Football Stays Home For Conference Showdown With Southern Connecticut Saturday
Merrimack Football
Game #4 vs. Southern Connecticut, Saturday, September 22, 2012, 1 p.m., Martone-Mejail Field
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MERRIMACK AIMS FOR CONFERENCE VICTORY OVER SOUTHERN CONNECTICUT
Game 4 - Merrimack College (1-2, 0-2 NE-10) vs. Southern Connecticut (0-3, 0-1 NE-10)
UPDATE:
Merrimack returns home looking for its first conference victory of the young season over Southern Connecticut. The Warriors are coming off of a 49-34 defeat at the hands of American International while the Owls were defeated in their last game by the score of 30-14 by Saint Augustine's at home.
SERIES:
Merrimack has a lifetime 3-8 record against Southern Connecticut State defeating the Owls by the score of 28-27 on the road. Heading into Saturday the Warriors have hold the 3-2 series advantage over the Owls in their last five matchups.
OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION NOT ENOUGH AGAINST AIC:
The Merrimack football team was defeated on Saturday afternoon by the American International Yellow Jackets by the score of 49-34 in an offensive display by both teams. The Warriors and Yellow Jackets combined for a total of 1,184 total yards of offense, breaking a Northeast-10 Conference record in the process. Merrimack threw the ball 81 times for 536 yards in the defeat while the Yellow Jackets ran for 370 yards and five rushing touchdowns. Merrimack senior quarterback Joe Clancy broke three NE-10 records in the loss for the Warriors. Isaiah Voegeli continued his solid play as he finished the game with nine catches for 169 yards and one touchdown and also recorded a 38 yard punt return in the second half. Steve Serwon had a breakout game as he caught a career-high 12 passes for 104 yards and one touchdown.
CLANCY BREAKS THREE NE-10 RECORDS IN LOSS TO AIC:
In only his third career start, Merrimack senior quarterback Joe Clancy had a historic day that will go down in the Northeast-10 record books. Clancy finished the day going 50-for-81 for 536 yards and four total touchdowns in the Warriors 49-34 defeat against American International. The attempts, completions and yards were all NE-10 records for Clancy and season-highs across all of division II football. He finsihed the first half going 23-for-40 for 284 yards and two touchdowns. In the second half Clancy had one passing score and one rushing score while completing passes to nine different receivers. Clancy now leads the Conference in nearly all passing statistics including yards, completions and attempts.
VOEGELI LEADS THE COUNTRY IN TOTAL CATCHES:
Senior wide receiver Isaiah Voegeli continued to excel in the Merrimack offense on Saturday against AIC as he recorded nine more receptions for 169 yards and one touchdown. Voegeli's touchdown came from 51 yards as he took a quick pass from Clancy and took it in for the score. Voegeli now has 34 receptions on the season which ranks him first in the country. His 382 receiving yards ranks him second in the NE-10.
CLANCY LEADS COUNTRY IN COMPLETIONS AND ATTEMPTS:
Senior captain Joe Clancy currently ranks first in the country in both passing attemots and completions after his record breaking weekend. Clancy's 118 completions have went for 1,187 yards and six touchdowns which rank him third overall in the country for total passing yards.
SERWON FINISHES CAREER DAY WITH 12 GRABS:
Every week it seems a different receiver steps up and makes a difference for the Merrimack offense and this week it was senior tight end Steve Serwon. Serwon finished the game against AIC with a career-high 12 receptions for 104 yards and one touchdown. His five yard scoring reception drew the Warriors within seven points of the Yellow Jackets in the third quarter.
SPREADING THE WEALTH:
The Merrimack offense is known to spread the ball around to all of its receivers and on Saturday this was no different as the starting quarterback Joe Clancy found nine different targets during the Warriors 49-34 defeat at the hands of the AIC Yellow Jackets. Clancy completed 12 balls to his tight end Steve Serwon and nine balls to his top receiving threat Isaiah Voegeli. Running back Jimon Hill also grabbed seven balls out of the backfield for 53 yards while fellow running back Quinn McDonough snagged six balls for 50 yards. Senior Shane Ferguson saw his first action of the season and grabbed five passes for 44 yards and one touchdown.
HOLT CONTINUES HIS STELLAR PLAY:
Senior Artis Holt continued his strong play on Saturday, recording 10 tackles and a fumble recovery in the loss. The fumble recovery led to a Warriors touchdown as Holt also racked up two pass breakups and one tackle for a loss. Holt is now tied for the team lead with 24 tackles and four pass breakups.
VOEGELI CHASING MERRIMACK SCHOOL RECORDS:
Senior wide receiver Isaiah Voegeli has etched his name in the Merrimack College record books and will look to establish himself as the greatest receiver in program history before he leaves campus. Voegeli broke the school record for receiving yards in a career on Saturday as he now has 2,436 receiving yards. Voegeli also ranks in the top five in program history in receptions with 137 and touchdowns with 21. Voegeli ranks second in receptions, only five catches shy of the record and 15 touchdowns shy of the record.
FIVE WARRIORS NAMED PRESEASON ALL-AMERICANS:
Entering the 2012 campaign Merrimack received five preseason All-American accolades. Offensively the Warriors had three players represented as Isaiah Voegeli, Jimon Hill and Zach Gilbert were all recognized for their play as juniors. On the defensive side of the ball the Warriors had two players including Michael Wiggins and Artis Holt. Voegeli led the Northeast-10 in receiving yards and touchdowns last season while Hill broke 1,000 total yards. Wiggins led the Warriors defense with 7.5 sacks to go along with 13.5 tackles for a loss, both team highs. Holt was dynamic as a return man along with defensively as he recorded one kickoff return for a touchdown with an average return of 29.6 yards and totaled 33 tackles and two interceptions.
PERRY'S HIGH OCTANE OFFENSE RETURNS IN 2012:
After leading the NE-10 in total offense for the past four seasons, John Perry has his offense once again at the top of the league in 2012. The Warriors rank first in total offense averaging 495.3 yards per game and first in passing averaging 395.7 yards. The 395.7 passing yards per contest also ranks the Warriors in sixth place in the country. Merrimack is also averaging 27.3 points per contest after scoring 34 last week against AIC.
MAJOR HONORS IN 2011:
The Warriors received two major conference awards following the 2011 season as senior Shawn Loiseau was named the NE-10 Conference Defensive Player of the Year for the second time. Loiseau broke the 100 tackle plateau for the third straight season and led the conference in tackles. Defensive end Tony Johnson was also named Defensive Lineman of the Year for the second time for his efforts. In all the Warriors received seven All-Conference team members. The All-Conference members were Loiseau, Johnson, Isaiah Voegeli, Jimon Hill, Zach Gilbert, Artis Holt and Michael Wiggins. Voegeli, Johnson and Loiseau were all also represented on the All-Regional team last season.
WARRIORS SCORING STREAK REACHES 117 GAMES:
Merrimack has scored points in 117 consecutive games heading into this weeks matchup with Southern Connecticut, which ranks them in the top 20 for current point streaks. Valdosta State leads the nation by scoring in 243 consecutive games while conference foe Bentley is the only other Northeast-10 school ranked inside the top 20, scoring in 129 straight. The Warriors have scored 60 or more points two times during this streak and never scored less than three points in a game.
2012 NE-10 PRESEASON POLL
1. New Haven (7) – 63
2. So. Connecticut (1) – 53
3. American Int'l (1) – 50
4. Merrimack - 41
T4. Bentley – 41
6. Assumption – 29
7. Stonehill– 24
8. Saint Anselm – 15
9. Pace – 8
( ) – Denotes first-place votes
THE OPPONENTS:
Team This Week Record/Last Week
New Haven vs. Saint Anselm 3-0/ Win 44-10 at Pace
Rowan at West Conn. St. 2-1/ Win 51-0 vs. Will. Peterson
AIC vs. pace 1-1/ Win 49-34 at Merrimack
So. Conn. St. at Merrimack 0-3/ Lost 30-14 vs. St. Augustine's
Pace at AIC 0-3/ Lost 44-10 vs. New Haven
Stonehill vs. Assumption 2-1/ Win 35-20 at Saint Anselm
Saint Anselm at New Haven 0-3/ Lost 35-20 vs. Stonehill
Bentley BYE 3-0/ Win 21-14 at Assumption
Assumption at Stonehill 1-2/ Lost 21-14 vs. bentley
Overall: 12-14 overall
LAST MEETING:
November 12, 2011, Merrimack 28, Southern Connecticut 27
New Haven, CT – After back-to-back weeks of losing second half leads, the Merrimack football team put together a great second half, coming back from 13 down to win 28-27 at Southern Connecticut State on Saturday. Merrimack scored a touchdown in the third and fourth quarters to finish off the comeback. Senior quarterback James Suozzo (Everett, Mass.), in his final collegiate game, led all players with 319 total yards and three total touchdowns. The second half started with Southern Connecticut extending their lead to 13 after a 33 yard field goal by Chris Hazelton. Merrimack's defense began to step up after the 13 point deficit starred them straight in the face. The Warriors forced a three and out midway through the third quarter. Isaiah Voegeli (Hyannis, Mass.) took the ensuing punt back 46 yards, setting up a six yard rushing touchdown by Suozzo on the very next play. The point after attempt was converted cutting the Owl's lead to 27-21.The fourth quarter started off with a turnover on downs by the Owls as Michael Wiggins (Dolton, Ill.) sacked Kevin Lynch for a two yard loss, handing the ball over to Suozzo and the Warriors offense. Suozzo did not waste much time as he connected with Shane Ferguson (Point Pleasant Beach, NJ) on a 23 yard strike to enter Owls territory. Suozzo then connected with Voegeli down to the Southern Connecticut 33 yard line. Hill would take the ball down to the three yard line before Suozzo connected on a three yard touchdown with Serwon for his second receiving touchdown of the day. The Serwon touchdown came on a fourth down and goal and it proved to be the game winning score. The Merrimack defense held strong and forced Southern Connecticut to give the ball back to the offense with 6:48 remaining in the game. The Merrimack offense wore the clock down to nine seconds before giving it back to the Owls on downs. The Owls final chance at a winning score was cut short as senior T.J. Peloquin (Southington, CT), playing in his final game, sacked Lynch for a five yard loss, sealing the victory for the Warriors.
LAST GAME RECAP:
AIC (Week 3 - 9/15/12) September 15, 2012, Merrimack 34, American International 49
NORTH ANDOVER, MA – Merrimack senior quarterback Joe Clancy (Newburyport, Mass.) rewrote the Northeast-10 Conference record books on Saturday afternoon as he set the record for yards, completions and attempts in a game. The Warriors however were defeated by the visiting AIC Yellow Jackets by the score of 49-34 in front of 1,404 fans at Martone-Mejail Field on Saturday afternoon. The two teams combined gained 1,184 total yards on the afternoon which breaks the NE-10 record for most combined yards in a game by two teams. The Warriors offense finished with 566 total yards including 536 passing yards from Clancy while the Yellow Jackets finished with 618 total yards including 370 rushing yards. The Warriors also set NE-10 records for total plays in a game with 106 plays, breaking the old record of 99 plays, and passing first downs with 24, breaking the old record of 23. Clancy finished his career day going 50-81 with 536 yards and four scores, breaking the NE-10 record for yards, completions and attempts in a single game. Steve Serwon (Amesbury, Mass.) also had himself a career day as he finished with a game-high 12 catches for 104 yards and one touchdown. Preseason All-American Isaiah Voegeli (Hyannis, Mass.) added to his nation leading catch total with nine more grabs on Saturday, which were good for 169 yards and one touchdown and also added a 38 yard punt return that set up a touchdown. Senior Shane Ferguson (Point Pleasant Beach, NJ) saw his first action of the season on Saturday and finished with five catches for 44 yards and one touchdown.
WARRIORS ON THE AIR:
Merrimack has teamed up with America One Networks to deliver live broadband broadcasts for the third straight season. Warrior games that will be streamed online include all home football, basketball and hockey broadcasts.
