BOX SCORE BOX SCORE (PDF)DOVER, Del. – A pair of fourth quarter special teams touchdowns propelled the Towson University football team to a 21-7 win over Delaware State at rain-soaked Alumni Field on Saturday afternoon.
Trailing 7-6 in the fourth quarter, sophomore
Jordan Mynatt blocked a Delaware State punt that senior
Fred Overstreet recovered in the end zone to give the Tigers a lead they would not relinquish. Later in the quarter, senior
Derrick Joseph returned a punt 81 yards for a touchdown to seal Towson's 21-7 win.
Towson outgained Delaware State 221-71 on the ground, averaging 4.9 yards per carry. Sophomore
Darius Victor led the Tiger rushing charge with 131 yards on 24 carries, giving him two 100-yard rushing games in just three contests this season.
The consistent downpour of rain throughout the game limited Towson's passing attack as junior quarterback
Connor Frazier completed 10 of 22 passes for 83 yards. Frazier did run for 84 yards on 17 attempts and for the third straight game threw no interceptions. In fact, through three games the Tigers have yet to turn the ball over.
Towson, which has won four straight games over Delaware State, improves to 1-2 on the year. The Hornets fall to 0-3 after dropping their home opener.
Delaware State scored its only points of the game right before halftime. Quarterback
Gilbert Rivera found
Malik Golson in the back of the end zone with just seven seconds left in the second quarter to give the Hornets a 7-3 edge at the intermission.
Both teams struggled to move the ball consistently coming back out of the locker-room. Towson kicker
Sam Hurwitz accounted for the only points of the third quarter as his second field goal of the afternoon brought the Tigers to within 7-6.
On Delaware State's first drive of the fourth quarter, the Hornets converted a fourth down on Towson's side of the field, but the play was negated because of a holding penalty. After the 10 yards were marked off, DSU opted to punt. However, a bad snap allowed Mynatt to race in from the right side and block the kick. The ball bounced into the end zone where Overstreet scooped it up to give the Tigers their second lead of the game.
Up by five, Towson Head Coach
Rob Ambrose decided to go for two and was rewarded. Frazier connected with sophomore wide receiver
Andre Dessenberg on the conversion to give the Tigers a 14-7 lead with 11:16 remaining in the game.
After the teams traded punts, Delaware State took over on their own nine-yard line with 5:09 left. The Hornets got one first down but then were forced to punt. DSU's
Jeremiah McGeough blasted a 57-yard punt, but Joseph dodged a number of tacklers en route to the end zone for his first career punt return touchdown. It marked Joseph's fifth return touchdown of his career (4 kickoff, 1 punt). Joseph ran back a 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown against Delaware State in 2013.
Leading 21-7, Towson regained possession with 2:25 remaining. On third down, Victor broke open a 50-yard run that allowed the Tigers to ice the win and take a knee.
Towson outgained Delaware State 307-193 in total offense and forced the Hornets into 10 punts. Junior
Arione Scott led the Tigers with four receptions for 25 yards in the slick conditions.
Redshirt freshman
James Simms continued his torrid start to the 2014 season by leading the stingy Towson defense with 11 tackles to go along with a forced fumble on the opening kickoff of the game. Junior
Vince DePaola recovered that fumble, which led to a Hurwitz field goal less than two minutes into the contest.
For the third straight game, senior
Ryan Delaire picked up a sack. He also had a pair of tackles for a loss. Junior
Jon Desir and sophomore
Eric Handy also converged on a sack.
Towson, which has won 13 of its last 14 road games, avoids its first 0-3 start since 1991.
The Tigers return home next Saturday to host North Carolina Central for its final non-conference game of the regular season. It will be family weekend at Towson with kickoff set for 6 p.m.
-TowsonTigers.com-
