Loretto, Pa. - The Robert Morris University football team scored 21 points in the fourth quarter to break open a close game and in the process stretched its winning streak to four Saturday afternoon with a 35-14 victory over in-state rival Saint Francis at DeGol Field.

RMU improves to 4-1 overall and a perfect 3-0 in the Northeast Conference and also notched the program's 100th victory in 17 seasons as a Division I program. The Red Flash fell to 1-3 overall and 1-1 in league play.

Robert Morris got off to a fast start, taking the opening kickoff and marching 64 yards on nine plays to take an early 7-0 lead when senior running back Josh Keil (Valencia, Pa. / Mars Area) scored from a yard out. The big play came on 3rd-and-6 from the RMU 40-yard line, when sophomore quarterback Jeff Sinclair (Natrona Heights, Pa. / Highlands) completed a 35-yard pass to junior wide receiver Anthony Coleman (Cheltenham, Md. / St. John's College High School).

The advantage for the Colonials jumped to 14-0 at the 4:58 mark of the first quarter when Sinclair hit senior wide receiver T.J. Green (Stamford, Conn. / Milford Academy) with a nine-yard touchdown pass. It marked the only play of the drive for Robert Morris, which came courtesy of a special teams miscue by Saint Francis.

Faced with a 4th-and-11 at their own 42-yard line, the Red Flash were set to punt, but the snap by Ryan Zarnich sailed over the head of punter Andrew Penska, and Penska fell on it at the Saint Francis nine-yard line, turning the ball over on downs.

Saint Francis cracked the scoreboard in the second quarter to cut its deficit in half, 14-7, when John Kelly connected with Omar Winston for an eight-yard touchdown pass with 4:41 left before halftime.

The Red Flash looked poised to tie the game heading into the break, driving to the RMU three-yard line with under a minute to play. However, on 3rd-and-goal Kelly was intercepted by senior linebacker Alex DiMichele (Pittsburgh, Pa. / Sto-Rox), who returned the pick 25 yards before being tackled. 

Defense took center stage in the third quarter before Robert Morris continued its trend of scoring points in bunches in the final 15 minutes of play. RMU opened the fourth quarter by driving to the 25-yard line of Saint Francis before stalling and was faced with a 4th-and-1 situation.

The Colonials called a timeout, and out of the break Sinclair faked a handoff to redshirt senior running back Raphael Johnson (Clinton, Md. / Charles H. Flowers) and found junior tight end Paul Evans (Elma, N.Y. / Iroquois Central) streaking down the middle of the field for a touchdown and a 21-7 lead for the Colonials.

The Red Flash went three-and-out on their next possession, and Robert Morris used just three plays to expand its advantage to 28-7 when Sinclair hit Coleman with a 14-yard touchdown pass. Senior halfback Myles Russ (Boca Raton, Fla. / West Boca), who finished with 139 yards rushing on 18 carries, scampered 39 yards down to the 14-yard line of the Red Flash to set up Sinclair's touchdown pass.

Johnson became the fifth different Colonial to score a touchdown on the day when he scored from one yard out with 4:44 to play to give RMU a commanding 35-7 edge, and Saint Francis capped the scoring with 1:34 remaining when Kelly connected with Jeff Wasilewski for a 50-yard touchdown pass. 

Sinclair finished 8-for-17 passing for 163 yards, three touchdowns and an interception for Robert Morris, while Kelly completed 21 of his 32 passing attempts for 223 yards and two scores for the Saint Francis while being picked off once.

Russ highlighted an RMU running game that racked up a season-high 193 yards on the ground, while Coleman paced the receiving corps with three catches for 92 yards and a touchdown.

DiMichele tied a career high with 19 tackles to take home game-high honors, recording seven solo takedowns, while senior linebacker Elias Navarro (Fort Lauderdale, Fla. / South Plantation) and redshirt senior safety Michael Richards (Brooklyn, N.Y. / Bishop Ford) each recorded eight stops.

Robert Morris is next in action Saturday, Oct. 9, when it opens a four-game homestand with a Noon kickoff against Monmouth at Joe Walton Stadium. The Colonials will also host Albany (Oct. 16), Duquesne (Oct. 30) and Central Connecticut State (Nov. 6) over the next five weeks.

Notes: Robert Morris is 3-0 in the Northeast Conference for the first time since 2006, and the victory marked the first time in school history the Colonials opened their league slate with three straight road wins ... In its 17 seasons as a Division I program, RMU owns an overall record of 100-68-1 (.595) ... Head Coach Joe Walton is one victory shy of 100 in his collegiate career, as he missed RMU's 20-17 win @ Monmouth (9/8/07) due to the passing of his wife, Ginger ... Former defensive coordinator Dan Radakovich (1994, 1996-2007) served as head coach in Walton's absence in the victory over the Hawks ... Russ is now just 367 rushing yards shy of becoming the all-time leading rusher at Robert Morris ... DiMichele also finished with 19 tackles against Bucknell (9/13/08), a total that stands as the Joe Walton Stadium record ... DiMichele moved into the top five all-time at RMU for career tackles with his 19 against the Red Flash, as he now ranks fourth with 278 takedowns ... Freshman Evan Taylor (Redding, Calif. / Shasta) returned three punts in the second half for the Colonials, accumulating 74 yards ... Taylor returned his first career punt 37 yards in the third quarter ... Robert Morris eclipsed the 30-point plateau for the fourth straight game, matching its longest streak since closing out the last four games of its 2001 season by averaging 43.5 points per contest ... The 21 points in the fourth quarter against Saint Francis now gives the Colonials 83 points so far this season in the last 15 minutes of games ... In the first three quarters combined, RMU has scored 61 points.