DOYLESTOWN (PA) – Delaware Valley College will look to clinch at least a share of its third straight Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) title as well as its second consecutive trip to the NCAA Division III playoffs when the eighth-ranked Aggies travel to Albright College on Saturday, November 6. Kickoff at Shirk Stadium is at 1:00 p.m.

It marks the third year in a row that Delaware Valley can earn the top spot in the MAC against Albright. In 2008, the Aggies hosted the Lions in the season finale and posted a 34-9 rout as Delaware Valley, Albright and Lycoming College finished as tri-champions (Lycoming earned the conference's bid to the NCAAs thanks to wins over both foes).

Last year, Doylestown was again the scene for the week nine match-up and the Aggies ran away with a 45-16 victory for the MAC crown and NCAA berth. Albright earned revenge three weeks later as, after receiving an at-large spot in the NCAA playoffs, the Lions went back on the road to Delaware Valley and posted a 27-3 shocker to advance to the Division III quarterfinals.

A victory over Albright in Reading would give Delaware Valley the NCAA bid since the only team that would be able to tie them in the standings would be Wilkes University and the Aggies downed the Colonels in Wilkes-Barre, 30-18, earlier in the season. A Delaware Valley win and a Wilkes loss at Widener would give the Aggies the outright conference title.

Delaware Valley was dominant in its 51-7 victory over King's College last Saturday. The offense notched 406 yards while the defense allowed 222 yards, including just nine net yards on the ground. 

Those figures helped the Aggies remain on top of nearly every offensive and defensive category in the MAC. On the defensive side, Delaware Valley is number one in scoring (9.1 avg), rushing (56.5 avg), passing (153.8), total yardage (210.2), first downs (94), sacks (29), interceptions (13) and third-down conversion (22.2%). 

Meanwhile, the Aggie offense is first in the MAC in scoring (35.1 avg), rushing (215.4 avg), passing (235.4), total yardage (450.8 avg), first downs (191), sacks allowed (8), third-down conversion (48.7%) and time of possession (32:52). 

Senior quarterback Mark Hatty (Philadelphia, PA/Neumann-Goretti) leads the offense in his first full year as a starter. He has completed 144 of 235 passes for a MAC-best 1,711 yards, 13 touchdowns and just six interceptions. He has also rushed for 75 yards and one score. Last week, Hatty was 9-for-19 for 138 yards and one touchdown. 

Three-time all-MAC tailback Matt Cook (Selinsgrove, PA/Selinsgrove) continues to add his name to the Aggie record book as he recorded his second, four-touchdown game of the year (second in three weeks) and the third of his career. The four scores against King's tied a school record held by himself and two others and also upped his season total to 14 to tie that mark. Cook saw action in just the first three quarters and finished with 150 yards on 17 carries. 

Cook, who is Delaware Valley's all-time leader in nearly every rushing and scoring category including yards (4,174) and total touchdowns (46), has carried the ball 176 times for 943 yards and 14 scores this season. He has also caught 11 passes for 97 yards and one touchdown.

Senior wideout Dan Heiland (Willow Grove, PA/Upper Moreland) is the team's leading receiver and is ranked third in the MAC with 41 catches for 587 yards and one touchdown. He had three grabs for 48 yards last week and it helped him move into fifth place on the school's career list with 129 receptions. 

Fellow senior Joe Gionfriddo (Philadelphia, PA/Neumann-Goretti) caught a 55-yard touchdown pass against King's to up his season total to six (tops among Aggie receivers). He finished the day with two catches for 69 yards and he has 23 catches for 344 yards on the season. 

Defensively, Delaware Valley is led by senior linebacker and first team All-American Kyle Gesswein (Williamstown, NJ/Williamstown), Gesswein, the 2009 MAC and D3football.com East Region Defensive Player of the Year, is second on the team in both tackles (45) and sacks (5.5) while his sack total has him tied for fifth in the MAC. He is the school's all-time leader in sacks with 35.5 and is two stops shy of becoming just the fifth Aggie to reach the 300-tackle plateau. 

Junior linebacker Chris James (Philadelphia, PA/Northeast) is the team's leader in tackles with 47 and he also has two interceptions, a fumble recovery for a touchdown and half a sack this season. He was one of four Delaware Valley defenders to have a team-high six tackles against King's. 

Defensive ends Mike Jaskowski (Moorestown, NJ/Moorestown) and Garrett Wooters (Oxford, PA/Oxford) are tied for third and fifth in the MAC with 6.5 and 5.5 sacks respectively. Jaskowski, a junior who was a starting linebacker last year, also has 37 tackles and one interception (for a touchdown) to his credit. Wooters, a senior and 2009 all-conference honoree, has 23 tackles (13 for losses of 63 yards) and one interception this season.

2009 all-region safety Ryan McCullough (Cherry Hill, NJ/Northeast Catholic) is tied for second in the MAC in forced fumbles and tied for third in interceptions with three in each category. He also has 35 tackles on the season. 

Sophomore safety John Robinson (Mantua, NJ/Clearview) recorded a career-high six tackles and also returned an interception 58 yards for a touchdown in the win over King's. He has 19 stops on the season. 

Sophomore placekicker Jake Sobchak (Whitehall, PA/Whitehall) was named the MAC Special Teams Player of the Week for the King's game as he was 6-for-7 in extra-point attempts and hit a 39-yard field goal for a nine-point showing. He is second in the MAC among kickers in scoring with 49 points (31-for-35 extra-points, 6-for-7 field goals) and also moved into second place on the Delaware Valley all-time list with 106 career points. 

ALBRIGHT COLLEGE 

The Lions have won three straight to improve to 5-3 overall and 3-2 in the MAC. The winning streak has all come against conference foes as they have downed King's (38-14), Widener University (35-27) and FDU-Florham (41-15) over that time. 

The FDU-Florham game saw Albright jump out to a 21-3 before the Devils pulled to within six heading into the fourth quarter. However, the Lions scored 20 points in the final 15 minutes to pull away to the victory. 

Offensively, Albright trails only Delaware Valley in scoring (32.1 avg), passing (221.8 avg) and total yardage (400.8 avg). The ground attack is ranked fourth with an average of 179.6 yards per contest.

Adam Galczynski is the team's signal-caller and the sophomore has completed 80 of 124 passes for 1,140 yards and five touchdowns. He has also netted 179 rushing yards and two scores on 48 carries. Last week, Galczynski was 18-for-24 for 218 yards, but was intercepted two times. 

Galczynski's favorite targets senior Luke Wallace and junior Scott Pillar. Wallace has caught 25 passes for 344 yards and one touchdown, including last week's four-reception, 49-yard effort. Pillar made three grabs for 51 yards at FDU-Florham to up his season totals to 24 receptions for 454 yards. He has reached the end zone three times. 

Junior tailback Josan Holmes has scored 15 touchdowns on the ground this season, including three in the win over FDU-Florham. He carried the ball 20 times for 105 yards last week to give him 142 rushes and 740 yards on the season. 

The Lion defense is ranked fifth in the eight-team conference with averages of 27.9 points and 379.9 yards allowed per game. They are sixth in rushing (166.5 avg) and seventh in passing (213.4 avg). 

Senior linebacker Rob Mancinelli heads the unit with 47 tackles, including five stops at FDU-Florham. He also picked off his first pass of the season in the game. 

Junior safety Keith Bruno and sophomore linebacker Malik Compton follow with 38 tackles apiece. Bruno, who also has an interception and a forced fumble on the season, tied for top honors with seven tackles against FDU-Florham. Compton made four stops in the game. 

Another player to watch is junior safety Joe Arneth. Arneth is tied for third in the MAC with three interceptions and he also had 29 tackles and two blocked kicks to his credit. He had seven tackles and one blocked kick last week.