BANGOR- The #19 Endicott College Gulls sacked Husson quarterback Nic Visser seven times on Saturday afternoon, and with a strong defense that held the Eagles to no first downs in the first half they would pull away late for a 23-13 Commonwealth Coast Conference football win on Senior Day at the Winkin Complex.
Endicott (7-1, 3-0 Commonwealth Coast Conference) outgained Husson 222-43 in total yards in the first half with no Eagles first downs, but despite driving deep into their opponents territory several times over the first 30 minutes they had to settle for a pair Ryan Smith second quarter field goals for a 6-0 lead at the break. The Gulls got the first possession of the second half, and would extend their lead to 13-0 helped by a penalty for unnecessary roughness. The drive was capped off on a 9-yard touchdown run by Anthony Caggianelli. Husson finally got something going and got on the scoreboard for the first time with 5:30 left in the third. Visser completed passes of 20 yards to Cullen Casey and 32 yards to Dom Wilson to set them up in scoring position. Visser got the big crowd back into it when he hit Marcus Sessoms for a 6-yard TD to cut it to 13-7. It was the first touchdown of the season for Sessoms. After another field goal by Smith pushed the Endicott lead back to nine early in the fourth, the visitors put it away with 2:05 left to play on a 21-yard touchdown run by quarterback Clayton Marengi. Visser ended the scoring with the game already decided tossing a 15-yard TD pass to Casey with just 18 seconds left on the clock, as the Eagles dropped their second consecutive conference game.
Visser finished 25-33 passing for 218 yards and two touchdowns in the Husson loss. Division 3 leading rusher Elijah Garnett was held to just 12 yards on seven carries. Casey and Ja’Quan Myles both led the team with six receptions each, while Wilson led in yards reeling in four for 62 yards. Tucker Buzzell and Adam Bertrand, two of the seniors honored before the game, led the defense with 18 and 13 total tackles respectively. The Eagles committed 11 penalties for 85 yards in the defeat. Marengi went 13-31 for 164 yards in the win for Endicott, also adding 11 runs for 78 yards and a touchdown. Caggianelli led the backfield with 23 carries for 99 yards and a score. Husson (5-3, 1-2 CCC) faces off with their in-state rivals from the University of New England in the third annual “Lobster Trap” game down in Biddeford next Saturday at 1 p.m.
Recap/Video/Photos by Chris Lessner
