Too little too late, Gulls fall to Salve Regina
Sept. 27, 2008
BEVERLY, Mass. - Salve Regina sophomore running back Rob LaRiviere-Tougas (East Hampton, Mass.) ran the ball 31 times for 163 yards with a touchdown as the Seahawks downed Endicott College, 20-17, on a rain-soaked Saturday afternoon in Beverly, Massachusetts. The win improves the visitors to 2-1 overall (1-0 NEFC Boyd) while the Gulls fall to 1-3 (0-1 NEFC Boyd).
Salve Regina was quick out of the gates to open the game, as the Seahawks gave Endicott a steady dose of quarterback Jeff St. Onge (Kingston, N.H.) and running back Rob LaRiviere-Tougas on their first drive. After a run and two pass completions from St. Onge, LaRiviere-Tougas capped-off the drive with a 22 yard cutback touchdown scamper to give Salve a 6-0 lead. David Guerriero (Qunicy, Mass.) would tack-on the point after attempt for the seven point advantage.
Endicott responded with a nine play, 39 yard drive that ended with a 26 yard field goal from junior Christopher Brennan (East Longmeadow, Mass.) to make it 7-3.
As the rain came, so did the defense. Each squad was forced to attack by way of the ground as heavy precipitation halted any thoughts of a passing game. Salve Regina was finally able to break through in the closing minutes of the second quarter as St. Onge called his own number on a draw play. The junior signal caller sprinted past the would-be tacklers for a 34 yard rushing touchdown with 2:43 remaining in the first half. Guerriero's PAT split the uprights for a 14-3 lead at the intermission.
After a quick three-and-out from Salve to start the third quarter, Endicott began moving the ball with an effective drive. The Gulls marched their way just outside the visitors red zone, only to have freshman Phil Konopka's (Shelton, Conn.) passing attempt be intercepted by the Seahawks' James Solimini (Braintree, Mass.) at the 20 yard line. Solimini would go on to return the pick for 19 yards, handing the ball to his offense with decent field position midway through the third quarter.
Jeff St. Onge and the Seahawks' offense made good use of the Endicott turnover, putting together an eight play drive for 61 yards and a score. St. Onge completed a gutsy fourth down, 24 yard touchdown strike to Ben Hall (Conway, N.H.) to give the visitors a commanding 20-3 lead. David Guerriero's point-after was batted down at the line of scrimmage by an outstretched Kevin Eagan (West Hartford, Conn.) to keep it a 17 point game.
Feeling the pressure, Endicott responded in a positive way as Drew Cusato (Merrimack, N.H.) and Colby Hawkins (Scituate, Mass.) split carries out the backfield and pounded away at the Seahawks' front seven. The drive, one that started after a botched kick-off from Carlos Santos (Trumbell, Conn.), ended with a pretty pass from Phil Konopka to tight end Timothy Viall (Sandwich, Mass.) in the back of the end zone. Konopka was able to escape a heavy Salve pass rush, finding Viall in the back-right corner for the touchdown to make it 20-10.
The comeback glimmer was in the Gulls' eye as the Blue and Green blocked Matt Boland's (River Edge, N.J.) punt on Salve's next possession. Freshman Rob Modoono (Boxford, Mass.) got a hand on the ball and then scooped up the recovery on the Seahawks' three-yard line to give Endicott possession deep inside the visitor's territory. After getting stuffed for a loss of one on first down, Colby Hawkins had the ball stripped on the goal line by David Guerriero, resulting in a costly giveaway by Endicott.
After a trading of possessions in the fourth quarter, Endicott made it interesting with a two-yard rushing touchdown by Hawkins to make it 20-17 with 3:23 left in regulation. However the Gulls defense could not get Salve Regina off the field, as the Seahawks were able to grind out two first downs to milk the clock down to zeros.
Salve Reina posted 318 yards of total offense in the win. The Seahawks were paced by Rob LaRiviere-Tougas and his 163 rushing yards. Jeff St. Onge ended the day 12-of-21 for 135 yards with a passing touchdown and an interception. St. Onge also tacked-on a rushing score in the win.
A week after he posted a career-best 17 tackles, Nolan McGarrity (Verona, N.J.) led the Seahawks' defensive effort with nine solo tackles and five assisted takedowns for a 11.5 total tackles. David Guerriero also had 10 solo and one assisted tackle for Salve Regina.
Endicott was led by Drew Cusato's 15 rushes for 87 yards. Phil Konopka, who had passes sail on him all afternoon and could never really get into a groove, was 11-of-25 for 105 yards with an INT and a TD. The Gulls' Robert Brandt (Natick, Mass.) had 8.5 total tackles (7 solo, 3 assisted) and Mike Dillon (Cheshire, Conn.) notched seven solo and two assisted tackles, three of which resulted in a loss of 17 yards. Dillon also had a sack for a loss of eight yards.
Salve Regina looks to keep the momentum rolling next week as the Seahawks host NEFC foe Curry College at noon on Saturday. The Gulls hope to rebound at Nichols College on Saturday at 1:00 p.m.