinz Field Saturday afternoon.

Sophomore free safety Sir Demarco Bledsoe was a bright spot for the Penguins defense as he totaled nine tackles, eight of them being solo. Junior Brandian Ross also added an interception to go along with six tackles.

On the offensive side of the ball, senior quarterback Brandon Summers led the air attack with 113 yards on 11-of-22 passing. Senior running back Kevin Smith led the ground game with 47 yards on 17 carries.

The Panthers' offensive attack was led by freshman tailback Dion Lewis who tallied 129 on 20 carries on the ground, scoring twice. Pitt quarterbacks Bill Stull threw for 123 yards including two touchdowns, while Tino Sunseri completed eight passes for 80 yards and a touchdown.

Following back-to-back Penguin three and outs on their first two drives, the Pittsburgh offense capitalized on a short field to find the end zone on their second drive of the game. Pitt made quick work only needing four plays, covering 41 yards as freshman Dion Lewis found paydirt on a 16-yard scamper to give the Panthers a 7-0 lead at the 7:31 mark.

The Penguins responded, however, on their very next possession to cut into Pitt's lead early in the second. Starting on their own 19-yard line, the Penguins used up over eight minutes of clock time to add three points on the board with a 48-yard field goal by Stephen Blose. The drive consisted of 16 plays that covered 50 yards, including four successful third down conversion. Summers was six-of-nine on the drive for 47 yards.

Blose's kick was the second made field goal of his career and the longest for the Guins since 2003.

The Panthers answered the Penguins scoring drive, by adding a touchdown on their possession to extend the lead to 14-3 just under three minutes later. Their drive saw Lewis cover 61 of the 63 yards on the ground and only needing five plays to find the end zone from a yard away.

With just over a minute remaining before the halftime, the Panthers tacked on another touchdown on a Bill Stull swing pass to Lewis. The eight play, 61-yard drive saw Lewis run for 39 more yards on five rushes to make the score 21-3 at the half.

The second half started off with both teams going three-and-out on their first two drives. The Panthers added three more points on a 26-yard field goal by Dan Hutchins on their third possession, making the score 24-3. The seven-play, 41-yard field goal drive was set up by a 42-yard pass from quarterback Tino Sunseri to receiver Jonathan Baldwin.

Pitt's defense held the Penguins on the ensuing drive to a three-and-out, setting up another score for their offense. As five plays later the Panthers crossed the goalline on a 13-yard throw and catch from Stull to receiver Dorin Dickerson, bumping their lead up to 28.

The Penguins' (0-1) first play on their next possession saw Summers throw an interception to defensive back Dom DeCicco. The turnover led to another Pitt (1-0) touchdown, this time by a six yard toss from Sunseri to receiver Aundre Wright.

YSU had one final drive for a touchdown fall short when Summers was picked in the end zone with just over three minutes remaining.

The Penguins play host to Austin Peay next Saturday in their home opener at Stambaugh Stadium Kickoff for the contest is set for 4 p.m.