Sept. 11, 2004

Box Score

Union, NJ - Johns Hopkins quarterback Zach DiIonno (West Caldwell, N.J.) passed for 371 yards and four touchdowns as the Blue Jays pulled away late for a 35-17 win over Kean University, in front of 1,855 fans at Kean Alumni Stadium on Saturday afternoon. With the victory, Johns Hopkins improved to 2-0, while the Cougars fell to 1-1.

DiIonno's 371 yards (24-for-36) rank as the second-highest single-game total in school history. Only John Guglielmo's 477-yard effort against Georgetown in 1991 stands above DiIonno's total. His four TD passes are also the most by a JHU quarterback since Gugulielmo threw a school-record six in the aforementioned win over the Hoyas. DiIonno was not the only record-setting passer on the day, as Kean's own quarterback, freshman A.J. Roque (Matawan, N.J.), set a Cougar record with 289 yards through the air.

In a high-scoring first half, JHU jumped out to a 7-0 first quarter lead when T.J. Lyons (Paramus, N.J.) capped a five play, 41-yard drive with a one-yard TD run. In the second quarter, the Cougars tied up the game on a 25-yard Roque to Jasonus Tillery (Newport News, Va.) touchdown reception with 7:31 left in the half. However, the Blue Jays quickly regained the lead just two plays later when DiIonno found Anthony Triplin (Baltimore, Md.) down the middle of the field for a 46-yard touchdown reception. Kean answered right back with its own scoring drive, marching 57 yards on six plays and eventually scoring on a three-yard TD pass from Roque to fullback Frank Lamotta (Carteret, N.J.). The tied score was once again short-lived, however as DiIonno hit Triplin on a 23-yard TD strike to give JHU a 21-14 lead with 2:44 left in the half.

Johns Hopkins increased its lead to 28-14 in the third quarter when DiIonno hooked up with Brian Wolcott (Harding, Pa.) for an 11-yard touchdown reception. The Cougars got back into the game in the fourth quarter when Roque hit Tolu Adeyemi (Matawan, N.J.) for a 59-yard reception to give Kean a first-and-goal from the five yard line. However, the Blue Jay defense stiffened and Kean had to settle for a 26-yard field goal by freshman kicker Jon Robinson (Brick, N.J.) with 14:02 left in the game.

On Kean's next possession, Roque once again found a streaking Adeyemi for a 52-yard reception that gave the Cougars a first-and-goal from the five yard line, but once again the JHU defense came through. After a rush for no gain and a two-yard completion, junior Adam Luke (Teague, TX) sacked Roque at the eight-yard line to force a fourth-and-goal. This time, however Robinson missed from 25-yards out. Hopkins was able to take that momentum swing and put the game out of reach by marching 80-yards on seven plays with DiIonno hitting Wolcott for his fourth TD pass of the game.

For the Blue Jays, Wolcott finished the day with eight receptions for 137 yards and two scores, while Triplin added seven catches for a career-high 132 yards and two TD's. Defensively, JHU sacked Roque nine times for a total loss of 52-yards. Luke (Teague, Texas) had nine total tackles and two sacks, while sophomore defensive end Brian Cook (New Freedom, Pa.) added seven tackles and two sacks.

For the Cougars, Roque led the Kean offense as he completed 17-of-31 passes with two TD's, while Adeyemi hauled in five passes for 164 yards and Tillery added five catches for 79 yards.

The Blue Jays, who won for the 15th time in their last 16 games in the month of September and improved to 23-3 in their last 26 games overall, topped the 400-yard total offense mark for the second straight week as they outgained the Cougards, 432-323.

Johns Hopkins will return to action next Saturday when the Blue Jays host Carnegie Mellon at 1:00 pm. The Tartans dropped a 16-14 decision to Grove City earlier today.