FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 10, 2000

HAWKS SACK RED STORM UNDER THE LIGHTS

WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. –  Monmouth converted two Red Storm special teams errors into touchdowns and took a 21-7 lead at halftime en route to a 27-14 win over St. John’s in Jamaica, N.Y.

Monmouth scored its first touchdown after St. John’s muffed a punt, giving the Hawks the ball on the SJU 23-yard line.  Four plays later, quarterback Bill Rankin connected on a 10-yard scoring pass to Uriel Riley, giving the Hawks a 7-0 lead.

St. John’s came right back and tied the game on a five-play, 70-yard drive capped by Matt McGuire, who scored on a 26-yard run to tie the game.  McGuire carried the ball twice for 40 yards on the drive.

Monmouth extended its lead to 14-7 in the second quarter, taking possession after a delay of game penalty gave the Hawks a first down on the SJU 4-yard line.  The Red Storm held Monmouth in check until fourth down, when Matt Merklinger dove over the pile with 12:53 left in the half.

After St. John’s was unable to move the ball late in the second quarter, Monmouth took over on downs with 2:21 remaining at its own 22-yard line and picked up four first downs, moving the ball to the seven-yard line.  Rankin completed a seven-yard scoring pass to Merklinger for the 21-7 lead.

In the third quarter, Monmouth extended its lead to 24-7 on a 24-yard field goal by Chris Mandell.

The Red Storm pulled to within 24-14 after senior strong safety Danny Kelskey blocked a punt, giving SJU the ball on the three-yard line.  A pair of runs by senior Durron Newman - one a two-yard gain, the other a one-yard gain – cut lead to 24-14 points. Monmouth added a 40-yard field goal from Mandell to finish the scoring.

Junior Chris Posillico had 12 tackles to lead the St. John’s defense, while senior Rich Hosein added 10 tackles.