DOYLESTOWN (PA) – It was a record-setting day for the Delaware Valley College offense as the four-time defending Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) champion Aggies downed first-year program Misericordia University, 70-0.
The win was the fifth straight for Delaware Valley as it improved to 5-2 overall and 5-1 in the conference. The Aggies are a game behind undefeated Widener University (7-0, 6-0), which came from behind on the road to defeat Lycoming College (5-2, 5-1), 28-23, on Saturday. Delaware Valley lost to Lycoming earlier in the year and it travels to Widener for the last game of the regular season on November 10.
If the three teams win its remaining games against other opponents, the Aggies will enter that final contest knowing that it will need to not only defeat Widener, but win by 16 or more points in order to get the conference's automatic berth to the NCAA Division III playoffs for the fourth consecutive year. In that scenario, the tiebreaker would come down to point differential among the tied teams. Lycoming is currently at a plus-5 (won by 10 over Delaware Valley, lost by five to Widener) as is Widener (won by five over Lycoming) while Delaware Valley is at a minus-10 (lost by 10 to Lycoming).
On Saturday, the Aggies set a record for points in a game, breaking the previous mark of 66 set in the 2009 NCAA playoff win over Susquehanna University. They also set new team records for total yards (743 – topping the old mark of 734 against FDU-Florham in 2010), rushing yards (551 – topping the old mark of 425 against Swarthmore College in 1969), rushing first downs (28 – topping the old mark of 23 against Swarthmore in 1969) and rushing touchdowns (9 – topping the old mark of seven set in three different games). They also tied the single-game mark for total first downs with 37.
Seventy different players took the field, including four quarterbacks and six tailbacks. Three of those tailbacks eclipsed the 100-yard mark in the game, a feat thought to be a first in school history. Starting back Kyle Schuberth carried the ball 12 times for 115 yards and three touchdowns – all in the first half. Alquann Jones had nine carries for 130 yards and one score while Darren Parrott had exactly 100 yards and two touchdowns on 12 carries. One of the backup quarterbacks, Mike Anusky, nearly made it four players to go over 100 yards as he finished with 72 yards and a score on seven carries.
The remaining rushing touchdowns were on by wideout Dashown Waller and starting quarterback Aaron Wilmer. Wilmer played just one series into the third quarter and finished 8-for-10 for 164 yards and one touchdown (a 30-yarder to Rasheed Bailey) and rushed four times for 35 yards and a score.
Meanwhile, the Delaware Valley defense recorded its second straight shutout, including last week's 38-0 blanking of King's College. It marked the first time since 2006 that the unit did not allow a point in consecutive games (the 2006 squad had three straight at one point). The Aggies held Misericordia (0-7, 0-6 MAC) to 134 total yards, including just 30 in the air. The Cougars were 1-for-14 on third-down conversions and they punted 11 times in the game.
Delaware Valley scored on its final six possessions of the first half for a 42-0 advantage at the break (the first possession saw a Misericordia punt hit an Aggie player and the Cougars recovered). Schuberth scored on runs of four and 43 yards and Wilmer then hit Bailey for a 30-yard touchdown on a wild play. Under pressure, Wilmer threw the ball up for grabs into the end zone. Delaware Valley tight end Mike McHugh and two Misericordia defenders got their hands on it before it ricocheted to Bailey for the score. Schuberth followed with a six-yard touchdown run while Wilmer and Waller found paydirt from 21 and 11 yards respectively.
In the third quarter, Jones and Parrott had scoring runs of two and one yard respectively. Anusky added a 16-yard touchdown run in the fourth and Parrott concluded the scoring with an 11-yard scamper. Placekicker Brandon Snyder connected on all 10 extra-point attempts, to set a new single-game record.
Defensively, John Marcelline paced Delaware Valley with eight tackles. Chris McCabe added six tackles and one sacks while Bernard Avery and Dwayne Shaw also had six stops apiece.
Misericordia quarterback Jeffrey Puckett completed six of 15 passes for 30 yards. He was also the team's leading rusher with 38 yards on nine carries. Michael Comerford led the defense with nine tackles.