Box Score

SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. – The Shippensburg University football team scored 24 points in the opening quarter of Saturday afternoon's PSAC Eastern Division finale with East Stroudsburg and amassed 621 total yards on offense in addition to intercepting five passes in an impressive victory over East Stroudsburg, 44-14.

Shippensburg (6-4, 4-3 PSAC East) secured itself a winning season in the first year of head coach Mark Maciejewski '92/'96M at the helm of the Red Raider program and has scored at least 40 points in all six of its victories in 2011.

The 621 yards of total offense are the third most in SU single-game history and the most recorded by the Red Raiders since setting the school record (749 yards) in 2007 against Lock Haven. Meanwhile, the 401 rushing yards recorded by Shippensburg is the fourth-most in school history and gives the Red Raiders 792 rushing yards in its last two games.

Sophomore quarterback Zach Zulli was a weapon through the air and on the ground Saturday, throwing four touchdown passes while also rushing for a game-high 126 yards and a score. The 126 yards on the ground marks the second-most by a quarterback in school history, as Ralph Sassaman ran for 127 in a 1965 contest against Lock Haven. His first touchdown pass of the day gave him sole possession of the single-season school record for touchdown passes and has totaled 31 through 10 games.

Junior Mike Frenette was a force once again – carrying the ball 19 times for 115 yards. With 32 receiving yards and 54 kick return yards in Saturday's game, Frenette totaled a game-high 201 all-purpose yards. It is Frenette's third time this season with 100 rushing yards and 200 all-purpose yards in a game.

The defense manhandled East Stroudsburg all afternoon, limiting the Warriors to zero points and just 95 yards on offense through the first three quarters. ESU did not convert a third down until the last five minutes of the third quarter and completed just two more passes (six) than it threw interceptions (four) entering the final frame.

In fact, the defense recorded a shutout streak of 123 minutes, 58 seconds until the Warriors scored a touchdown with 8:23 remaining in the contest. The streak dated back to the fourth quarter of Shippensburg's victory at Cheyney.

Of Shippensburg's five interceptions, both senior Bryan Culler and junior Corey Hunt picked off two passes each. Culler now has four career interceptions, all of which have come against East Stroudsburg. Hunt now leads the team with four interceptions this season. Sophomore Tyriq Kershaw also picked off a pass and led the Red Raiders on Saturday with seven tackles.

Shippensburg ran the ball 60 times in Saturday's game and only four went for negative yardage. The Red Raiders had 16 rushes of 10 or more yards in the contest – including five by Zulli and four by Frenette.

SU also recorded a 16-minute advantage in time of possession, controlling the ball for 38 minutes, 21 seconds. Over the last three quarters, the Red Raiders possessed the ball for 30 minutes, 46 seconds – including at least 10 minutes in each frame.

The Raiders' offense started the game firing on all cylinders, scoring on its first four possessions of the game and every time it had the ball in the first quarter. Meanwhile, the SU defense forced punts on the Warriors' first seven possessions, as their eighth and final possession of the half was intercepted by Hunt – his first of the game.

After forcing an ESU three-and-out on the first possession of the game, Zulli moved the Raiders downfield in seven plays, highlighted by three Frenette carries for 37 yards. SU capped off the drive with a 7-yard slant pass to junior wide receiver Taimur Harris for the touchdown.

Shippensburg started its next possession in Warrior territory at the 43-yard line, and Zulli hit junior wide receiver Bryan Barley for a 25-yard completion. Four plays later, sophomore kicker Drew Newcomer connected from 29 yards out for his ninth field goal on his ninth attempt of the season. Newcomer was 5-for-5 on field goal attempts last season, and has now converted 14 consecutive attempts to start his Raider career.

Frenette was responsible for the first 29 yards of the Raiders' following drive, but Zulli finished the eight-play drive himself, taking a quarterback draw 22 yards to the end zone for his fourth rushing score of the season.

The Raiders finished their impressive first quarter when their offense got the ball back with 3:11 left in the period, again starting in ESU territory. A Zulli strike to Barley for 16 yards moved the ball to the ESU 21-yard line, and on the next play Zulli completed a 15-yard completion to Frenette who was taken down at the 6-yard line. Two plays later, Zulli found Barley in the end zone for a 5-yard touchdown pass.

Four-and-a-half minutes into the second quarter, the Raiders offense got the ball back at its own 34-yard line and embarked on a bizarre scoring drive. Frenette ran 66 yards to the house on the first play, but the score was called back because of a holding penalty at the line of scrimmage.

Two plays later, on 2nd and 20, Zulli avoided two blitzing ESU defenders and ran 16 yards to the Shippensburg 40-yard line. Zulli was tackled by multiple defenders and was slow to get up, and as a result of the official calling for an injury timeout, Zulli was forced to leave the game for one play.

Junior backup quarterback Steven Adams entered the game and lined up out wide, with junior fullback Kevin Herod lined up in shotgun behind center in the wildcat formation. Herod took the snap and pitched to Adams coming around on the reverse, who threw a pass downfield that found junior Jacob Baskerville, who ran the rest of the way for a 60-yard score. However, Adams was penalized for excessive celebration, and the touchdown was erased.

Zulli came back in the following play, and on 3rd and 19, ran 27 yards for the first down. Four plays later, Zulli found redshirt-freshman wide receiver Trevor Harman for 21 yards that brought the ball to the ESU 1-yard line. A scrambling Zulli found Harman again three plays later open in the back of the end zone for a 1-yard touchdown.

The Raiders embarked on their longest scoring drive of the afternoon on the opening possession of the second half. Back-to-back Zulli completions brought the ball out to the Shippensburg 45-yard line. Five plays later, Zulli completed an 11-yard pass to Harman followed by a 14-yarder to Barley to bring the ball to the ESU 16. The Raiders eventually faced 3rd and 3 from the 9-yard line, and Zulli closed out the 11-play, 74-yard drive with a pass in the flat to Herod, who found the end zone for the third time in the last two games.

The East Stroudsburg offense ended SU's shutout streak when Warrior quarterback Ray Wagner finished off a 76-yard drive with a 2-yard touchdown pass to Steven Jones. The SU defense held Wagner, however, to just 172 yards on 13-of-31 passing, including four interceptions. Coming into the game, Wagner – who had missed the better part of the last two games due to injury and didn't start on Saturday – was fourth in the country in passing yards, averaging just over 315 yards a game.

Shippensburg finished its scoring later in the quarter, when senior tailback Roshaan McCain carried the ball all five plays of the drive, eventually running untouched off the right side for an 8-yard touchdown scamper.

East Stroudsburg entered the game having allowed just eight sacks all season, the fewest in the nation. But the Raiders got two sacks in ESU's first four drives of the game. Sophomore defensive end Jake Metz and junior linebacker Cody Fleming split the first sack, while redshirt-freshman Brian Sourber tallied the second.

Shippensburg concludes the regular season at 1 p.m. Saturday from SU Student Association Field at Seth Grove Stadium against PSAC Western Division opponent Mercyhurst.