LEXINGTON, Va. – The 25th-ranked Salisbury University football team got the season off to a strong start and forced four turnovers with a 28-7 win over the Washington & Lee Generals on Saturday.

HOW IT HAPPENED

First Quarter

• W&L held the ball for nearly 10 minutes on its opening possession of the game. Ryan Muller forced a fumble inside the red zone which was recovered by Casey Counts.
• Six plays later, Ben Hutchins scored the opening points of the game for a 52-yard touchdown run to give SU the 7-0 lead.

Second Quarter

• The Sea Gull defense stymied another drive for the Generals. Frank Giannetti and Counts teamed up to force a fumble on the 21-yard line.
• The offense drove down the field and held on to the ball to give the defense a rest. The 13-play drive was capped off by a Ronald Clark one-yard touchdown run.

Third Quarter

• Two plays into the second half, Jaden Davis took a pitch play 83 yards for a touchdown to put the Sea Gulls up 21-0 early in the third.
• The Generals looked to finally get on the board with just under five minutes to go in the third. Evan Novak tried to dive across the endzone on a 24-yard completion, but Charles Barley knocked the ball out as he crossed the goal line to force a touchback and keep the points off the board.

Fourth Quarter

• W&L scored its first points of the season after a 15-play drive ended with a two-yard Jacob Romero touchdown run to chip into the SU lead, 21-7, with 11:54 left in regulation.
• Salisbury got the points back and pushed the lead back up to 21 points midway through the fourth after Abdul Ouattara stripped sacked Steven Murrin and the ball was recovered on the W&L two. Two Hunter Hruz runs later from the two-yard line ended with a touchdown and a 28-7 SU lead.

SALISBURY GAME NOTES

• Salisbury forced four Washington & Lee turnovers, all fumbles. The Sea Gulls scored 21 points off of the four turnovers.
• The Sea Gulls tallied 304 yards of total offense.
• Ben Hutchins paced the offense with 6-of-12 passing for 85 yards and 10 rushes for 65 yards on the ground, including his 52-yard touchdown run in the first quarter.
• Jaden Davis carried the ball four times for 93 yards and a touchdown.
• Hunter Hruz and Ronald Clark also scored for the Sea Gulls.
• Gabriel Mendez caught two passes for 44 yards.
• Jimmy Celentano led all tacklers with 15 stops.
• Caleb Brubaker also had double-digit tackles with 11.
• Nero Schrader and Kilo Mack each recorded nine tackles.
• Ryan Muller, Charles Barley and Frank Giannetti each forced a fumble.

W&L GAME NOTES

• W&L had 338 yards of total offense.
• Stephen Murrin was 9-for-20 passing for 68 yards. Murrin also added 60 rush yards.
• Jacob Romero ran the ball 29 times for 115 yards and a score.
• Hunter Hawk had 11 tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss.

UP NEXT

• Salisbury continues on the road next week against the Muhlenberg Mules on Saturday, Sept. 9.
• Kickoff from Allentown, Pa. is set for noon.

---

Salisbury University is a proud member of NCAA Division III with primary membership in the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference, along with the New Jersey Athletic Conference for football and men's and women's swimming, and the Coastal Lacrosse Conference for men's lacrosse. With over 500 student-athletes in 21 varsity sports, SU is recognized as one of the most competitive intercollegiate athletics programs regardless of division, and dedicated coaches and staff that foster excellence on-and-off the field. The Sea Gulls have celebrated 23 team national championships, 24 individual national champions, 196 conference championships and 45 Academic All-Americans.

To Make Tomorrow Yours at Salisbury University, and learn more about Sea Gull Athletics' tradition of excellence, visit www.SUSeaGulls.com or on social media @SUSeaGulls.