Henderson's Record-Setting Performance Leads Lincoln Past Quincy

JEFFERSON CITY, Missouri  -- Morris Henderson broke a GLVC record and two Lincoln single-game marks with six rushing touchdowns, leading the Lincoln football team to a 42-13 win over Quincy on Saturday (Sept. 20).

Henderson broke the Lincoln and GLVC single-game records for rushing touchdowns with five in the first half, then added a sixth for good measure in the fourth quarter to cap off a 19-carry, 145-yard performance. Henderson, who also added two receptions for 13 yards and 22 more yards on a kickoff return, broke the GLVC mark of four, set in 2012, and the Lincoln record of four, set multiple times. Henderson's six rushing scores are the most in a game by any NCAA Division II player this season and his 36 points are also a new LU single-game record.

Backing up Henderson's big day was a Lincoln defense that gave up just six points to the Hawks. The Blue Tigers allowed Quincy to convert just eight of 18 third downs and only two of its six fourth down attempts. Lincoln entered the game ranked sixth in the country in sacks and added six more on Saturday to go with nine total tackles for loss. Leading the way was Jeremy Rives, who made 21 tackles, currently the most in a game by an Division II player, and finished with 2.5 tackles for loss. Rives' tackle total was just one shy of the GLVC single-game record of 22.

Quincy (1-2, 0-1 GLVC) entered Saturday's game ranked second in the GLVC in rushing defense, but the Blue Tigers amassed 233 yards on the ground on 40 attempts. Owen Jordan added 134 yards passing on an efficient 16-for-21 performance. Khiry Draine led the receiving corps with six receptions for 63 yards whileBryson Winfrey added 31 yards on five catches. Christopher Willis caught two passes for 27 yards.

Lincoln (1-2, 1-1 GLVC) scored on each of its first two drives, with Henderson scoring from 21 and 17 yards out to give Lincoln a 14-0 first quarter lead. Quincy's only points of the first half came courtesy of its defense, as defensive lineman Mykel Tuiolosega-Suifanua recovered a fumble after the ball slipped out of Jordan's hands in Lincoln's end zone. The Blue Tigers responded by scoring touchdowns on each of its next three drives, with Henderson scoring on 28, six and 41-yard runs. The last touchdown came right after Lincoln's defense forced the Hawks to punt from in their own end zone, with Willis returning the punt to the Quincy 41-yard line.


The Hawks attempted to get back into the game in the third quarter, marching 75 yards on its third quarter-opening drive to score on a one-yard scamper with 8:37 remaining in the quarter. Quincy tried some trickery on the PAT attempt, lining up to kick the extra point before snapping the ball to a runner in an attempt to get two points. The Blue Tigers were ready for the play, though, as Rives and Delano Johnson stopped the runner short of the goal line.

Lincoln closed the scoring on the first play of the fourth quarter with a one-yard dive by Henderson capping a nine-play, 43-yard drive. A strong all-around performance by Lincoln's running backs helped the Blue Tigers chew down the clock in the second half, including three carries by Byron Williams for 22 yards in the fourth quarter.Mustafa Rose finished the game with seven rushes for 39 yards while Rashyied Melvin gained 15 yards and Willis added five on an end around.

Defensively, Paul Dodson added 16 tackles while Treston Pulley, Kareem Joyner and Kerry Roby each finished with nine. Pulley also had 1.5 sacks while Roby broke up a pass and made an interception. Davon Walls also made 1.5 sacks and finished with two tackles for loss and five total takedowns. Eric Howard had an eight-yard sack, Boomer Gorn and Malcolm Pickens each assisted on a tackle for loss and Derrick Nash added a quarterback hurry.

The Blue Tiger special teams had another strong day, with Julio Segura averaging 60.6 yards and three touchbacks on seven kickoffs. Two of Segura's three punts pinned the Hawks inside their own 20, with Segura averaging 35.7 yards on those kicks. Andrew Fishel made all six of his point-after kicks, with the sixth making Fishel Lincoln's career leader in successful point-after tries. Fishel, a true sophomore, has made 50 point-after kicks in 14 games as a Blue Tiger, breaking the previous career mark of 49, set by Gerald Walker from 1963-65.

Lincoln, which joined the Great Lakes Valley Conference this season as a football-only member, won its first GLVC game as well as the first-ever meeting between the Blue Tigers and the Hawks. Dating back to last season, Lincoln is now 3-1 in its last four conference games, all of which have been played at Dwight T. Reed Stadium.

The Blue Tigers will get their first shot at a GLVC road win next Saturday (Sept. 27), when Lincoln travels to Kirksville, Mo. to play Truman State at 7:00 p.m. CDT.




Dan Carr, Assistant AD for Media Relations
COURTESY LINCOLN UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS MEDIA RELATIONS