Gulls Open Boyd Division Play with, 43-3, Win
Sept. 22, 2007
NEWPORT, RI - Junior running back Drew Cusato (Merrimack, NH/Merrimack) ran for two touchdowns and caught a 37-yard pass for a third trip to the end zone to lead Endicott College to a, 43-3, victory over Salve Regina University in a New England Football Conference Boyd Division game Saturday evening.
Endicott (1-2 overall, 1-0 NEFC Boyd) had 429 yards of total offense, including 232 yards on the ground. Led by Cusato's 64 yards on 11 carries (5.8 yards/carry) the Gulls averaged 5.2 yards per carry as a team.
Salve Regina (1-2 overall, 0-1 NEFC Boyd) began the game by taking a 3-0 lead on a 22-yard field goal by freshman Matt Capone (Barrington, RI) with 6:28 to go in the opening quarter. The score was set up by an interception by safety Matt Cook (Westport, CT) at the Endicott 16-yard line.
The next Endicott possession resulted in a punt, however the EC defense forced a three-and-out series to put the ball back in the hands of their offense. On second and six at the Endicott 35, quarterback Vinny Orlando (Manchester, MA/Manchester-Essex) hit wide receiver Aaron Santos (Cambridge, MA/Cushing Academy) with a 65-yard touchdown pass down the right sideline for a 7-3 lead. In addition to the touchdown catch, Santos had a big day on special teams, averaging 21.8 yards on five punt returns.
The 65-yard touchdown strike gave Endicott momentum heading into a second quarter in which the Gulls scored 20 points, including all three Cusato scores.
Vinny Orlando was 7-for-17 for 193 yards and three touchdowns in his first start of the season. Senior running back Mark Killinger (Rockland, MA/Rockland) also broke the goal-line on a three-yard touchdown run to cap off the scoring for the Blue and Green.
The Endicott defense stepped-up and delivered a big game as the Gulls only allowed 61 rushing yards and 129 total yards on the evening. David Coflesky (Royalston, MA/Athol) turned in a team-high five tackles for Endicott.
The Gulls return to action on Saturday afternoon as they play host to Boyd Division foe Nichols College. Kick-off is scheduled for 12:00 noon in Beverly, MA.