Football Tops Bentley, 28-25, in Saturday Road Thriller
Football Tops Bentley, 28-25, in Saturday Road Thriller
Links: Box Score
WALTHAM, Mass. – Leading by three with less than two minutes to play, the Merrimack College football team put the game in the hands of its defense and benefitted from doing so, as first-year sophomore Devonte Jones (Baltimore, Md.) picked off Bentley quarterback Dan Guadagnoli for his third interception of the season, propelling the Warriors to a wild 28-25 road win over the Falcons on a rainy Saturday in Waltham.
The Basics
Score: Merrimack 28, Bentley 25
Records: Merrimack (3-3, 3-2 NE-10) | Bentley (1-5, 0-5 NE-10)
Location: Bentley Field | Waltham, Mass.
What They Said
Head Coach Dan Curran: "Great team win today against a very competitive Bentley squad that took reigning NE-10 champion AIC to the wire last week. We faced a ton of adversity all day being on hte wrong end of a couple tough calls and losing three more offensive linemen and our starting quarterback to injuries. But the kids rallied around one another and found a way to get it done. They battled hard all day and I'm really proud of their effort."
How It Happened
Playing in non-ideal conditions while battling the wind and rain, both sides gritted through a first half that featured only 17 points and saw the Falcons carry a 10-7 lead into the locker room.
Merrimack needed just over four minutes to go back on top after senior Luke Bakanowsky (Ashburnham, Mass.) matriculated his team downfield in only five plays and put the visitors on top, 14-10, early in the third quarter. Bakanowsky took over at the Bentley 49 and used completions of 12, 15 and 19 to three different receivers before taking it in himself from two yards out to make it a 14-10 Merrimack lead.
Bentley responded with a clock-eating, 13-yard drive that ended with Guadagnoli finding Matt Guay for an 11-yard touchdown pass and catch, and on the Warriors' next drive, the Falcons took the ball right back thanks to one of their three interceptions of the day.
Unfortunately for the hosts, Merrimack's defense was up to the challenge and made sure it gave the ball right back to the offense, forcing a Bentley punt thanks to a three-and-out stop.
Starting from his own 22-yard line, Bakanowsky used two quick strikes to pick up a first down before one of the more important plays of the game, as the senior hooked up with classmate Steven Browne (Staten Island, N.Y.) for a 61-yard pass, and just five plays and 1:20 later, the Warriors found themselves on top by a 21-17 margin thanks to those heroics.
With the game turning to the final quarter, Merrimack's defense forced yet another punt to give the ball back to the Warrior offense; Bakanowsky used four different receivers to slash and dash his way down field and had Merrimack primed for another scoring chance, but the Falcons forced a fumble and recorded at their own 24 to take over.
But for the third drive in a row, Merrimack's defense stuffed the Falcons' offense, and after the ensuing punt, Merrimack set up shop at its own 33 and went to work.
Using a different formation that featured first-year sophomore quarterback Nick Laspada (Billerica, Mass.) on a number of plays, he and Bakanowsky helped push the Warriors down field, with the former using a 19-yard rush while junior tailback Armond McRae (Nashua, N.H.) helped the cause with a 24-yard scamper to get the Warriors into the red zone. Finally, Laspada capped the drive off with a six-yard touchdown pass to junior Jere Brown (Freeport, N.Y.), for what ultimately was the game-winning score.
With Merrimack up by two possessions, Bentley was quick to respond with only 3:24 to play, as Guadagnoli found Jeff Hill for a 66-yard pass-and-catch that made it a 28-23 ball game; after succeeding on the two-point version, the Falcons trailed by just three with over three minutes left.
Merrimack started its next drive at the 29 and slowly moved into Bentley territory, chewing up valuable time on the clock while forcing Bentley to burn the last of its timeout sin the process. The drive stalled just across midfield, as the Warriors punted back to Bentley and with just 1:48 to play.
Pinned back at his own 20, Guadagnoli was hurried into two incomplete passes before moving the chains on a 3rd and 10. Following two more incompletions and with only 1:21 left, Guadagnoli forced up a pass that Jones ultimately came away with, as his third interception of the year allowed the Navy and Gold to run out the clock from there on out.
After a scoreless first quarter, Bentley's Michael Baron booted in a 31-yard field goal to get on the board. After back-to-back punts from both teams, Merrimack needed only two plays after starting from great field position on its sixth drive of the game to find the end zone. Bakanowsky connected with Brown for a 17-yard strike to move deep into Bentley territory, and then the senior quarterback connected with sophomore Justin Mount (Westford, Mass.) from 23 yards out for the go-ahead score, making it 7-3 Warriors with 5:12 to play in the half.
Bentley was quick to respond, as Guadagnoli orchestrated an eight-play, 75-yard that was bolstered by a pair of Merrimack penalties drive that ended with Mart. Bannerman rushing in from five yards to put the hosts on top, 7-3.
Merrimack had one last chance to close out the half on a high note after Bakanowsky kept the drive alive with a 19-yard completion to McRae on 4th and 15, but with the ball at the Bentley 10, Sam McDonald intercepted Bakanowsky and would have returned it to the house if not for a tackle by McRae following a 71-yard return. That stalled drive sent the visitors into the break down by a 10-7 margin.
That set the stage for a back-and-forth second half that ended with the Warriors on top after the final whistle.
Inside The Numbers
- Merrimack outgained Bentley by a 434-346 margin, holding a 352-308 edge in passing while rushing with 82 yards rushing
- The Warrior defense, meanwhile, limited Bentley to just a 47% (9-19) success rate on third downs and yielded a mere 38 yards rushing
- Bakanosky finished 33-of-56 with 352 yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions; Guadagnoli, meanwhile, was 25-of-43 with 308 yards, two TDs and the game-ending interception
- Browne's 86 yards led the game, while Brown finished with a game-high eight receptions
- On defense, junior Jon Hooper (Pembroke, Mass.) led all Warriors with nine tackles, while senior James Flores (Brockton, Mass.) added a game-high two sacks
Up Next
Merrimack returns to North Andover for its annual Homecoming Weekend contest next Saturday (Oct. 18) against Assumption College. Kickoff from Martone-Mejail Field is set for 1 p.m.
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