NORTHFIELD, Vt.—The Norwich University football team overcame a 10-point deficit by scoring three straight touchdowns en route to a 28-23 win against the Eagles of Husson University on Saturday afternoon in Eastern Collegiate Football Conference (ECFC) action at Sabine Field at Haynes Family Stadium.
The win marks the fourth straight for Norwich, who improves to 6-3 overall and 5-1 in ECFC play. Husson suffers their second league loss of the season and falls to 5-4 overall and 4-2 in league play.
Junior Al Georgio (West Greenwich, R.I.) led the Norwich offense with two touchdowns and 140 rushing yards. Classmate quarterback Keyen Foley (Hemet, Calif.) completed 13-of-21 passing attempts for 122 yards and two interceptions, whileTrystan Colaire (Pickering, Ontario) led Norwich wide receivers with 41 yards on three receptions. The Cadets totaled 322 yards of offense and scored all four touchdowns on the rush.
Defensively, Norwich held the Eagles to 229 yards of total offense and forced the visitors into four turnovers. Junior Bruce Mackey (Fort Valley, Ga.) recorded a fumble in favor of the Cadets, while Dane Pallotto (Westbrook, Conn.), Dominique Davis (Kissimmee, Fla.) and Dan Gogan (Keansburg, N.J.) all recorded interceptions for Norwich. Senior Luis Delgado (Accord, N.Y.) totaled a team-best nine tackles.
Both the Cadets and the Eagles had two scoreless drives in the first quarter until the Cadets broke the streak with a three-yard run by Foley with 49 seconds to play in the quarter. A good point-after attempt by Wesley Medeiros (Gilford, N.H.) gave the Cadets the early 7-0 lead.
The Eagles would waste no time tying the score though, as Shabashe McIntosh exploded for an 83-yard kickoff return that set up teammate Byron Jackson for the five-yard touchdown run.
After a scoreless second quarter, Husson's Ryan Dorso scored a 32-yard rushing touchdown at 10:19 in the third quarter, and after recovering the ball on a fumble four plays into Norwich's next drive, kicker Dennis Meehan hit a 22-yard field goal to aid the Eagles to a 17-7 lead.
Norwich got to work on the deficit immediately, as Sam Chaves (Alfred, Maine)recorded a 46-yard kickoff return and the Cadets used three additional plays to travel 48 yards and set up James-Dana Milan (Citrus Heights, Calif.) for the one-yard score.
On the ensuing kickoff by Medeiros, Husson's Bryant Wade fumbled on the return and Norwich's Sir Michael Finney (Killeen, Texas) recovered to give the Cadets possession on Husson's 39 yard line. The Cadets did not score on the drive, but utilized the momentum shift and forced another Husson fumble on the Eagles' next drive, which was recovered by Mackey on the Husson 12-yard line.
Georgio would need just one play to give the Cadets the lead, as he scored on a 12-yard run. Medeiros nailed the extra-point to give Norwich a 21-17 lead.
The first 11:38 of the final quarter was scoreless and saw four possession changes. With 4:03 on the clock, Davis picked a Husson scoring pass on Norwich's two-yard line and returned it to the 12. On second-and-7, Georgio exploded for a career-long 85-yard touchdown run to score his 15th rushing touchdown of the season.
Husson added one final touchdown on the following drive, a two-yard rush by Jackson. The Eagles were unable to convert the two-point conversion and attempted an onside kick, but the ball was downed and possession was granted to Norwich on the Husson 47-yard line with 1:31 to play. Norwich used four plays to wind down the clock and took a knee to end the game.
The Eagles were led offenseive by Jackson, who totaled 81 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Dorso added 62 yards. McIntosh totaled 103 all-purpose yards for the Eagles, including his 83-yard kickoff return. Quarterback Ryan Stroud compled 2-of-11 pass attempts for 52 yards.
Defensively, Husson saw eight tackles each by Stephan Dance and Ellis Throckmorton. Both Dance and Desmond Nutter posted sacks for the Eagles, while Dom Mowrer and Damian Shepard both recovered fumbles. Shepard, a freshman, returned his fumble for 20-yards to set up the Husson field goal in the third quarter.
Possession was nearly even on the afternoon, as Husson had possession for one minute longer than Norwich at 30:30. The difference in offense was nine penalties recorded by the Eagles, which gave the Cadets 67 free yards. In comparison, Norwich had four penalties for 38 yards.
Before the coin toss, Norwich recognized 20 seniors participating in their final home game at Norwich - Drew Banuskevich (Peterborough, N.H.), Mike Cavanaugh (Raymond, N.H.), James Cejka (Brunswick, Maine), Delgado, Nick Elwell (Lawrence, Mass.), Matt Gallagher (Morris Plains, N.J.),Peter Gill (Nashua, N.H.), Stephen Gilmore (Norton, Mass.), Gogan, Ethan Hanks (Hull, Mass.), Brian Keville (Southborough, Mass.), Andy Mangin (Concord, Mass.), Cole Morgan (Warwick, R.I.), Nick Pulaski (Stratford, Conn.), Mitchell Pryzbocki (Middletown, N.Y.), Max Regan(Lowell, Mass.), Patrick Wilson (West Rupert, Vt.), Sean Wynot (Rollinsford, N.H.), Colin Young (Franklin, Mass.), and manager Pat LeFevre.
The Cadets will return to action next Saturday, as the team travels to Castleton, Vt. for an in-state battle with the Spartans of Castleton State College. Kickoff is slated for 1:00 p.m.
