Final statistics

GREENSBURG, Pa. – The Slippery Rock University football team began its season in fine fashion Saturday as the Green and White scored points in all three phases of the game en route to an easy 51-14 win over hosting Seton Hill University in a battle of NCAA Division II Super Region One teams.

Junior running back Akeem Satterfield rushed for 125yards on just eight carries and sophomore running back LaQuinn Stephens-Howling added two rushing touchdowns to lead a ground game that chewed up 230 yards in offense.

SRU finished the game with 371 yards in total offense.

The Rock also got two touchdowns from its defensive unit, thanks to interception returns for TDs by seniors Brandon Watters and Jayson Nickson. The Rock defense, which allowed Seton Hill only 195 yards in total offense and a mere 58 yards rushing, also set up a third TD with a fumble recovery deep in Seton Hill territory by senior defensive end Jeff Thompson.

But the first Rock points came via special teams as redshirt freshman wide receiver/return specialist Ken Amos ran the opening kickoff back a school-record 96 yards for a touchdown.

The final nine Rock points came on field goals by redshirt junior kicking specialist Kurt Brackman, who was also a perfect 6-for-6 on extra point attempts.

Seton Hill answered Amos' game-opening TD sprint with an eight-play, 79-yard scoring drive to tie the score at 7-7 with 11:24 remaining in the first quarter, but was unable to match the Green and White's firepower.

SRU ran off a string of 41 unanswered points and held a 48-7 lead before the Griffins got their second touchdown of the game, helped along by a roughing the punter penalty and two personal foul infractions against The Rock.

Stephens-Howling burst into the end zone from two yards out with 6:33 left in the first period to cap a five-play, 97-yard drive and give SRU a 14-7 lead. A 54-yard run by Satterfield and a 34-yard pass completion from senior quarterback Cody Endres to senior wide receiver Devin Goda set up the scoring play.

Just over a minute later, Watters picked off a pass from Seton Hill quarterback D.J. Lenehan and returned it 50 yards for a TD to make it a 21-7 advantage. Senior linebacker Jake Wickline forced Lenehan to release the pass prematurely.

Satterfield's 22-yard TD run with 1:33 left in the first period capped a four-play, 54-yard march that pushed The Rock lead to 28-7.

Nickson's 38-yard INT return for a TD with 13:50 left in the second period extended the margin to 35-7 before Stephens-Howling's second TD run, an eight-yard burst, came one play after Thompson's fumble recovery and gave The Rock a 42-7 lead.

Thompson was also responsible for rushing Lenehan into throwing the ill-advised pass that resulted in Nickson's INT.

Brackman booted 25- and 41-yard field goals in the final 10 minutes of the second quarter to give SRU a 48-7 lead heading into the intermission.

Seton Hill moved 79 yards in 13 plays, aided by the three costly Rock penalties, to trim the margin to 48-14 with 9:23 left in the third period before Brackman's 43-yard field goal with 1:14 left in the third stanza accounted for the final points of the game.

Endres, a transfer from UConn who made his first start with The Rock, ended the game with eight completions in 13 attempts for 113 yards with one interception. Backup signal callers Ryan Sabo (2-for-4, 11 yards) and Jared Buck (1-of-2, 17 yards) combined for 28 yards.

Goda caught four passes for 51 yards to lead The Rock receiving effort, while Amos finished the game with 130 yards on three kickoff returns.

Defensively, senior Preseason All-America linebacker Zach Sheridan recorded a team-high nine tackles, while Wickline (three tackles for loss, -7 yards) and senior cornerback Andre Freeman had seven tackles each and junior nose guard Jack Charles added six takedowns.

The Rock returns to action next Saturday, when they will entertain Cheyney University in a 6 p.m. game.

SRU's stadium will be renamed “Mihalik-Thompson Stadium” in honor of current Rock head coach George Mihalik during halftime festivities.

Prior to the game, the University will honor local veterans and first responders as part of the campuswide remembrance of the 10th anniversary of the 9-11 tragedy.

Notes: Amos' kickoff-return TD bettered the previous school-record longest return of 92 yards set by Satterfield Oct. 17, 2009, at Gannon University in Erie ... Watters' INT was the seventh of his career and first INT return for a TD by a Rock player since Sept. 26, 2009 when A.J. Saunders' ran one back 60 yards to account for the only Rock points in a 7-3 home win over Indiana (Pa.) ... Nickson's INT was the fifth of his four-year Rock career ... Saturday marked the first time since Oct. 29, 2005, The Rock scored two TDs on INT returns. Akeem Etheridge (40 yards) and Matt Fontana (48 yards) scored TDs in that game ... Fontana is now a student assistant on The Rock's football coaching staff ... Brackman's third and final field goal Saturday was the longest of his two-year Rock career ... The three FGs he kicked Saturday matched his entire 2010 season output as the backup to all-region kicker C.J. Bahr ... Brackman was 3-of-4 on FG attempts last fall with all three successful boots coming Oct. 2 in a 16-13 win at Clarion ... The Rock is now 23-4 against West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference schools since Mihalik became SRU's head coach in 1988 ... Saturday's win gave SRU a 2-1 edge in the all-time series vs. Seton Hill.