Long Island struck first with a field goal before Saint Francis scored 48 straight points to take a commanding lead and give the Red Flash faithful a a lot to cheer for on Homecoming Weekend. McGrigg had three touchdowns and Marques DeShields (Clementon, N.J.) had a rushing and a receiving touchdown. Alex Schmoke (Bellwood, Pa.), the current NEC Special Teams Performer of the Week, made all seven extra points and two first-half field goals.

FLASH QUOTES
"To have all the phases show up today was huge. Offense, defense, special teams. Obviously scoring two touchdowns on special teams, we have lacked that for along time. We challenged our special teams for the last two weeks and they rose to the challenge. That was great to see. We kept feeding on that energy and the guys never panicked. We are blessed to have Josh. He always see the positive in the worst situation. We are so happy to see what he did today, to get in the record book. He shows up every day to work. We are going to challenge our team, but I think that we are team that if we can continue to stick together and play for each other we can go along way. Our next challenge is Bryant and that is where our focus is going to be." - head coach Chris Villarrial

"We went so long without playing football and to have a game like this its grateful. Its a reassuring thing that if you continue to put in those days its going to come. That's the fun part about it, its the process. The main thing for me was taking it day by day. Every game is not going to be a good game, but its all about patience. I'm grateful we get a win, and I'm grateful that my guys are on the field having fun with me." - wide receiver Josh McGrigg

"We all played team defense today. Coaches do a good job of making adjustments during the game. We kept playing hard. There is always room to improve, the only way to go is up" - defensive lineman Donnell Brown

"We definitely had a game plan and thought some things would be open. Its all about taking the next steps as a team. Its all about the maturation process of our offense, our defense, our special teams. Its great to put drives together. Our offensive lines has been playing well, our running backs have been running hard and we have been able to get the ball to the wide receivers and our play makers on the outside. If everyone buys into the game plan, it will do well for us." - quarterback Justin Sliwoski

FLASH MOMENTS
McGrigg helped get the scoring started with a juggling catch and run for a 49-yard touchdown pass from Sliwoski to give Saint Francis the lead for good at 7-3 with 3:39 left in the first quarter.

The ensuing drive for the Sharks ended when Donnell Brown (Upper Marlboro, Md.) recorded the strip sack and Tremayn Stott (Germantown, Md.) recovered the ball at the 43-yard line. That defensive stop led to an Schmoke 23-yard field goal for a 10-3 lead.

DeShields scored from one-yard out at 7:21 left in the second quarter for a 17-3 advantage.

Sliwoski hit Kahtero Summers (Coatesville, Pa.) for a one-yard touchdown pass to increase the margin to 24-3 with 2:29 left in the second quarter. The touchdown pass was set up by a 26-yard run by DeShields that included a couple broken tackles to the one-yard line.

The defense came up big at the end of the half when Stott came up with the INT after the ball was tipped at the line in the final minutes of the half. Sliwoski set up a Schmoke 35-yard field goal with time running out with an 18-yard pass completion to Brandan Lisenby (Alexandria, Va.).

McGrigg continued the momentum in the second half with a 94-yard kickoff touchdown return to start the third quarter. He would then notch a 59-yard punt return to increase the lead to 48-3 with 12:20 left in the fourth quarter. 

In between the McGrigg's special team plays, DeShields took a slant pass from Sliwoski and ran it in for a 25-yard touchdown toward the end of the third quarter.

After the Sharks notched a fourth-quarter touchdown, Tobee Stokes (York, Pa.) broke down the sideline for a 75-yard touchdown run to give the Red Flash a 55-10 lead. It was Stokes fourth career rush attempt.

FLASH NUGGETS
McGrigg's 94-yard touchdown return tied the fourth-longest kickoff return in program history. Desmond Ray also had a 94-yard kickoff return against La Salle in 2001. It was also the first 90-yard+ kickoff return since 2015, and the longest kickoff return in the NEC this season. His 59-yard punt return was also the fourth longest in team history in a single game and the first 50+ punt return since Nick Rinella against West Virginia Wesleyan in 2018.

DeShields had two touchdowns and 93 yards on the afternoon. He posted 12 rushes for 66 yards and two catches for 27 yards. DeShields has registered 223 yards on the ground and 129 yards receiving in three home games this season.

Brown registered a career-high 2.5 sacks against Long Island and now leads the team with five sacks on the year. Stott paced the defense with six tackles while Gio Vonne Sanders (Jeannette, Pa.) had five stops.

Summers had four catches for 46 yards and a touchdown. He has caught a touchdown in each of his last four games and has five TDs this season.

The 55 points were the most points scored in a game since a 59-3 win against West Virginia Wesleyan, an NCAA Division II program at the time, on September 29, 2018. It is also the most points scored against an NCAA Division I opponents since a 58-9 victory against East Tennessee State on October 3, 2015.

The Red Flash open the league play 2-0 for the third time under head coach Chris Villarrial after starting the 2016 and 2019 seasons with consecutive wins in a circuit. 

UP NEXT
Saint Francis hits the road for its next two games, starting with its first conference road game at Bryant University on Saturday, October 16. Kick-off is 12 p.m.