COMPLETE GAME NOTES
MANCHESTER, N.H. – The Saint Anselm College football team will be gunning for its first win of the season when it plays host to winless Pace University on Homecoming at Grappone Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 13 at 1 p.m. Links to live stats and live video are available on the football schedule page.
The game will be streamed live at SaintAnselmHawks.tv, with Ben Altsher handling play-by-play duties and Nick Anastos providing the color analysis.
Tickets are $7 for adults, $3 for seniors, teens and non-Saint Anselm students with a valid ID, while admission is free for children 12-and-under, as well as Saint Anselm students, faculty and staff that have a valid ID. Saint Anselm faculty and staff with a valid ID can also admit ONE guest free of charge.
This will be the 15th meeting between the two teams, with the Hawks leading the all-time series, 8-6. Saint Anselm has captured four straight victories against Pace and holds a 4-3 edge both on the Hilltop and on the road. In the most recent meeting Oct. 22 of last season, junior QB Mike Pierce racked up 395 yards of total offense and senior WR Marc Wilson totaled 229 all-purpose yards as the Hawks earned a 47-21 victory against Pace at Pace Field.
The Hawks recorded their first win of 2011 to move to 1-6 on the season, including 1-4 in Northeast-10 play, while the Setters fell to 1-6, 0-5.
Saint Anselm set school records for total offense (576), all-purpose yards (729) and average yards per play (8.0), as well as season highs for points (47) and rushing yards (305). Pierce was 22 of 36 for 271 yards and two touchdowns, while rushing for 124 yards and a score on nine carries. Wilson caught 10 passes for 118 yards and a touchdown and ran for 81 yards and a score on four carries.
After a scoreless opening quarter that featured the fourth interception of the season by redshirt-sophomore DB Ethan Sylvain, the Hawks broke the deadlock 50 seconds into the second frame when sophomore RB Greg Bell capped a nine-play, 53-yard drive with a one-yard touchdown run. The extra point was no good and Saint Anselm led, 6-0.
The Hawks added to their lead with 9:42 to play in the opening half after a drive that went 80 yards in nine plays before being finished off with an 11-yard touchdown run by Bell. The extra point by junior K Shea Cerio made it 13-0. Sophomore WR Tom Donovan made three catches on the drive for 34 yards, while fellow sophomore WR Eric Feehan reeled in a 19-yard reception.
The Setters answered by grinding out a 13-play, 76-yard drive that ended on a two-yard touchdown stroll by Eric Santos with 2:37 on the clock. Ali Mourtada's extra point pulled Pace to within 13-7.
Saint Anselm worked quickly out of the no-huddle as it went 68 yards on six plays in just 1:06 to go up, 20-7, with 1:25 to play before the break. Feehan made three catches for 22 yards on the drive, while Pierce hit Wilson for a 23-yard TD strike to finish it off.
The Hawks widened their lead to start the third quarter as they went 67 yards in five plays. After a pair of three-yard runs by Bell, Feehan followed with a 30-yard catch-and-run that pushed the Hawks into Pace territory. After a six-yard reception by Wilson, Pierce hit junior WR Craig Dennis over the middle for a 25-yard touchdown. After a bad snap on the extra point, the desperation conversion try was intercepted and the Hawks led, 26-7, just 1:37 into the second half.
On the ensuing Pace drive, sophomore LB Cam Foster hit Pace QB Jordan Raynor, forcing and then recovering the fumble at the Setters' 33-yard line. The Hawks' drive ended, however, with a Pierce interception on fourth-and-six.
After forcing a quick three-and-out, Pierce atoned by running 80 yards down the left sideline for a touchdown on the first play of the drive. Cerio's extra point put the Hawks up, 33-7, with 9:48 to go in the third. It was the longest run from scrimmage in program history.
Pace's eight play, 49-yard drive was abruptly halted after 3:49 when junior DB Tyler Crawford intercepted Rayner and raced 69 yards down the left sideline for a touchdown – the third longest interception return in program history – that made it 40-7 after Cerio's extra point with 12:36 remaining in the fourth.
The Setters answered with a 10-play, 67-yard drive that culminated with a one-yard sneak by Raymer. The Mourtada point-after brought Pace to within 40-14 with 7:17 on the clock.
Saint Anselm did not let up, however, going 82 yards in just four plays, with a 71-yard touchdown run down the left sideline by Wilson capping the drive. The extra point by Cerio tied the school record for extra points in a game and put Saint Anselm in control at 47-14 with 5:36 to play. Cerio also had a 58-yard punt in the game that was the third-longest in school history.
The back-and-forth continued as Pace marched 67 yards in 10 plays, with Patrick Lupfer reeling in a 19-yard touchdown catch. Mourtada's extra point made it 47-21 with 1:52 left.
Feehan made seven catches for 86 yards, while Bell tallied 37 yards on six carries.
Raymer was 14-for-25 for 162 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. Santos picked up 74 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries.
Junior LB Brendan Timmons and senior LB Shane O'Donnell led the way with 11 and 10 tackles, respectively.
LAST TIME OUT
Freshman Andrew Murphy threw for nearly 300 yards and two touchdowns, but the Hawks' rally fell short as Bentley came away with a 38-28 victory Oct. 6 under the lights at Grappone Stadium.
The Hawks, who put up the most points of any Bentley opponent thus far this season and outscored the visitors, 28-14, over the final 21:43 of the contest, fell to 0-6 on the season, including 0-5 in Northeast-10 play. The Falcons remained perfect at 5-0, 4-0 NE-10.
In his second career start, Murphy completed 32 of 48 passes for 293 yards and a pair of scores, but was also picked off twice. Junior WR Justin Bernard snagged nine balls for 74 yards and a touchdown, while classmate Keith Charles made five catches for 82 yards and a score as part of his 173 all-purpose yards. The back also carried six times for 30 yards and ran back three kicks for 61 yards.
Bentley's defense, which entered the game with the second best scoring defense in the country (9.3 ppg), came as advertised, shutting out the Hawks for the first two-and-a-half quarters and staking the team to a 24-0 lead. After that, however, the Saint Anselm offense came alive as it posted 28 second-half points against a defense that had only allowed 37 total points and 1.5 ppg after halftime in four previous contests.
After Saint Anselm's second offensive drive of the second half resulted in seven points for Bentley when Steve Hopkins intercepted a Murphy pass and took it back 40 yards down the left sideline for a touchdown, the Hawks responded with a 10-play, 55-yard drive that was capped off with a three-yard touchdown run by junior RB Greg Bell. Charles ran three times for 21 yards on the drive, while Murphy was 3-for-4 for 21 yards and added a 10-yard run of his own. Senior K Shea Cerio converted the extra point to make it 24-7 with 6:43 remaining in the third quarter.
Bentley responded just one play and 17 seconds later when Bobby Tarr ran 75 yards up the right sideline and dove into the end zone to make it 31-7 following Will Lockwood's point-after.
The Hawks hit right back as they moved the ball 52 yards in seven plays to find the end zone. Murphy was a perfect 3-for-3 on the drive, including a 10-yard touchdown pass to Bernard in the back right corner of the end zone that made it 31-13 with 4:05 to go in the third. Murphy, who also had a 14-yard rush during the drive, found Bernard again on the following play for a two-point conversion that sliced the deficit to 16.
The Falcons later put together what looked to be a back-breaking, eight-play, 82-yard drive that took 4:28 off the clock, with QB Luke Zahradka's 15-yard run and Lockwood's PAT making it 38-15 with 9:10 remaining in the fourth quarter.
Saint Anselm, however, answered just one play and 12 seconds later when Charles received Murphy's dump pass and raced up the middle for 73 yards and a touchdown that made it 38-22 after Cerio's kick with 8:48 left.
Just three minutes later, Bentley started a drive at the 50-yard line and had moved into Saint Anselm territory when senior LB Chris Bent reached up and plucked Zahradka's pass over the middle of the field out of the air and returned it 13 yards to the Hawks' 39-yard line. It was the captain and team-leading tackler's first career interception.
The Hawks capitalized as Murphy missed on his first two throws of the drive, but then completed four straight for 50 yards. Bell then rushed four times for 11 yards to move the hosts down to the Bentley 3-yard line before sophomore WR Ahkeen Williams capped the 11-play, 64-yard drive by taking the ball straight up the middle out of the wildcat formation and into the end zone. Murphy's two-point conversion try failed, however, and the Hawks trailed by 10 with 1:03 on the clock.
Bentley recovered the ensuing onside kick and took a pair of knees to seal the win.
Williams made seven catches for 39 yards.
Neither team would score in the first quarter, with Bentley missing a 39-field goal when Lockwood drove it off the right upright with 5:27 to go. Then, after forcing the Hawks to punt, the Falcons had moved into Saint Anselm territory when freshman DB Jack Hopkins jumped up and ripped away Dan Guadagnoli's pass that was intended for Bill Kiley for his first career interception with 55 seconds left in the opening frame.
Just 1:02 later, however, Bentley's Hopkins would pick Murphy for the first time to set up the first score of the contest. Tarr capped a seven-play, 46-yard drive with a 1-yard run that made it 7-0 after Lockwood's extra point with 11:21 on the clock in the second quarter.
Following nine plays and a punt by Cerio, the Falcons marched 74 yards in four plays and 1:40 before Sean Cross caught a 32-yard touchdown pass from Guadagnoli that made it 14-0 after Lockwood's kick with 6:27 left in the second.
After the Bentley defense forced a fumble in the red zone that it recovered, the offense crafted a 14-play, 78-yard drive that ended with a Lockwood 24-yard field goal that made it 17-0 as time expired on the half.
Hopkins then came up with his pick-six on the third play of Saint Anselm's second drive of the second half that staked Bentley to a 24-0 lead with 10:00 left in the third quarter.
Bent and Hopkins, in addition to recording their first career interceptions, each tallied a game-high 13 tackles. Junior DB Trevor Jessie made nine stops and broke up a pair of passes.
Bentley gained 501 yards of total offense, including 289 on the ground, while the Hawks amassed 378 yards of total offense, with 293 of them coming through the air.
MURPHY NABS NORTHEAST-10 ROOKIE OF THE WEEK...AGAIN
Freshman QB Andrew Murphy produced a solid follow-up to his collegiate starting debut Oct. 6 against Bentley. In his first home start under the lights, Murphy connected on 32 of 48 passes for 293 yards and a pair of touchdowns. The Bentley defense had entered the game only allowing 9.3 ppg, including 1.5 ppg after halftime. Murphy helped the Hawks put 28 points on the board - all after the intermission.
OFFENSE HEATING UP
After averaging just 235.5 yards per contest through the first four games of the season, the Hawks have averaged 439.0 yards over the last two contests, which coincides with freshman QB Andrew Murphy's first two career starts.
COPY CATS
Senior LB Chris Bent and Freshman DB Jack Hopkins each tallied a game-high 13 tackles against Bentley on Oct. 6, in addition to recording their first career interceptions.
RANDOM MUSINGS...
Sophomore WR Justin Bernard is 14th in the country and second in the Northeast-10 in receptions per game (7.3), as well as 33rd in the nation and third in the conference in receiving yards per game (90.0) ... senior P Shea Cerio ranks second in the conference in punting average (38.2). His career-high 61-yard punt against Kutztown on Sept. 3, which is a yard shy of the school record, is the second longest this season in the conference, while his 10 punts that have been downed inside the 20-yard line are a conference best.
BENT, BUT DON'T BREAK
Senior LB Chris Bent has been a bright spot, defensively, so far this season. Bent has registered a team-leading 68 tackles, including 38 solo stops, and ranks 13th in the nation, as well as second in the conference, in tackles per game (11.3).
YOU CAN'T BE CERIO!
With 47 punts through the first five games of the season, senior Shea Cerio is within reach of the program's single-season record for punts, which is held by Mike Garcarz, who booted away 83 balls during the 2006 season. Cerio, who matched Saint Anselm's single-game record of 13 punts in the season opener at Kutzown on Sept. 3, also needs just 16 more punts to become the school's career leader in that category. Jeff Dandurand tallied 181 punts from 1999-02.
OFFENSE BACK ON TRACK?
After putting up 351.1 yards per game over the previous three seasons, the Hawks' offense was averaging just 235.5 yards per contest this season before it erupted for 500 yards and four touchdowns at Southern Connecticut State on Sept. 29.
D-LIGHTFUL
The defense also got into the act at Southern Connecticut on Sept. 29, recording a season-high four sacks, as well as a pair of interceptions. The Hawks' D held the Owls without a third-down conversion in the first half (0-7) as it helped the squad take a 17-16 lead into the break.
MOVE OVER, MARC
Sophomore WR Justin Bernard caught 13 passes for 226 yards and a career-high two touchdowns at Southern Connecticut on Sept. 29. The 226 yards eclipses the school record of 187 set by Marc Wilson against Plymouth State on Sept. 5, 2009. Bernard earned Beyond Sports Network (BSN) Offensive Player of the Week honors as one of six Division II players on the squad, including one of two wide receivers.
HE'S A FRESHMAN?!
In his first collegiate start at Southern Connecticut on Sept. 29, freshman QB Andrew Murphy completed 29 of 43 passes for 405 yards and four touchdowns, while throwing just one interception. The 405 yards are the most in program history for a freshman, surpassing Michael Pierce's 397 against New Haven on Oct. 3, 2009, and just three yards short of matching Pierce's overall school record of 408 that he set against Pace on Sept. 25, 2010. The four touchdowns match Pierce's four against Plymouth State on Sept. 5, 2009 for most by a Saint Anselm freshman and are also the most in school history for a true freshman. Murphy was named the Northeast-10 Rookie of the Week for his efforts.
CAREER HIGHS FOR 'KEEN
Sophomore WR Ahkeen Williams put together his best game in a Saint Anselm uniform at Southern Connecticut on Sept. 29 as he set personal career bests in receptions (9), receiving yards (96), receiving touchdowns (2), rushing attempts (8) and rushing yards (82).
DOING IT ALL
Sophomore WR Justin Bernard had a game to remember in the Hawks' home opener against Stonehill on Sept. 14. Bernard caught seven passes for 113 yards (the second highest total of his career) and a touchdown. In addition, Bernard tossed a 52-yard touchdown pass to fellow sophomore WR Brandon Gomes that gave Saint Anselm a 13-7 lead midway through the second quarter. Bernard is the first non-QB ever to throw a touchdown pass of that length for the Hawks and the first to complete a TD since K/WR Michael Garcarz connected on a 19-yard score against Assumption on Sept. 11, 2004.
PICKING AND CHOOSING
The Hawks' two interception leaders from a year ago, sophomore LB Ethan Sylvain (5) and junior DB Trevor Jessie (4), each picked off a pass against Stonehill. It marked the first two INTs of the year for Saint Anselm. Sylvain ran his interception back 45 yards for a touchdown early in the third quarter that gave the Hawks a 20-14 advantage.
THREE FOR ME
The Hawks have found the end zone three times in their first two games, with junior running back Keith Charles scoring all three touchdowns – a receiving score at Kutztown and a pair of rushing TDs at Assumption.
CUIPA BREAKS RECORD
Sophomore QB Stephen Cuipa broke a nearly 12-year-old record when he completed 80 percent (16-20) of his passes at Assumption on Sept. 7. The previous record was held by Keith Comeau, who connected on 76.9 percent (20-26) of his throws at Stonehill on Nov. 4, 2000.
ALL-PURPOSE BACK
Junior running back Keith Charles amassed 194 all-purpose yards at Assumption on Sept. 7. Charles rushed 13 times for 76 yards and two touchdowns, made four catches for 37 yards and returned four kickoffs for 81 yards.
PERFECT 10
Junior wide WR Eric Feehan, who broke out a year ago as the team's second leading receiver, continued his solid play with a career-best 10 catches for 91 yards at Assumption on Sept. 7.
FIRST IN
For the second straight year, junior running back Keith Charles scored Saint Anselm's first touchdown of the season. Charles caught a 25-yard touchdown pass at Kutztown on Aug. 30, one year after scampering in from two yards out at home against Kutztown on Sept. 3, 2011.
PREDICTING THE FUTURE
The Hawks were picked to finish eighth in the Northeast-10 Preseason Coaches' Poll that was released Aug. 20. New Haven was chosen as the favorite to win the conference after collecting seven-first place votes and point total of 63 to beat out Southern Connecticut, which earned one first-place vote and 53 total points. AIC, which received the other first-place vote, came in third with 50 points. With 41 points apiece, Bentley and Merrimack tied for the fourth-place slot, as Assumption (29) edged out Stonehill (24) for sixth place. Saint Anselm (15) and Pace (8) rounded out the poll.
WGAM PARTNERSHIP
The Saint Anselm College Department of Athletics has partnered with WGAM 'The Game' Radio for the upcoming 2012-13 season. As part of the agreement, WGAM 'The Game' will feature the Saint Anselm Coaches' Show once per week. The Saint Anselm Coaches' Show will air every Tuesday at 12:30 p.m. as part of "The Nick Anastos Show," which runs from noon-2 p.m. Anastos, a Bedford, N.H., native, has served as the color analyst for the Hawks' Pack Network broadcasts of football, men's and women's basketball and men's and women's ice hockey since 2010. The show will highlight what is happening in the world of Saint Anselm athletics, as Anastos will chat with both a head coach and student-athlete during the 30-minute segment.
LIVE VIDEO STREAMING
Saint Anselm Athletics and Pack Network will once again team up for the 2012-13 season to offer an industry-leading streaming video solution. The service will feature live event productions that include multiple cameras, an on-screen scoreboard and graphics so that fans can still be part of the action even when they can't make it to the game. And starting this season, fans can stream games live on their ipad or iphone. This season, all football, men's and women's basketball, and men's and women's hockey games will be streamed live at SaintAnselmHawks.tv. The Hawks All-Access Pass, available for $69.95, gives fans the opportunity to watch not only all the live coverage of various Saint Anselm home athletic events, but also premium content not available to view without the All-Access Pass. The premium content includes an in-depth archive section of all video available. Single-event subscriptions for all live events will be available throughout the season for $6.95.
