Bulldogs fall at No. 23/24 Stony Brook

STONY BROOK, N.Y. – The Bryant University football team briefly took a 21-20 lead in the third quarter but No. 23/24 Stony Brook scored the final 30 points as it earned a 50-21 victory on a rainy Saturday night at LaValle Stadium.

Trailing 20-7 at the start of the second half, the Black and Gold forced a Stony Brook turnover and turned it into seven points with 11:19 to go in the third. Bryant's defense then forced a three-and-out and redshirt sophomore Alfred Dorbor (Pawtucket, R.I.) capped a nine-play, 72-yard drive to give the Bulldogs the lead with 6:38 left in the quarter.

Stony Brook, however, took the lead back with a quick six-play, two-minute drive and never looked back. The Seawolves turned a blocked punt into a score before the third quarter ended and then added 16 fourth-quarter points to complete the scoring.

Playing just 18 miles from his hometown of Northport, senior Brenden Femiano posted his first-career 100-yard game, posting 106 yards on 19 carries. Classmate Vincent Nisivoccia (Nutley, N.J.) posted his first-career multi-touchdown game and redshirt senior Price Wilson (Marietta, Ga.) completed 29 passes for 255 yards and two scores. Senior Thomas Costigan (Stamford, Conn.) led the defense with 12 tackles, a sack and a forced fumble.

GAME INFORMATION
No. 23/24 Stony Brook 50, Bryant 21
Records: Bryant (1-1), Stony Brook (1-1)
Location: LaValle Stadium (Stony Brook, N.Y.)
Attendance: 5,708

Coach Perry's Comments

"The kids played hard. There is a lot to learn from. Any time you play a team like, it's exactly the type of team that we want to be. Now we know the areas we got to get better at. Knowing these kids and how hard they work, I know it will be a great week of practice. It was a great day to get guys on the field, offensively and defensively. We played well for many periods of the game."

Key Moment

• Leading 27-21, the Seawolves forced the Bulldogs to punt and Casey Williams was able to break through and block the punt. Williams then raced it down and picked it up for the score, giving Stony Brook a 34-21 lead before the third quarter ended.

How it Happened

• Bryant drove to the SBU 13 on its first drive of the game but missed a 36 field goal. The Seawolves responded by going 80 yards in just seven plays to take the lead on a one-yard run from Joe Carbone
• Senior Kevin Lazo (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) kept it 7-0 as he blocked a 40-yard field goal attempt with 4:21 left in the first quarter.
• The Seawolves pushed it to 13-0 with a quick three-play, 55-yard drive that was capped by a nine-yard score from Carbone.
• Bryant then pushed the ball inside the SBU 20 on back-to-back possessions but could not convert. On the second drive, EJ Fineran intercepted Wilson's pass and returned it 79 yards for a touchdown to make it 20-0.
• Ignited by a 35-yard return by Nisivoccia, the Bulldogs got on the board with a four-play, 52-yard drive. On 3rd-and-3, Wilson rolled out and found Nisivoccia in the back of the endzone to make it 20-7.
• Junior Gavin Rowley (Hampstead, Md.) then recovered his own onside kick to give the Bulldogs the ball back but Bryant's drive stalled at the SBU 17.
• Out of the halftime break, Costigan tracked down SBU running back Donald Liotine and stripped the ball. Redshirt freshman James LoChirco (Everett, Mass.) recovered the fumble and Bryant needed just six plays to make it a one-score game. Redshirt freshman Shelton McNeal (Lakeland, Fla.) posted a 15-yard reception and Wilson followed with a 14-yard scoring strike to Nisivoccia.
• Less than a minute later, Bryant started its next drive from its own 28. A holding call on third down extended the drive and redshirt freshman Tyrrell Washington (Sebastian, Fla.) hauled in his first-career pass, a 34-yard gain in double coverage, to put the ball at the SBU 20. True freshmen David Zorrilla (Everett, Mass.) and Daniel Adeboboye (Toronto, Ont.) combined to get the ball to the 2 and Dorbor punched it in to give Bryant a 21-20 lead.
• The Seawolves answered with a six-play drive as Jordan Gowins picked up 29 yards on the ground before Carbone connected with Liotine for a 24-yard scoring play.
• Williams pushed the lead back to 13 as he blocked the punt and recovered it for a score.
• Stony Brook then scored on its next two drives. Nick Courtney hit a 29-yard field goal and Gowins made it 44-21 with a 27-yard TD run.
• The Seawolves capped the scoring with a 95-yard pick six as time expired.

Stats

• Stony Brook outgained the Bulldogs, 426-413. The Seawolves rushed for 273 yards and averaged 7.2 yards per play.
• The Bulldogs committed six penalties for 45 yards while Stony Brook had 13 penalties for 115 yards.
• Bryant finished the game 6-of-18 on third down, 2-of-4 on fourth down, 2-for-7 in red zone tries and held the ball for 39:32.
• Wilson finished the game 29-of-45 for 255 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.
• Femiano gained 106 yards on 19 carries with a long run of 42.
• Adeboboye rushed for 38 yards on nine carries, while Dorbor rushed for 15 yards and a TD on seven carries.
• McNeal led Bryant with six catches for 45 yards.
• Zorrilla and junior Alex Rasmussen (Fallston, Md.) both added five catches for 20 yards.
• Nisivoccia finished with four catches for 61 yards and two touchdowns. He also carried the ball twice for 14 yards and returned five kicks for 112 yards. Nisivoccia finished with 187 all-purpose yards.
• Costigan posted 12 tackles (10 solo), a sack and a forced fumble.
• Senior Danny Hughes (Shoreham, N.Y.) posted five tackles.
• Senior Kodi Ojukwu (Dix Hills, N.Y.) and junior Tomas Wright (St. Augustine, Fla.) each posted a sack.
• Lazo and redshirt sophomore Fernando Casanova (Jacksonville, Fla.) each recorded a blocked kick.

Game Notes

• The loss snapped Bryant's five-game winning streak.
• Femiano posted his first-career 100-yard game. He is the first Bulldog to rush for 100+ yards since Isaac McCray (Middletown, R.I.) did so last September vs. Fordham.
• He is the first player not named McCray to rush for 100+ yards since Ryan Black.
• Wilson's 29 completions are tied with Charlie Granatell for the third-most in a single game in program history. It's the third-highest total for Wilson.
• Wilson also became just the fifth QB in school history with over 300 career completions.
• Nisivoccia's posted his first-career multi-TD game and finished with a career-high 187 all-purpose yards.
• Dorbor has now posted a rushing touchdown in each of the first two games of the year.
• Costigan posted 10+ tackles for the first time this season. He now has 196 career tackles.
• Costigan posted his 21st career sack and forced a fumble for the 11th time in his career.
• Lazo blocked his second kick of the game and the eighth of his career.
• Wright posted his 10th career sack.

Up Next

The Bulldogs return to Beirne Stadium next Saturday when they welcome Marist College. It will be the first-ever home night game for the Black and Gold, with kickoff set for 6:00 p.m.