Box Score
(10-17-09) NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. - The University of New Haven football team fell 48-20 Saturday afternoon at Merrimack College. With the loss the Chargers fall to 3-4 overall and 2-4 in the Northeast-10 Conference, while the Warriors improve to 5-2 overall and 4-1 in the NE-10.
The Warriors scored early and often Saturday. They opening by scoring on their second possession on a 2-play 53-yard drive which was capped by a 39-yard touchdown pass from quarterback James Suozzo to Chris Laham. They added the point after to take a 7-0 lead.
Two possession later, Merrimack took a 14-0 lead off a 4-yard run by Suozzo with 17 seconds remaining in the second quarter. The run capped a 6-play 79-yard drive.
New Haven's offense struggled to get started in the opening quarter, going three-and-out on three different occasions. One UNH drive staled at the Merrimack 32 yardline after 10 plays when the Chargers couldn't convert on third down, but they managed to get on the board in the second quarter.
Merrimack scored another touchdown, before UNH got on the board however. Suozzo scored his third of the game off a 7-yard run which capped a 5-play 39-yard drive with 12:18 remaining in the half.
The Chargers cut Merrimack's lead back to 14 points when Kameel Lashley capped a 7-play, 72-yard drive with an 8-yard catch from Ryan Osiecki. Stephen Ward added the point after to bring UNH within 21-7.
Merrimack added two more touchdowns before halftime. A 5-yard rush by Anthony Smalls and a 1-yard rush by Suozzo gave the Warriors a 34-7 lead.
Osiecki connected with Sharieff Hall on a 10-yard touchdown pass and catch with 15 seconds remaining in the first half. The point after attempt failed and the Chargers were then behind 34-13 at halftime.
Each team had sustaining drives in the third quarter, but neither could add points to the board. In the fourth quarter, the Warriors added seven points 56 minutes into the quarter to take a 41-13 lead.
The Chargers answered on their next drive with an 8-play, 67-yard drive capped by a 13-yard touchdown pass from Osiecki to Chris Ruffin. Ward's kick brought the Chargers within 21 points at 41-20.
Merrimack added a 28-yard touchdown run late in the fourth to secure the 48-20 victory.
Osiecki finished with three touchdowns and 256 yards on 22-of-34 passing. He was sacked four times and threw two interceptions. Hall led all receivers with eight yards, while Ruffin led the UNH receivers with 96 yards. The Chargers' rushing attack mustered just 28 yards in the game. Defensively, Richard Long, Mike Gomes, Rob Hill and Akaki Ramishvili each tallied nine total tackles for the Chargers.
The Chargers return to action on Saturday, October 24 against Pace University. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.
