The Game: Saint Anselm welcomes the Warriors of Merrimack College to Grappone Stadium on Saturday for a 1:00 PM Northeast-10 Conference game.

Both teams enter the game with identical 4-1 overall records, 3-1 in the Northeast-10. They are among five teams in the league that feature 4-1 records at the halfway point of the season.

Merrimack enters Saturday's game following a 41-20 home win over American International College last Saturday. The Hawks also prevailed at home with a 19-10 victory over Stonehill on Homecoming Weekend.

Series History: Saint Anselm holds a slim 3-2 advantage in the all-time series and the home team has won the last four contests. The first two years of this series featured close contests with the Hawks pulling out a 7-5 win on the road in 1999 and then coming away with a 19-14 win the following season.

Since the 2001 season however, the series has turned into big wins including a pair of 21-point triumphs for the victors. Last season was one of those instances as the Warriors wracked up a series-high 38 points in a 38-17 win in N. Andover, Mass.

In that game, Saint Anselm outgained the Warriors, 319- 293 but allowed two defensive and one special teams touchdowns in the game.

Inside The Numbers: Saturday's game will pit strength against strength with a dynamic Merrimack offense going up against a high pressure Saint Anselm defense.

Merrimack ranks third in the NE-10 with over 375 yards of total offense per game and 13 scoring drives of over 50 yards. The Warriors have been balanced with 206 rushing attempts and 195 pass attempts. They have scored eight touchdowns on the ground and 10 through the air, although they have been hurt by throwing 13 interceptions.

A stingy Saint Anselm defense is allowing just 243 yards per game. Within that number is a 1.6 yard per carry average and just a 3.3 yard per play average by opposing offenses. The Hawks also lead the NE-10 in defensive sacks (25) and tackles for a loss (64).

Saint Anselm: Saint Anselm scored 10 points in the last 3:27 of the game to edge Stonehill 19-10 last Saturday. A 38-yard field goal and a two-yard scoring were set up by an interception, two sacks and a forced fumble in the comeback win.

The Hawks are led by an exceptionally fast and versatile defense. Their new 4-4 look up front has resulted in some dominating play in the trenches and a talented secondary has avoided the big play consistently. The Hawks have given up only seven plays of 20-yards or longer in the first five games.

A deep Hawks' defense has seen 21 different players record at least one tackle for a loss, 12 different players record at least one sack, and 13 different players involved in either a turnover or blocked kick.

Last week the Hawks allowed just 44 rushing yards on 47 Stonehill attempts and finished with 17 tackles for a loss and 7.0 sacks in a masterful performance.

Nothing Could Be Finer: Senior DE David Heiner had a big game last Saturday with 15 tackles (11 solo), a single-game record 6.5 tackles for a loss of 29 yards, 2.5 sacks for a loss of 24 yards, one pass breakup, and a crucial forced fumble late in the game. So far, Heiner leads the Northeast-10 in tackles for a loss (14.5 for 74 yards) and is second with 7.0 sacks. Those numbers lead all defensive linemen and he also ranks fifth in the league with 42 tackles (24 solo).

Heiner was named the Northeast-10 Conference Defensive Player of the Week for his efforts. He was also recognized by d2football.com, who named him the National Division II Defensive Player of the Week.

Safety Net: Junior S Brian Sundell continues to lead the NE-10 in tackles with 55 (22 solo). He also has two interceptions and has forced two fumbles.

DiMo Is Neato: Senior RB Derek DiMartino also continues to lead the Northeast-10 Conference in rushing with 519 yards on 119 attempts for nearly 104 yards per game. His five touchdowns rank second in the league. His two TDs last weekend gave him seven career scores against Stonehill in three games.

Its Up And Good: Sophomore WR/K Michael Garcarz got back on track with his leg last weekend with a pair of field goals in as many attempts, including the eventual game winner, an NE-10 best 38-yarder with 3:27 remaining to put the Hawks ahead. He also had two catches for 23 yards in the game. He leads the NE-10 with five field goals this season, and is third with 21 receptions for 325 yards.

Punting Perfection: Sophomore P Artie Kurshumi played a key role in last weekend's win over Stonehill. He averaged 43.7 yards on seven punts with a long of 60. More impressively, he pinned Stonehill inside their 10-yard line three times with two of those being downed on the one yard line. His last punt came with 6:05 to play and his team trailing 10-9, and was pooched 37 yards to the Chieftain one, setting up his defense for their late heroics.

Kurshumi was recognized by the Northeast-10 Conference for his efforts by earning a place on its Weekly Honor Roll. He also earned a spot on the d2football.com National Special Teams Honor Roll, marking the first time in his career that he has earned a weekly honor.

Sticky Hands: Senior LB Anthony Barese had an interception in his third straight game last weekend to tie James Ward, '04 for most picks by a linebacker in a season.

Merrimack: Merrimack is coming off a 41-20 win over AIC last weekend and the Warriors continued the showcase talented freshman WR Elfran Quiles, who caught 10 passes for 133 yards. He leads the NE-10 with 38 catches for 651 yards and seven TDs. The Warriors feature two quarterbacks who have each tossed five TDs but they have had trouble finding a consistent running back. The team is averaging just 2.7 yards per rush and no player has rushed for more than 71 yards in a game this season. B.J. Birtz is the team's top defensive player with 37 tackles and 3.5 sacks. Todd Lowe has recorded a team-high 28 solo tackles and Matt Gannon has three interceptions.