Defense holds strong in second half

WATERBURY, Conn. (November 1, 2014) – Freshman quarterback Taylor DeForge (Bristol, Conn.) hit junior wide receiver Shawn DeCost (Nashua, N.H.) for a seven-yard touchdown strike, which would stand as the game-winning score in double overtime on Saturday afternoon, as the Franklin Pierce University sprint football team notched a 17-10 win over Post in Collegiate Sprint Football League play at LaMoy Field. Post's lone touchdown on the day came in the third quarter, a 33-yard strike from sophomore quarterback Greg Volpe to freshman wide receiver Rahmi Roundtree.

With the win, Franklin Pierce concludes its third season of play at 3-4, while Post falls to 3-3. The Ravens retain the Talon cup by defeating Post for the second straight season.

Trailing 10-7 with time winding down, Franklin Pierce took control of the ball at its own 17 with 1:35 to play after a Post punt. DeForge got to work from there, as he completed his first four passes on the drive, including a 17-yard strike to sophomore running back Andrew Jean (Irvington, N.J.) to move the ball out to the Franklin Pierce 44 with 51 seconds to play. After an incomplete pass, DeForge found junior wideout Michael Holdridge (Peru, N.Y.) for a 25-yard gain to the Post 31. After another incomplete pass, DeForge and Holdridge hooked up again, this time for 27 yards to take the ball all the way down to the Post four-yard line.

After a pair of incomplete passes, Franklin Pierce faced third-and-goal from the four with 18 seconds to play, but DeForge was sacked on the third-and-goal play. With no timeouts remaining and the clock running after the sack, the Ravens had to hurry the field goal unit onto the field. Despite the urgency and the pressure, freshman kicker Johnny Ciarcia (Rindge, N.H.) knocked the ball through the uprights from 24 yards as time expired to send the game in overtime.

Neither team garnered a first down in the first overtime period, as Post freshman kicker Matthew Russo's 43-yard attempt fell short and then Ciarcia missed wide left from 33 yards. Franklin Pierce had the ball first in the second overtime period and turned to Jean. The sophomore carried the ball four times for 13 yards, while DeForge added a five-yard toss to Holdridge. Ultimately, it all added up to second-and-goal at the seven-yard line. From there, DeForge found DeCost for the seven-yard touchdown strike, while Ciarcia added the point-after.

As Post attempted to answer, Volpe hit junior wideout Jay'Len Mahan for 14 yards on the second play of the ensuing possession, to set up first-and-goal at the 11, but it would all fall apart for the Eagles from there. Volpe threw incomplete to sophomore wide receiver Rocco Guerrera on first down and then a delay-of-game penalty made it second-and-15 at the 16. Volpe found Roundtree for six yards to get the ball back to the 10, but a false-start penalty then made it third-and-14 at the 15. The ball got away from Volpe on the next play, though the Post offensive line was able to recover the fumble. The Eagles were left with fourth-and-22 from the 23 after the fumble, and Franklin Pierce came away victorious after Volpe's pas to Guerrera fell incomplete.

Earlier in the day, Franklin Pierce got on the board with 10:14 to play in the first half on a four-yard touchdown run by senior quarterback Derek Reddy (Natick, Mass.), who would later leave injured, with DeForge taking over under center. Post answered just 57 seconds into the third quarter with a 33-yard touchdown pass from Volpe to Roundtree. The Eagles took the lead 2:25 into the fourth quarter on a 20-yard field goal from Russo and would hold the 10-7 lead until Ciarcia's dramatics at the end of regulation.

As one might expect from the score-line, the offensive statistics of the game were not particularly overwhelming. Franklin Pierce netted 100 yards on the ground, with Jean (48 yards), Reddy (42) and freshman running back Demitri Moreno (Alhambra, Calif.) (40) doing most of the damage. Meanwhile, Post netted just 47 yards on the ground, with senior Leslie Morgan collecting 30 and freshman Joseph Lynch earning 27.

Reddy attempted just five passes and went 1-for-5 for 16 yards before leaving the game. The rest of the way, DeForge went 9-for-20 for 94 yards and a touchdown, but also threw two interceptions. For the Eagles, Volpe finished 11-for-27 for 149 yards and a touchdown of his own. DeForge's favorite target was Holdridge, who made three catches for 27 yards, while Volpe hit Mahan four times for 34 yards.

Defensively, freshman linebacker Jack Ainsley (Averill Park, N.Y.) led the Ravens with 10 tackles (seven solo) and contributed one tackle for loss. Freshman defensive back Ryan Landona (Derby, Conn.) recovered a fumble and picked up 25 return yards. For Post, three different players had 10 tackles each, led by sophomore linebacker Josh Cohen, who had seven solo tackles, four tackles for loss, two sacks and one forced fumble.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce sprint football apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).