ANNVILLE (PA) – Delaware Valley College jumped out to a 21-0 lead and cruised to a 28-7 victory over previously unbeaten Lebanon Valley College in the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) opener for both teams. 

The Aggies, who were tri-champions of the conference last year and the preseason favorite to repeat this season, improved to 3-1 overall. The Flying Dutchmen, who were off to their best start since 1979, fell to 3-1. 

Delaware Valley took advantage of a Lebanon Valley turnover on the opening drive of the game to take an early 7-0 lead. Aggie safety Ryan McCullough intercepted a pass near midfield and then the offense marched 52 yards on six plays. The final 26 came on a touchdown run by Isaiah Hall as the sophomore reversed direction, got a big block form quarterback and dove into the end zone. Jake Sobchak added the extra-point and Delaware Valley had its lead with just 3:21 off the clock. 

The Flying Dutchmen drove all the way to the Aggie 30-yard line on the ensuing possession, but turned the ball over on downs at the 32. Delaware Valley faced a third-and-14 when Isgro bought time with his feet and found a wide-open Brandon Fox for a 51-yard pass to the Lebanon Valley 20. It then faced a fourth-and-eight from the 18-yard line when Isgro scrambled and picked up 11 yards for the first down. Three plays later, Matt Cook completed the 68-yard drive with a two-yard plunge into the end zone. Sobchak's kick made it 14-0 with 41 seconds left in the first. 

The Aggies went to their bag of tricks on their next drive and took a 21-0 lead thanks to it. After taking over at their own 20, they drove down to the 15 and Isgro threw a pass behind the line of scrimmage to Hall on the left. Hall then set up to throw and went back to Isgro who went untouched for a touchdown with 10:15 to go before the half. 

A short kickoff and long return gave the Flying Dutchmen excellent position. They took it down to the one, but a stop and then a penalty made it third-and-goal from the six. Quarterback Colt Zarilla, who came into the game on the drive, scramble and found the end zone to get his team on the board. Brittany Ryan added the extra-point for a 21-7 score with 6:38 left in the first half. 

Lebanon Valley threatened again late in the half as it reached the Aggie 14 and faced a third-and-seven when Kyle Gesswein came through on a sack and stripped the ball loose. Derek Porter pounced on it to end the Flying Dutchmen drive. The result was 21-7 Aggie lead at the intermission. 

The teams went scoreless in the third quarter and Lebanon Valley faced a fourth-and-eight from the Delaware Valley 28 on the first play of the fourth. Zarilla was stopped shy of the first down marker on a scramble and the Aggies took over at their own 26-yard line. The Flying Dutchmen drove into Delaware Valley territory again on the ensuing possession, but Caleb Fick was intercepted by Rob Eagles at the 35. 

The Aggies then put the game away with a 13-play, 65-yard scoring drive that took 7:02 off the clock. They converted three, third-down plays on the drive and capped it with Cook's second touchdown of the day, a two-yard push. Sobchak added the extra-point for a 28-7 lead with 4:09 remaining. 

Delaware Valley outgained the Flying Dutchmen, 428-249 and held the ball for more than nine minutes. The Aggies were also 6-for-12 on third-down conversions and forced three turnovers. 

Isgro completed 13 of 20 passes for 172 yards, added 42 yards on the ground and 15 more on the scoring reception. Cook lugged the ball 25 times for 95 yards and two scores and also caught three passes for 26 yards. Hall finished with 60 yards on five rushes and had the one touchdown toss as well. Defensively, Gesswein, a preseason All-American, notched 12 tackles, one sack and one forced fumble. McCullough and Eagles combined for 10 tackles and two interceptions. 

For Lebanon Valley, Charlie Parker ran 24 times for 116 yards and went over the 3,000-yard mark for his career. Ben Guilees added 72 yards on 10 carries. Fick and Zarilla combined to go just 5-for-18 for 38 yards and two interceptions.