CALIFORNIA (Sept. 21) – The Vulcans amassed over 500 yards of total offense and forced four turnovers on Saturday afternoon while rolling to 58-7 victory over Shippensburg at Adamson Stadium in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Crossover action.

With the win, the California University of Pennsylvania football team improves to 2-1 overall. The Vulcans have now forced a staggering 14 takeaways this year, including 10 interceptions. Meanwhile, the Red Raiders remain winless this season with a 0-3 mark after allowing at least 48 points in all three games.

Sophomore quarterback Noah Mitchell (Euclid, Ohio/Euclid) set a career high with four touchdowns and finished with 289 passing yards on 16-of-28 attempts with no interceptions. He has posted nearly 750 passing yards and nine touchdowns this season despite playing sparingly in the second half in both the season-opener and against Shippensburg.

Senior wide receiver Jordan Dandridge (Duluth, Ga./Duluth) finished with a team-high 107 yards and two touchdowns on six receptions. He now leads the PSAC with five touchdown receptions this season, which is already a career high. Junior wide receiver Tyson Hill (New Kensington, Pa./Valley) also eclipsed the century mark on Saturday, finishing with 101 receiving yards and one score on four catches.

Cal U forced four turnovers, recorded five sacks and allowed just 34 rushing yards on 29 attempts against Shippensburg. As a team, the Vulcans recorded 14.0 TFL with 12 different players collecting at least 0.5 TFL on Saturday. Sophomore defensive lineman Gerald Brown (Duquesne, Pa./West Mifflin) tied for the team lead with five tackles (three solo) and added 2.5 TFL, 1.5 sacks and one forced fumble. Redshirt senior linebacker Julian Cox (New Castle, Pa./New Castle) posted five stops (three solo) with 2.0 TFL and junior defensive lineman Stephon Brown (Drexel Hill, Pa./Cardinal O'Hara) also tallied five tackles (four solo), 1.0 sack and one forced fumble.

Midway through the first quarter, senior defensive back Lamont McPhatter II (New Castle, Pa./New Castle) registered his second interception of the season to setup the Vulcans at midfield. Cal U capitalized on the turnover when Mitchell connected with redshirt freshman wide receiver Jackson Daugherty (Laughlintown, Pa./Ligonier Valley) for a 28-yard touchdown on fourth-and-10.

The Vulcans broke the game open with 28 points in the second quarter to take a 35-0 lead at halftime. Mitchell found Hill for a 53-yard scoring strike with 12:02 left in the second quarter before the defense forced a turnover on downs. Cal U then took a 21-0 lead when Mitchell connected with Dandridge for a 36-yard touchdown. On the next possession, junior defensive back Jimmy Pierce (Uniontown, Pa./Laurel Highlands) recorded a 39-yard interception for a touchdown – the second of his career – with 4:23 remaining before the break. The Vulcans posted their last touchdown of the quarter when senior running back Nelson Brown (Salisbury, Md./Wicomico) scampered 20 yards for a score after the drive started with a 46-yard rush by Nelson Brown.

Cal U scored on all four of its drives in the third quarter to seize a 58-0 lead while Shippensburg was held to only 45 yards of total offense. Nelson Brown capped a nine-play drive with a three-yard touchdown run on the opening drive of the second half. After the defense forced a three-and-out, Mitchell found Dandridge for a 31-yard score, his second touchdown of the game, on the first play of the ensuing drive. Freshman running back Richie Sykes (Middletown, Pa./Middletown) later posted a 13-yard touchdown run before the Vulcans added a 29-yard field goal by freshman Keaton Hier (Harrison City, Pa./Penn-Trafford) with 1:57 left in the quarter.

Shippensburg avoided the shutout with an eight-yard touchdown pass midway through the fourth quarter after the drive was extended following a fourth-down conversion in Cal U territory.

The Vulcans return to action on Saturday, Sept. 28, when they open divisional play by traveling to face Edinboro at 1 p.m.

Notes:
Nelson Brown eclipsed the century mark for the second time this year, finishing with 105 yards and two touchdowns on 13 attempts … Cal U has held all three opponents this season to below 50 rushing yards and is allowing just 24.3 rushing yards per game … The Vulcans featured multiple players with 100 receiving yards for the first time this season … McPhatter now has 12 interceptions in his Cal U career (24 games) … Cal U has scored four defensive touchdowns this season … Shippensburg redshirt freshman quarterback Max DeVinney finished with 281 passing yards in his first career start