Flash Points:
- SFU football earned a 52-10 win over Malone on Saturday in its home opener.
- Running back Jymere Jordan-Toney (Philadelphia, Pa./Franklin), in his first career start, tied a school-record with four rushing touchdowns to go with 156 yards.
- Zack Drayer (Hershey, Pa./Hershey ) threw for 259 yards and two touchdowns.
- Receiver Kam Lewis set new career-highs with 10 catches for 188 yards.
- Lorenzo Jerome (Sunrise, Fla./J.P. Taravella) led the defense with nine tackles, a sack, two pass breakups and an interception.
- SFU closed out non-conference play with a 2-3 record and opens NEC play next Saturday at Robert Morris on ESPN3.
LORETTO, Pa. – Junior running back
Jymere Jordan-Toney (Philadelphia, Pa./Franklin) tied a school-record with four rushing touchdowns to help lead Saint Francis football to a 52-10 win over Malone University on Saturday at DeGol Field. SFU scored 35 unanswered points in the second half. The Red Flash finished out non-conference play with a 2-3 record before heading to Robert Morris for its NEC opener next Saturday.
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The Red Flash set a season-high with 491 total yards, including 259 through the air and 232 on the ground.Â
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Jordan-Toney, in his first career start, led the Red Flash offense with 156 yards on 23 carries. He had scoring runs of nine, four, 12 and 57 yards, with two touchdowns coming in each half. Jordan-Toney tied the school-record for rushing touchdowns in a game, twice accomplished by Kyle Harbridge (2011 vs. Morehead State, 2013 vs. Lincoln). Jordan-Toney's four touchdowns are tied for the most in an FCS game this year, tied with Stony Brook's Stacey Bedell and Albany's Elijah Ibitokun-Hanks.
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Freshman running back
Raleigh Sirb (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin) added 75 yards on five carries, including a 62-yard touchdown run.
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Senior quarterback
Zack Drayer (Hershey, Pa./Hershey ) completed 18-of-24 passes for 259 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Drayer went over the 250-yard passing mark for the sixth time in his career. He also moved into sole possession of fourth place on the all-time completions list at SFU. Drayer now has 341 completions, passing Jeremy Sword's 333 completions from 1997-99.
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Sophomore receiver
Kamron Lewis (Fresno, Calif./Edison), after setting career highs for receptions and receiving yards last week at Albany, again broke his career-bests. Lewis caught 10 passes for 188 yards and a score. Lewis' 188 yards included three catches over 30 yards, four over 25 yards, and a two-yard touchdown catch.Â
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Fellow sophomore
Andre Dowdell (Syracuse, N.Y./Christian Brothers Academy) caught an 11-yard touchdown pass, while junior fullback
Alex Woicehovich (Macedonia, Ohio/Nordonia) caught two passes for 31 yards and junior Rodriguez Alexander had two receptions for 21 yards.Â
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Saint Francis held Malone to 183 total yards, including just 119 passing and 64 rushing. The Red Flash forced two turnovers, a fumble and an interception, and recorded four sacks and nine tackles for loss. Malone's final six drives of the game resulted in five punts and an interception.
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Senior safety
Lorenzo Jerome (Sunrise, Fla./J.P. Taravella) was all over the field, with nine tackles, a sack, two pass breakups and a diving interception. That was Jerome's 16th career pick, most among current FCS players.Â
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Junior corner
Malik Duncan (Cleveland, Ohio/Cleveland Central Catholic) added seven tackles, including a sack, while senior linebacker
Solomon Leaeno (Kapolei, Hawaii/James Campbell) had six tackles and a fumble recovery. Junior linebacker
Zane Stewart (Chambersburg, Pa./Chambersburg) had a solo sack and a pass breakup, while sophomore defensive end
Louie Gartner (Bloomfield, N.J./Paramus Catholic) and junior end
Shawn McCord (Aberdeen, N.J. /Red Bank Catholic) combined for a sack. Freshman linebacker
Da'Jon Lee (Fairfax, Va./Robinson), junior end
Luke Weiss (Verona, N.J. /Verona) and junior end
Austin Gray (Egg Harbor Township, N.J. /Egg Harbor Township) had 1.5 tackles for loss each, with Weiss and Gray forcing fumbles.
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Quarterback John Iacucci completed 11-of-22 passes for 119 yards and an interception, while running back Matt Blasiole gained 36 yards on 20 carries, with a one-yard touchdown run. Receiver Ashton Dulin led the Pioneers with six catches for 97 yards.Â
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Safety Daniel Tepe and linebacker Ryan Weber led the Malone defens with six tackles each, while cornerback Jordan Johnson had two pass breakups and an interception.
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The Red Flash got on the board first on a 47-yard field goal by
Lance Geesey (Harrisburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley) with 11:07 to go in the first quarter. After the SFU defense forced a three-and-out, 34 and 17-yard catches by Lewis helped to setup Geesey's kick.Â
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It was Geesey's 52nd career field goal and his 10th make from 40 or more yards.
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Saint Francis extended its lead to 10-0 with 6:28 left in the first quarter on a nine-yard touchdown run by Jordan-Toney. Lewis had a 35-yard catch earlier in the drive as well as another nine-yard run by Jordan-Toney and a nine-yard gain by Sirb.
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Malone got its first points of the day on a 38-yard field goal by kicker Marcus Moeller to start the second quarter.
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The Red Flash took a 17-3 advantage with three minutes left in the first half. After Malone fumbled inside its own 10, forced by Gray and recovered by Leaeno, SFU had first and goal at the six yard line. Two-plays later, Jordan-Toney blasted in from four yards.
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Malone scored to start the second half. After the Pioneers recovered their own kickoff at the SFU 29, Iacucci hit Dulin for a 26-yard gain to the SFU 1. Blasiole then found his way into the end zone. Moeller's extra point cut the SFU lead to 17-10 with 13:48 to go in the third.
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From there, it was all Saint Francis, who scored 35 unanswered starting with a two-yard touchdown catch by Lewis. Drayer completed all five pass attempts on the drive, totaling 59 yards, including a 35-yard catch by Lewis earlier in the drive. On first and goal from the 2, Drayer found Lewis in the back of the end zone.Â
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After forcing Malone to punt on the ensuing drive, Saint Francis extended its lead to 31-10 on Drayer's 11-yard touchdown pass to Dowdell. Jordan-Toney had runs of eight and 11 yards on the drive, which started on the SFU 41, while Lewis had two catches totaling 26 yards. On third down at the MU 11, Drayer found Dowdell across the back of the end zone.Â
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An interception by Jerome early in the fourth quarter gave SFU the ball at Malone's 27 yard line. It took SFU only five plays to score, ending in a 12-yard touchdown run by Jordan-Toney. The junior also had runs of eight and 10 yards on the drive.
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The Red Flash scored on its next drive to push its lead to 45-10. Quarterback
Andrew Koester (Imperial, Pa./West Allegheny) entered the game, but had an easy task, handing it to Jordan-Toney. The junior gained nine yards on a first down carry and then exploded for a 57-yard run through the middle of the Pioneers' defense and into the end zone.Â
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After forcing Malone to punt, Sirb blasted a 62-yard run for a score. After being stopped for a one-yard gain on first down, Sirb carried it through the left side of the defense on second down and exploded for the score. Geesey's extra point pushed the SFU lead to 52-10 with 2:41.
The Red Flash begins Northeast Conference play next Saturday when it visits Robert Morris. Kickoff is scheduled for 3 p.m. against the Colonials, with the game broadcasted on ESPN3. Robert Morris is 1-3 this season and plays at Liberty tonight at 7 p.m.
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