Hens roll past Lehigh, advance to quarterfinals

Quarterback Pat Devlin threw for 256 yards and four touchdowns to four different receivers and wide receiver Mark Schenauer had his first 100-yard receiving game, as Delaware easily dismantled Lehigh on Saturday in the second round of the FCS playoffs, 42-20.

The Hens scored a touchdown on three of their first four drives of the game. Running back Andrew Pierce opened the scoring when he spun out of a tackle and rushed five yards for the touchdown.

After two Lehigh scores—a 13-yard reception by Ryan Spadola and a 28-yard field goal by Tom Randazza—Devlin took over. He found an open Schenauer for the junior wide receiver's first career touchdown to give Delaware a 14-10 lead.

Schenauer finished with 113 yards on five catches.

Devlin then found an unlikely source for his next touchdown. Sophomore linebacker Chris Campbell lined up at fullback while the Hens were on the one-yard line. Devlin faked a handoff to Pierce and lofted the ball, which Campbell caught by diving in the front corner of the end zone.

Lehigh had added another Randazza field goal before Campbell's score, and the Hens took a 21-13 lead into halftime.

They began the second half exactly where they left off in the first. Devlin hit senior wide receiver Tommy Crosby for a 38-yard score to extend the lead by yet another touchdown. The throw also lifted Devlin over 5,000 yards for his career, making him the seventh quarterback in Delaware history to pass this milestone.

He would throw his fourth and final touchdown to sophomore wide receiver Nihja White late in the fourth quarter.

David Hayes, the sophomore backup running back, also got in on the scoring. He spun past a defender, broke two tackles and rushed 16 yards to score on the drive before White's touchdown for his fourth touchdown of the year.

Matt Fitz did get a consolation touchdown for Lehigh early in the fourth quarter to round out the scoring.

Next week, the Hens will host fellow CAA member New Hampshire, which beat Bethune-Cookman 44-20 on Saturday. If Delaware beats New Hampshire, the Hens will host a third playoff game, as No. 2-seed William & Mary fell to Georgia Southern.