Box Score WALTHAM, Mass - Bentley University scored 17 consecutive points at the outset of the second half and was able to hold off the Mercyhurst University football team, 27-21 on a hazy, hot, and humid Saturday afternoon in the season opener for both schools. It marks the third consecutive season that the Lakers have lost their season opener, including back-to-back seasons against the Falcons.
Mercyhurst led 14-10 at halftime, but the lead evaporated when the hosts rattled off 17 consecutive points to take a 27-14 lead with under six minutes left in regulation. The Lakers made things interesting when redshirt senior
Pat Behm blocked a Bentley punt attempt and carried it to the Bentley one-yard line with two minutes remaining. Redshirt sophomore quarterback
Zach Emerick, making his first collegiate start, found redshirt junior fullback
T.J. Latimer in the endzone on the very next play to cut the Bentley lead to six with 1:51 left.
However, the Falcons were able to recover the onside kick and run out the clock to escape with the victory.
The Lakers were limited to 150 yards of total offense on Saturday afternoon, with just 54 coming in the second half. Emerick, who won the starting quarterback job, completed 14-of-24 passes for 106 yards and one touchdown. He was picked off once.
The alarming problem was the ground game. After averaging nearly 240 yards on the ground last season, Mercyhurst could muster just 44 rushing yards on 26 attempts against the Falcons. Redshirt junior
Brandon Brown-Dukes carried the ball 15 times for 58 yards and one touchdown. Other ball carriers combined for negative-14 yards on 11 attempts.
With his yardage total, Brown-Dukes surpassed Craig Woodard (1992-95) for second on the school's all-time rushing list with 2,361 yards. He trails all-time leader Richard Stokes (2005-08) by a little more than 1,000 yards to take over the top spot on the list.
Mercyhurst looked great on its opening drive, going 69 yards on eight plays, capped off by a two-yard run by Brown-Dukes - the 25th rushing touchdown of his career. Sophomore
Dylan Kondis added the point after for a 7-0 Laker lead with 10:26 left in the first quarter.
However, after that drive, Mercyhurst had just 81 yards of offense the rest of the way - and Bentley took advantage.
Michael Baron put Bentley on the board with a 19-yard field goal with 1:39 left in the opening quarter, cutting the Mercyhurst lead to 7-3. George Craan then scored on a four-yard run with 7:43 left in the second to give the home team a 10-7 advantage.
On the ensuing kickoff, sophomore
Drew Robinson returned it 83 yards - tied for the eighth-longest return in school history - down to the Bentley 14-yard line. Emerick would cap off the drive on a six-yard run with 4:04 left to recapture a 14-10 lead for the Lakers. Robinson, meanwhile, returned three kickoffs for 135 yards on the day.
Bentley quarterback Danny Guadagnoli connected with Sean Myers (four yards), in the third quarter, and Chris Calvanese (27 yards) on the opening play of the fourth quarter for a 24-14 Bentley lead. Baron added a 22-yard field goal with 5:54 left for a 27-14 advantage.
The Falcons outgained the Lakers 403-150 for the game, with Guadagnoli finishing the afternoon by completing 15-of-22 passes for 223 yards and two scores. Craan led the Falcon ground attack with 84 yards on 24 carries. Calvanese caught seven passes for 135 yards and a touchdown.
Mercyhurst will look to pick up its first win of the season next Saturday, September 13, when it travels to 10th-ranked West Chester. Kickoff is scheduled for 12:00 p.m.
