Box Score

Millersville, Pa. - Senior wide receiver Jamal Smith set a Millersville record with 252 yards receiving, Bill Shirk threw for 423 yards and the defense made a stop when it absolutely needed to, propelling the Marauders to a come-from-behind 29-26 victory over Gannon Saturday afternoon at Chryst Field at Biemesderfer Stadium.

Millersville, now 2-1 for the first time since 2005, showed resiliency, rallying from two second-half deficits to knock Gannon (2-1) from the ranks of the unbeaten. Shirk and Smith, who hooked up eight times on the day, erased one of Gannon's lead with a 75-yard touchdown. Later in the fourth, with just 3:35 left in the game and trailing 26-21, Shirk captained a nine-play, 82-yard drive that included a 42-yard reception by Smith and an improbable fourth-and-18 conversion by Shirk and Mike Jones. Shirk put the finishes touches on the masterpiece of a two-minute drill at 1:06 with a one-yard plunge.

Millersville's defense, which pitched a shutout in the first half but had allowed 26 second-half points and two TD runs of more than 40 yards by Zach Boedicker, dug in on Gannon's final possession. Boedicker's first two passes fell incomplete, and on third down he was sack for a loss of nine by Shane Gross. Then on fourth-and-19, redshirt freshman Lee Hoover batted down Boedicker's pass at the line of scrimmage, sealing the Marauder win.

Smith entered Saturday's game ranked first in the PSAC in receptions per game, and his eight on Saturday gave him enough yardage to break Sean Scott's 12-year-old school record of 227 receiving yards. The total was also the sixth-best total in PSAC history. Smith hauled in two touchdowns, giving him five in the last two games.

Shirk completed 25-of-39 passes, threw for three touchdowns, rushed for one and set a new career high in passing yards. It was also Millersville's first 400-yard passing performance since Dan Csencsitz threw for 410 in 2004.

Shirk not only used his arm but also his legs, continually eluding Gannon rushers and extending plays. His 37-yard touchdown toss to Smith with 12:31 left in the second quarter broke a scoreless tie.

The Marauder defense limited Gannon to five first downs and 79 yards of offense in the first half. John Wynder also picked off Boedicker on Gannon's first drive of the game. The defense also forced two-straight three-and-outs to set up Millersville's second scoring drive, which ended at the 4:33 mark when Shirk found tight end Greg Frantz, giving the Marauders a 14-0 advantage.

Gannon looked ready to score at the close of the first half, penetrating to the Millersville 18. But on fourth-and-one, Gross dropped Tyler Batts for a loss of six.

The Golden Knights found themselves in a familiar position. They trailed at Shippensburg 19-0 at the half the week before but scored 22 unanswered points to win 22-19. And on the first drive of the third quarter, Gannon looked as if it was going to make another second-half charge.

On the first play of the third quarter, Geoff Hicks pulled down a jump ball from Boedicker for a 46-yard gain. Batts handled the rest of the drive, scoring after three-straight carries.

Millersville's first third-quarter drive ended in a missed field goal, and Gannon took advantage, driving 72 yards in nine plays. Boedicker found Evan Twombly from 26 yards out to bring Gannon within one. But a penalty on the extra point attempt pushed it back five more yards and the second try sailed left, keeping Gannon behind, 14-13.

The Millersville lead did not last long, though. After a three-and-out, Gannon ended the fourth quarter with a six-play, 80-yard drive to go ahead 20-14.

Millersville came up empty on three-straight possessions, but on the fourth, Shirk lofted a bomb to Smith, who caught it in stride on the visitor sideline and out-raced his Gannon defender for a 75-yard touchdown. Gannon struck back with a 42-yard TD run from Boedicker with 3:43 to go. The two-point conversion failed, leaving Millersville down, 26-20.

The final drive began with a 43-yard completion to Smith, but two incompletion and a sack left the Marauders with a fourth-and-18. Shirk, however, scrambled away from pressure and found Jones, who leaped for the reception and first down. Shirk then found Matt Egenrieder on the sideline for 16 yards. Three plays later, Shirk scored on a quarterback sneak, and the two-point conversion was successful when Smith hauled in a fade pass from Shirk.

Millersville finished with 441 yards of total offense despite rushing for only 18 yards. Egenrieder quietly caught five passes for 80 yards.

The Millersville defense sacked Boedicker five times. In addition to his interception, Wynder added one sack. Jeff Longley and Pat Maloney tied for a team high in tackles with 10. Gary Tillman recorded Millersville's other interception.

Five sacks was the most by a Millersville team since 2007.