Staten Island, NY – Sophomore running back Dominique Williams (Bridgeton, NJ/ Milford), who missed all of last season with a knee injury, made a resounding return to the field by exploding for a career-high 180 yards on 26 carries while adding two touchdowns to lead Wagner past Saint Francis (PA) 38-28 in the season opener for both teams.

The matchup between the Seahawks and Red Flash was the only game on the docket involving two Northeast Conference teams as Wagner now resides atop the standings with a 1-0 mark.

The Seahawks struck early in this one as senior defensive end Derrick Forrest (Fort Lauderdale, FL / Calvery Christian Academy) stripped the ball away from quarterback John Kelly on the Red Flash's first possession of the game. Junior safety Patrick O'Connor (Leominster, MA/ Leominster) pounced on the ball at the Saint Francis (PA) 31-yard line and the Seahawk offense went right to work.

On the very first offensive snap of the season, junior quarter Nick Doscher (Staten Island, NY/ Moore Catholic) hit senior wide receiver David Crawford (Carrollton, TX/ Hebron) in stride along the left sideline for a touchdown to give Wagner a 7-0 lead.

That's the way the score remained until the Red Flash put together a crisp seven-play, 83-yard drive that bridged the first and second quarter, culminating in a 28-yard TD pass from Kelly to Jacob Novicki that tied the game at 7-7. Wagner then reeled of the next 10 points to enter halftime with the momentum and a 17-7 lead.

After junior kickerDavid Lopez (Plantation, FL/ American Heritage) nailed a 40-yard field goal, the Red Flash appeared to be on its way to a score of its own but junior cornerback Torian Phillips (Staten Island, NY/ Port Richmond) had other ideas, blocking a Josh Thiel 40-yard field goal attempt. The turn in momentum led to a seven-play, 77-yard Seahawk march that was capped by a Williams five-yard touchdown run with just 39 seconds left in the half. Williams set up his own score by gashing the Red Flash defense for runs of 20 and 19 yards earlier in the drive.

After Wagner went three and out on the opening series of the second half, Saint Francis (PA) embarked on a an eight-play, 71-yard drive, keyed by a 41-yard dash up the right sideline by Harbridge. Four plays later, Harbridge barreled in from the two to make it a 17-14 game.

The teams traded punts before Wagner came up with a huge, game-changing defensive play. Kelly tried to make a big play on first down but his bullet pass over the middle went right into the waiting arms of junior linebacker Carl-Olivier Prime (Quebec, Canada/ Kent School), who angled to the left sideline, tiptoeing his way to a 37-yard touchdown which staked the Seahawks to a 24-14 lead with 2:15 remaining in the third quarter.

After the teams traded three-and-outs to begin the fourth quarter, Wagner took over on its own 33-yard line. On first down, the Seahawks hit paydirt when Doscher found the diminutive, yet speedy junior wide receiver Wandy Saintilien (Miami, FL/ ASA Institute) in the right flat. Saintilien then received a terrific block from fellow wideout Crawford and the 5-7, 150-pounder did the rest, sprinting along the right sideline for a 67-yard touchdown.

Trailing 31-14, the “never-say-die” Red Flash countered with a home run of its own as Kelly found wide receiver A.J. Alexander, a transfer from Florida St., over the middle for a 69-yard pass and catch which brought Saint Francis (PA) right back to within 10 points at 31-21 with 11:11 left to go

After Saint Francis (PA) took over on downs, the Red Flash developed a methodical 13-play, 69-yard drive, which was capped by a two-yard TD run by Harbridge that made it a 31-28 game at the 3:37 mark.

Saintilien would then give the Seahawks an immediate spark, returning the ensuing kickoff 28 yards that allowed Wagner to set up shop at its own 41-yard line. Williams began the drive with an 11-yard burst, giving the Seahawks a first down at the Red Flash 48. After Doscher gained 13 yards on a pair of runs, Williams followed with a six-yard jaunt. On second-and-four from the Red Flash 28, Williams put an exclamation point on his day and, in the process, sealed the win with a nifty scamper into the end zone to fashion the final score at 38-28.

Saint Francis (PA) held many of the statistical advantages, out-gaining the Green & White 474-378. Most of that disparity was through the air as the Red Flash held a 273-173 in passing yards. Kelly was 20-of-38 passing for 273 yards and two touchdowns. For the Green & White, Doscher completed 8-of-18 passes for 173 yards and two scores.

Both teams ran the ball effectively throughout, with Wagner holding a scant 205-201 edge on the ground. For much of the contest this was a battle of running backs between Williams and Harbridge who seemingly waged a personal game of “can you top this.” In addition to his career-high 180 yards rushing, Williams' 26 carries were also a career high. Harbridge nearly matched Williams yard for yard, finishing with 154 hard-fought yards on 28 carries.

Sophomore cornerback Jarrett Dieudonne (Fort Lauderdale, Fl/ Dillard), a transfer from Purdue, gained the start at cornerback and paced the Seahawks with 10 tackles.

Wagner will face a stern test next when the Seahawks travel to Richmond to meet the Spiders on September 10 with kickoff set for 6:00 p.m. Richmond, which knocked off Duke of the ACC 23-21 in its opener, is ranked No. 16 nationally in the The Sports Network Poll and No. 18 in the AFCA Poll.

NOTES – With his 173 yards through the air vs. Saint Francis (PA), Doscher entered the Wagner all-time top 10 in career passing yards. having now passed for 3,570 yards. He jumped past Jeff Skinner (3,428 yards from 1996-98) and his next target at number nine is Aaron Smith (3,625 yards from 1999-2001). With his eight completions today, Doscher moved into seventh on the Seahawk all-time completion list with 259. Doscher's 67-yard fourth quarter touchdown pass to Santilien was the longest pass play by the Seahawks since September 18, 2010 vs. Cornell when Doscher hooked up with Justin Matthews (Hillsie, NJ/ Hillside) on an 88-yard touchdown. Greg Kovar (1985-88) is next on the list with 260. By halftime, Williams had already reached the century mark as he had104 yards rushing in first half – the fifth 100-yard game of his career, having produced four 100-yard games as a true freshman in 2009. Williams' previous career high was 131 yards at North Dakota St. on Sept. 19, 2009. Junior linebacker Mike Lombardo (Jupiter, FL/ Jupiter Christian), a transfer from Arkansas St. playing his first game as a Seahawk wound up with nine tackles while O'Conner added eight. Forrest two forced fumbles in first half. The Seahawks applied consistent pressure into the Red Flash backfield with linebacker Julian Stanford (Bloomfield, CT/ Bloomfield) leading the way with three tackles behind the line of scrimmage for minus 15 yards. Wagner holds a commanding 18-3 lead in the all-time series between the schools which began in 1992. With the win, Wagner is now 41-38-2 all-time in season openers. The victory snapped a three-game losing streak for the Seahawks in lid-lifters. Fourteen Seahawk newcomers saw the first action of their careers.