WEST HAVEN, Conn. – For the fifth consecutive season, the University of New Haven football team has claimed ownership of the Elm City Trophy. The Chargers upended crosstown and Northeast-10 rival Southern Connecticut State, 27-14, this afternoon at Ralph F. DellaCamera Stadium.
 
With the victory, New Haven improves to 3-3 on the season and 3-2 in the Northeast-10 Conference. The Owls drop to 1-5 this fall with a 1-4 NE-10 mark. The Chargers now own an 18-6-1 lead in the all-time series with Southern Connecticut State, which dates back to New Haven's entry into the NCAA Division II ranks in 1981.
 
Quarterback Joey Bradley (Issaquah, Wash./Issaquah / University of North Dakota) was 22-of-38 for 256 yards and three touchdowns. His primary target was Ty Headen (Newark, N.J./American History), who made 11 grabs for 128 yards and a score. Courtney Moshood (Miami, Fla./Miami Palmetto) and Jonathan Badyna (Brooklyn, N.Y./Xaverian) also reeled in touchdown receptions, and Henry Adegunle (Rockaway, N.Y./Channel View) had four catches for 29 yards.
 
Rounding out the air attack was Trevor Officer (Monroe, N.Y./Monroe-Woodbury) with two receptions, and Collin Hill (Lumberton, N.J./Rancocas Valley Regional) and Rishawn Harris (Springfield, Mass./Putnam Vocational Technical Academy) with one catch apiece.
 
On the ground, Officer had 23 carries for 118 yards and a 20-yard touchdown run.
 
Defensively, linebackers Tyler Condit (Caldwell, N.J./James Caldwell) and Matt Zakrzewski (Traverse City, Mich./Saint Francis / Indiana) had 12 tackles apiece, and Jacob Weaver (Wilmington, Del./Archmere Academy) added eight stops. The Chargers forced three turnovers on the day, as Rodney Lanham (Bridgeport, Conn./Bridge Academy) came away with his second interception of the fall, and Mark Clements (Mays Landing, N.J./Oakcrest / Worcester Academy) and Isaac Coates (Red Bank, N.J./Red Bank / Grambling State) each pounced on a fumble. Up front, Matthew Rossi (Wyckoff, N.J./Ramapo) had the only sack of the afternoon.
 
The Chargers' defense stopped Southern Connecticut State on all three of its fourth-down attempts and limited the Owls to a 4-for-12 day on third down.
 
Anthony Greenfield (Bloomfield, N.J./Paramus Catholic / Wagner) did his part in the field position game. The First Team All-Northeast-10 punter boomed seven punts with an average of 43.9 yards per kick, including two that pinned the Owls inside their own 20-yard line and three longer than 50 yards.
 
The Owls' were led by signal caller Ray Catapano, who went 19-for-30 for 178 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Gary Williams had six catches for 62 yards, while Shaquan Hall had a touchdown snag in the fourth quarter. Julian Hayes picked up a team-best 28 rushing yards, as the Owls were held to 104 net yards on the ground.
 
Both teams struck for one score in the first quarter. After an empty possession each way, New Haven took over on its own 15-yard line. Bradley was 7-for-8 passing on the drive – including a 28-yard strike to Headen on 4th-and-11 to set the Chargers up on the two-yard line. On the next snap, Bradley hit Badyna with a play-action pass for the score. Following the Brian Roberts (Amherst, N.Y./Amherst Central) extra point, the Chargers held a 7-0 advantage after an 11-play, 85-yard drive.
 
A 54-yard return by Hall on the ensuing kickoff set the Owls' up on the New Haven 33-yard line. Southern Connecticut State took advantage of the field position as Julian Hayes rumbled to paydirt from 15 yards out to cap a four-play, 33-yard scoring drive that tied the score at 7-7.
 
The Chargers would strike again on their next drive. A 13-yard rush from Officer and a 23-yard hookup from Bradley to Headen were the big plays on the march, which ended when Officer raced into the end zone for a 20-yard touchdown to stake the Blue and Gold to a 14-7 cushion with 13:45 left in the second quarter.

The margin would hold into the intermission, as Greenfield salvaged two stalled New Haven drives by pinning the Owls at the 10-yard line and later at the 11-yard line to keep the Owls off the board.
 
After forcing a three-and-out to begin the second half, the Chargers extended their lead of their first possession following the intermission. New Haven picked up 63 yards through the air on the drive, as Bradley connected with Headen in the back corner of the end zone on 4th-and-3 from 17 yards out to push the tally to 21-7 in favor of the Blue and Gold.
 
The Chargers put the game out of reach on their first drive of the fourth quarter.  A 53-yard pass from Bradley to Moshood on 3rd-and-15 staked New Haven to a three-possession cushion at 27-7 with just 10:45 remaining.
 
The Owls would score again on a touchdown from Catapano to Hall with 3:33 to go, but Southern Connecticut State failed to recover the ensuing on-side kick. The Chargers picked up two first downs before lining up in victory formation to complete the 27-14 win.
 
Today's game was the Chargers' first contest this season to be decided by more than one possession (eight points).
 
New Haven returns to action next Saturday, Oct. 18 at American International. Kickoff between the Chargers and defending NE-10 Champion Yellow Jackets is slated for 1 p.m. The Chargers are back on the Blue and Gold turf of Ralph F. DellaCamera Stadium on the following Saturday, Oct. 25, to host Merrimack at 1 p.m. as a part of Homecoming Weekend.