MANCHESTER, NH (Nov. 13) -- First, the good news.
The Saint Anselm football team, heavy underdogs against powerful Southern Connecticut State, did something this afternoon in their season finale no other team was able to do in the Eastern Football Conference. The Hawks offense erupted for its second highest output of the season and highest since it's season opening 46 points against UMass-Lowell. Saint Anselm scored 42 points against the Owls, the most points SCSU has given up this season.
Now, for the bad news.
Despite the Hawks offense gun slinging away at the Owls defense, it was the Owls offense that prevailed in the end, scoring 66 points in a wild 66-42 shootout in the season finale for both teams.
66-42. 108 total points. 933 combined yards of total offense.
The Hawks may have lost the battle, but the Hawks won at least one small war in this their first varsity football season since 1941. The Hawks showed that they could hold their own, even if for a while, with one of the perennial top teams in the Eastern Football - soon to be Northeast 10 - Conference. (The NE-10 absorbs the EFC next season as 10 off 11 EFC schools will be NE-10 members.)
The Hawks finished a very respectable 4-5 overall in this historic first season including a 4-4 record in EFC play - all after being picked to finish dead last in the preseason EFC coaches' poll.
Saint Anselm gutsily came at the Owls right away, but suddenly found themselves in the thick of a lightning warfare that didn't until three and a half hours had passed, 50 combined first downs were registered, and Saint Anselm's backup quarterback, Keith Comeau, showed he could throw the long ball with the best of the league.
Comeau, starting in place of injured Kyle Van De Giesen, had a career day, connecting on 24 of 32 passes for three touchdowns against one interception, but on a day that Saint Anselm put up impressive numbers, it was the Hawks defense that couldn't hold the bigger and deeper Owls. In particular, Saint Anselm joined the rest of the league in not being able to hold all-everything SCSU running back Rashaan Dumas.
The top running back in the league four years running, Saint Anselm's only taste of the probable NFL draftee was a memorable one. Dumas ran wild on the Jess Dow Field Turf - Saint Anselm's first game on the artificial surface - scampering for 224 net yards on 33 carries for four touchdowns and even added a 35 yard kickoff return to set up another. Dumas finished his career with the Owls with a New England Division II record of 72 touchdowns. He is the Owls' all-time rushing leader with 5,396 yards
The Hawks secondary also had it's hand full to overflowing with Owls quarterback Kevin Dickinson who upped Comeau's day with 25-35 passing with four touchdowns although the Hawks did snatch two interceptions including a Ryan Sullivan snare that he returned 78 yards for a touchdown late in the second quarter pull the Hawks temporarily back into the game.
The Hawks ground game struggled as Jon Turner hot for 62 yards on 12 carries. The Hawks went to the air 35 times connecting for 27 (Jeff Stone came on in relief in the fourth quarter going 2-2). Kevin L'Ecuyer led the Hawks with six catches for 88 yards and a touchdown while Jeremy Forest grabbed a game high eight passes - most short completions - for 34 yards.
Travis Pelletier added four catches for 48 yards and Jason Case added three including two touchdown catches.
Defense? The telling sign was this simple: Saint Anselm senior Mike Mitchell scored a game high nine tackles. Just three players registered more than six tackles on the day. Mark Qualter added eight for the Hawks.
The first half was an amazing display of back and forth slugging. Saint Anselm went at the Owls right away, starting on their own 41 and needing just four plays to hop ahead 7-0 thanks to a Comeau to Case strike that covered 37 yards just 2:49 into the game.
Not to be outdone, SCSU needed exactly three plays to even the score when Dumas took a first down at his won 30 rumbling 52 yards to the Hawks 18 and Dickinson found Jim White (five catches, 74 yards) on the next play for an 18 yard score.
Less than four minutes had been played and the game was 7-7. There was more to come.
On the Hawks next drive, Comeau was picked off Earl Flythe at the Hawks 36 and Flythe rumbled for a touchdown and a 14-7 game.
But Saint Anselm wasn't fazed, taking the next drive six plays covering 67 yards as Comeau methodically picked away the Owls secondary ending with a 32 yard pass play to L'Ecuyer for a 14-14 game.
Southern looked to gain and edge, adding a field goal early in the second and went ahead 24-14 taking advantage of a Hawks fumble at their own 18 that turned into a five play drive ending with Dumas scoring from two yards out.
But again, the Hawks answered right back, this time starting at their own 41 and needing three plays for Jon Turner to break free for a 43 yard scamper and a 24-21 game with 4:57 left in the half.
Naturally, going with the flow, SCSU answered - you guessed it - right away. After Dumas returned the kickoff 35 yards to the Hawks 46, he then took it another 35 yards on second and nine to the Hawks 11 followed by Dickinson strike to Bert DeFoe (four catches - 55 yards) and a 31-28 game.
The final two minutes were as frantic as the entire half. After the Hawks went four and out with 1:29 to go in the half and gave the ball up at their own 38, SCSU took over and on their third play, Sullivan stepped in front of a Dickinson pass and rambled 78 yards for a score and a 31-28 game.
The Hawks had seemingly stolen big momentum in the waning moments, but the Owls had one more trick as Dickinson hit Duncan for a 40 yard pass setting up an eight yard throw to DeFoe with just 27 seconds left for a 38-28 half-time lead.
The roof fell in the third quarter, as SCSU scored three times to put the game out of reach. Dumas notched two of the scores (16 yards & 3 yards) and the lead with 59-28 after three.
Still the Hawks didn't lie down and regained a measure of respect, scoring twice in the fourth as Comeau hit Case for a six yard strike with 11:18 left and later hit Pelletier for 10 yards with 4:37 left.
Saint Anselm certainly knows it has reasons to build on the positives. The Hawks, made up of almost exclusively freshmen and sophomores, lose just seven seniors to graduation. The Hawks schedule in 2000 flip-flops as well with home games against CW Post, Pace, Merrimack and SCSU - without Rashaan Dumas.
