Five Touchdowns from Gillis and Lolley Propel Delaware State Past North Carolina Central, 35-26

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The Delaware State University’s football team earned its fifth victory of the season on Saturday with a 35-26 win over the North Carolina Central Eagles. The victory marks the first MEAC victory for the Hornets under first-year head coach DeSean Jackson.

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Standouts in Delaware State’s win were running back Marquis Gillis and wide receiver NyGhee Lolley.  

Gillis had 108 yards on 21 carries with two rushing touchdowns in the game.

Lolley had five receptions for 124 yards with three touchdowns in the win.

Related:

Rushing game powers Delaware State to 70-23 blowout over Southern Connecticut State

Delaware State trailed by three at the end of the first quarter.

The scoring was relatively quiet early in this game, as the North Carolina Central Eagles had the only score in the first quarter, a 33-yard field goal with 3:34 left in the period, which gave them a 3-0 lead.

The Hornets trail by three at the end of the first half.

Delaware State scored the first touchdown of the game, but it was a wild one. The scoring drive went 58 yards on seven plays. It ended with senior wideout NyGhee Lolley catching the ball for an 11-yard gain near the goal line before fumbling it and then recovering at the Eagles’ five and taking it to the end zone for the touchdown to give DSU a 7-3 advantage with 9:09 left in the first half.

NC Central responded by taking the lead right back with a 75-yard, eight-play scoring drive that ended with quarterback Walker Harris throwing a short pass to his wide receiver Nasim Cosby, who took it 32 yards for the touchdown to put his team up 10-7 headed into halftime.

The Hornets take a four-point lead in the third quarter.

Delaware State opened the second half with a bang by flying 75 yards in two plays to end with senior quarterback Kaiden Bennett zipping a short pass to his receiver NyGhee Lolley, who took 72 yards for the touchdown to give their team a 14-10 edge with 14:21 remaining in the third.

After two drives, the Hornets reached the endzone again with a 10-play, 89-yard scoring drive. The drive concluded on a second and six on the Eagles 25 25-yard line with Bennett finding Lolley on a short throw, who then took off for 25 yards for the touchdown to give his team a 21-10 advantage with 7:30 left in the third quarter.

NC Central punched back in the late minutes of the third with a long five-minute and 56-second, 11-play, 56-yard scoring drive. The possession was capped off with their quarterback, Walker Harris, dashing in for the one-yard touchdown to cut the deficit to 21-17 heading into the fourth quarter.

Delaware State takes home a 35-26 win!

The Eagles quickly bounced back after Delaware State University punted following three plays in their first possession of the fourth quarter. North Carolina Central then mounted a swift two-play, 65-yard scoring drive, which put them ahead 24-21 with 14:15 left in the game.

Delaware State responded with a draining (five-minute and 11 seconds), 11-play, 87-yard scoring drive that ended with senior running back Marquis Gillis galloping 33 yards for the touchdown to give his team a 28-24 edge with 8:57 remaining in the fourth.

Two drives later, Gillis would score the end zone again on a 79-yard, eight-play drive that pushed the Hornets’ advantage to 35-24.

NC Central would get two points from a DSU Safety, but Delaware State still would bring home a 35-26 victory.

Team Stats

Team Stats
1st Downs	23	22
3rd down efficiency	7-14	4-12
4th down efficiency	2-2	1-1
Total Yards	453	459
Passing	212	354
Comp/Att	10/16	22/33
Yards per pass	13.3	10.7
Interceptions thrown	1	1
Rushing	241	105
Rushing Attempts	51	30
Yards per rush	4.7	3.5
Penalties	8-79	6-76
Turnovers	1	2
Fumbles lost	0	1
Interceptions thrown	1	1
Possession	32:35	27:25