Smithfield, R.I. (October 16, 2004) — Chris Peaks' 17-yard touchdown run in double overtime lifted Bryant (4-3, 4-3 NE-10) to a 28-21 victory over Saint Anselm (4-3, 3-3 NE-10) in a Northeast-10 Conference thriller.

After a strong defensive first half, Saint Anselm had to rally twice from 11-point deficits in the second half to force overtime. Trailing 21-18, Saint Anselm marched 43 yards on 15 plays, setting up a 32-yard field goal by Michael Garcarz (New Britain, Conn.) to tie the game with just six seconds remaining. The drive almost faltered after a holding penalty negated a nine-yard run by Derek DiMartino (Amherst, N.H.), but Shane Dinagen (Harrisville, R.I.) completed a 12-yard pass to Garcarz on 4th-and-10 to keep the drive alive. The Hawks converted three fourth-down passes on the drive, with Garcarz catching two of them.

In overtime, both teams missed potential game-winning field goals. Garcarz missed a 26-yarder wide right, and Bryant's Pete DiMartino missed a 47-yarder long right. In the second overtime, Peaks' touchdown run put Bryant ahead, and Saint Anselm's final drive ended when a 4th-and-11 pass from Dinagen just missed Mike Wojtas (Dracut, Mass.).

Despite setting multiple records, Saint Anselm struggled with key penalties. Bryant scored 21 points in the second half to take two commanding leads. Bryant's first score came on an 11-yard touchdown pass from Charlie Granatel to Shane Cheltenham, followed by a 17-yard screen pass to Peaks to make it 14-3 after a blocked punt. Saint Anselm responded with a 19-yard screen pass from Dinagen to DiMartino, but Bryant struck back, making it 21-10 with a four-yard run from Granatel after a crucial Saint Anselm personal foul.

The Hawks rallied with a 52-yard drive, capped by a two-yard touchdown pass from Dinagen to Garcarz, followed by a two-point conversion to cut the deficit to 21-18.

Defensive highlights:
David Heiner (Farmington, Conn.) set a school record with 3.0 sacks, bringing his career total to 22.5. Saint Anselm recorded 10.0 sacks and 18.0 tackles for loss. Thomas Kelleher (Wakefield, Mass.) added nine tackles, including 3.5 for loss and 1.0 sack.

Offensive highlights:
Dinagen had a career day, completing 37 of 69 passes for 321 yards, setting single-game records. Garcarz also set a school record with 16 catches for 122 yards, adding a touchdown and two-point conversion. DiMartino carried 30 times for 107 yards and caught seven passes for 65 yards. Kevin Lukas (Rocky Hill, Conn.) caught eight passes for 82 yards.

Bryant's standout players:
Greg Daniel had a game-high 15 tackles (12 solo) and 3.0 sacks, while Chris Wohlheter had eight tackles and six pass breakups. Despite running 50 fewer plays than Saint Anselm, Bryant's defense recorded a school-record 13 pass breakups.

Saint Anselm will host Bentley College next weekend at 1:00 PM. Bentley entered Saturday ranked second in the region.