Bryant held off on the road by No. 15 New Hampshire

DURHAM, N.H. – Senior wide receivers Aaron Aryee (Hartford, Conn.) and Tom Kennedy (Farmingdale, N.Y.) posted career-best numbers and both found the end zone, but the Bryant University football team was outlasted by No. 15 New Hampshire, 45-17, Saturday night at Wildcat Stadium.

Aryee tallied his first career 100-yard game and caught a touchdown, while Kennedy recorded a career-high 10 catches and added a touchdown run. The duo combined for 157 yards on 15 catches from junior Price Wilson (Marietta, Ga.), who was 33-of-54 for 348 yards and a touchdown.

Junior Thomas Costigan (Stamford, Conn.) notched a career-high 14 tackles, while sophomore Zahir Williams (Bronx, N.Y.) recorded his first career interception.

GAME INFORMATION
No. 15 New Hampshire 45, Bryant 17
Records: Bryant (2-3), New Hampshire (4-1)
Location: Wildcat Stadium | Durham, N.H.
Attendance: 7,951

COACH PERRY'S COMMENTS
"It was a great place to play tonight against a terrific football team. I've come to really count on the effort of my guys and tonight was no exception. I thought we played very well at times against what is clearly one of the top teams in FCS. I know there are a few things we would all like to do differently, but there are some good things to learn from and build upon moving forward."

KEY MOMENTS

• New Hampshire led 17-0 at the end of the first quarter before Bryant responded with a field goal from sophomore Gavin Rowley (Hampstead, Md.) and a direct-snap touchdown run from senior Tom Kennedy (Farmingdale, N.Y.). The Wildcats answered with a pair of touchdowns in a span of 1:36 to pad a lead that would stay at least 14 the rest of the way.
• With Bryant trailing 31-10 in the final minute of the first half, sophomore Zahir Williams (Bronx, N.Y.) picked off New Hampshire quarterback Trevor Knight at midfield to give the Bulldogs one last shot before the half. Bryant marched down the field and scored in the closing seconds on a touchdown pass from junior Price Wilson (Marietta, Ga.) to senior Aaron Aryee (Hartford, Conn.) to pull within two scores at halftime.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Bulldogs' first drive ended in a defensive touchdown, as a second-down pass from Wilson was intercepted and returned for a touchdown by the Wildcats' Rick Ellison to give New Hampshire a 7-0 lead at the 13:08 mark of the first quarter.
• The Wildcats would add a 30-yard field goal later in the first quarter to extend the lead to 10-0. UNH tallied a second touchdown on a 31-yard run by Evan Gray with 3:31 remaining in the opening quarter to make it 17-0 at the end of the first.
• Bryant began the second quarter at the UNH 15 and got on the board with a Rowley field goal. The Bulldogs forced a Wildcat punt, on which UNH was called for kick catch interference. Bryant began the ensuing drive at the UNH 47, drove down the field and found the end zone on a direct snap to Kennedy to cut the deficit to 17-10 with 10:01 remaining in the half.
• New Hampshire responded with a touchdown on the next drive, as the Wildcats ran it in on fourth and goal from the Bryant 1 to push the lead back to two touchdowns. The Wildcats would score again before the half, padding the lead with a 52-yard touchdown pass to make it 31-10 with 5:44 remaining in the second quarter.
• The Wildcats looked to extend the lead before halftime, but a first-down pass was deflected and intercepted by sophomore Zahir Williams (Bronx, N.Y.) at midfield. The Bulldogs capitalized on the turnover, as Wilson connected with Aryee in the closing seconds of the half to cut the halftime deficit to 31-17.
• After a scoreless third quarter, New Hampshire opened the second-half scoring 1:23 into the fourth quarter, as the Wildcats' Trevor Knight hit Neil O'Connor in the end zone for the second time on the night to extend the UNH advantage to 38-17. New Hampshire would add another touchdown from Knight to O'Connor with 3:52 remaining to bring it to the final 45-17 score.

STATS

• Junior Price Wilson (Marietta, Ga.) was 33-of-54 for 348 yards and one touchdown.
• Senior Tom Kennedy (Farmingdale, N.Y.) grabbed a career-high 10 receptions for a total of 56 yards.
• Senior Aaron Aryee (Hartford, Conn.) posted his first career 100-yard receiving game, recording five catches for 101 yards.
• Junior Thomas Costigan (Stamford, Conn.) tallied a career-high 14 tackles, tied for seventh in a single game in program history.
• Bryant gained 427 yards of total offense, marking the fourth time in five games this season that the Bulldogs posted at least 400.
• Freshman Isaac McCray (Portsmouth, R.I.) led the Bulldogs with 48 rushing yards on nine carries, while senior Jake Wiswall (Great River, N.Y.) had six rushes for 37 yards.

GAME NOTES

• Bryant falls to 0-1 all-time against New Hampshire.
• Eight of the 14 tackles from junior Thomas Costigan (Stamford, Conn.) came in the scoreless third quarter.
• Junior Price Wilson (Marietta, Ga.) matched his own program single-game record with 54 passing attempts. His 33 completions rank second to his 37 Sept. 16 at Brown. The 348 passing yards place him seventh in program history, 45 shy of his program-record 393 last week vs. Fordham.
• Wilson posted 300 passing yards for the third straight game and the fourth time in five contests to begin his Bulldog career.

UP NEXT
The Bulldogs will have a bye next Saturday before opening Northeast Conference play at home against defending NEC champion Saint Francis U, Saturday, Oct. 14 at 1 p.m. at Beirne Stadium. Tickets for the Oct. 14 game, part of Family and Friends Weekend, can be purchased by clicking HERE.