Leopards, Mountain Hawks and Crusaders earn week three victories
 
LEHIGH MOUTAIN HAWKS (2-1, 0-0 PL) 20, AT LIU SHARKS (0-3, 0-0 NEC) 17
Brookville, N.Y./Bethpage Federal Credit Union         Noon (NEC Front Row)
BOX SCORE
BROOKVILLE, N.Y. – Graduate student quarterback Dante Perri’s 27-yard touchdown pass to sophomore wide receiver Mason Humphrey in the third quarter put Lehigh in front before the Mountain Hawks’ defense did the rest in a 20-17 victory.
*The Mountain Hawks scored twice in the second quarter, as sophomore running back Luke Yoder tied the score at seven with a 10-yard run. Yoder finished with 94 rushing yards on 23 carries.
*First-year quarterback Hayden Johnson engineered a 15-play, 67-yard drive that took more than eight minutes off the clock, finishing it with a seven-yard touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Geoffrey Jamiel with 12 seconds left in the first half.
*LIU regained the lead early in the third quarter before Perri connected with Humphrey on the score with 5:42 remaining in the third quarter to take a 20-14 lead.
*Lehigh allowed one more field goal before forcing a punt and causing a turnover on downs to end the game.
*Reigning Patriot League Defensive Player of the Week Nick Peltekian finished with five tackles, while junior linebacker Tyler Ochojski added five tackles and a half TFL.
*Lehigh sophomore defensive back Davis Rice recorded an interception in the third quarter.
RECAP: LEHIGH
 
AT NO. 18/19 LAFAYETTE LEOPARDS (2-1, 0-0 PL) 56, MARIST RED FOXES (0-2, 0-0 PIONEER) 18
Easton, Pa./Fisher Stadium              12:30 p.m. (ESPN+/NBC Sports Philadelphia)
BOX SCORE
EASTON, Pa. – Junior running back Jamar Curtis rushed for three touchdowns to lead No. 18/19 Lafayette to a 56-18 victory in its home opener against Marist.
*Curtis rushed 12 times for 88 yards, with all three scores coming in the first half to help the Leopards take control early.
*Defending FCS Offensive Player of the Week Elijah Steward caught six passes for a game-high 102 yards, while sophomore quarterback Dean DeNobile completed 20-of-23 passes for 241 yards and a touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Chris Carasia.
*Lafayette got on the scoreboard first when freshman Gianlucca Tiberia blocked a punt and fellow rookie Xavier Johnson recovered it in the end zone.
*After Marist tied the score at seven, Curtis rushed for two touchdowns, and freshman receiver Mason Kuehner returned a punt 58 yards for the Leopards’ second special teams touchdown of the day.
*Lafayette continued to roll in the second half, as DeNobile threw a touchdown pass to Carasia before sophomore defensive lineman Jaylon Joseph returned an interception 16 yards for a score, less than a minute later to take a 49-7 lead. Joseph added two tackles and 1.0 TFL.
*Senior linebacker Preston Forney and senior defensive back Semaj Cross both finished with three tackles and 1.0 TFL for a Leopards’ defense that held the Red Foxes to just 170 yards of total offense.
RECAP: LAFAYETTE
 
AT SACRED HEART PIONEERS (2-1, 0-0 FCS INDEPENDENT) 40, rv/- GEORGETOWN HOYAS (2-1, 0-0 PL) 14
Fairfield, Conn./Campus Field         1 p.m. (ESPN+)
BOX SCORE
FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Georgetown could not keep pace with Sacred Heart, dropping its first game of the season, 40-14, on Saturday.
*Hoyas’ senior running back Naieem Kearney rushed for a team-leading 98 yards on 17 carries with a first-quarter touchdown run that tied the score at seven apiece.
*Junior quarterback Danny Lauter completed 21-of-34 passes for 190 yards, two interceptions and a six-yard second-quarter touchdown pass to junior wide receiver Jimmy Kibble.
*GU senior wide receiver Cam Pygatt added a team-high 74 receiving yards on four receptions.
*Hoyas’ sophomore defensive lineman Cooper Blomstrom posted five tackles, 1.5 TFLs and one sack and a forced fumble. Graduate student linebacker David Ealey III finished with four tackles and a sack.
*Freshman defensive lineman Isaac Saffold added five tackles and 2.0 TFLs, while sophomore linebacker GianCarlo Rufo posted a team-high nine tackles. *
RECAP: GEORGETOWN
 
STONY BROOK SEAWOLVES (2-1, 0-0 CAA) 27, AT FORDHAM RAMS (0-3, 0-0 PL) 21
Bronx, N.Y./Jack Coffey Field          1 p.m. (ESPN+)
BOX SCORE
BRONX, N.Y. – Fordham could not hang on against Stony Brook, allowing 10 fourth-quarter points, in a 27-21 on Homecoming at Jack Coffey Field.
*Junior defensive back Alex Kemper returned an interception 55 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter to give the Rams a 21-17 lead. Kemper added seven tackles and 2.0 TFLs.
*Senior running back Julius Loughridge rushed for 99 yards on 13 carries, falling one yard shy of his third straight 100-yard game to start the season.
*Rams’ junior quarterback C.J. Montes opened the scoring with an 11-yard run to cap an eight-play, 78-yard drive. Montes left the game in the third quarter due to injury.
*Junior defensive lineman Peter Chalhoub intercepted a pass and returned it six yards for a score to put Fordham in front, 14-10, but the Seawolves answered late in the half to take a 17-14 lead into the break.
*Kemper’s 55-yard interception return was Fordham’s lone second-half score before Stony Brook took control in the fourth quarter.
*Grad student linebacker Mike Courtney posted a game-high 12 tackles and two pass breakups, and classmate Jackson Barletta finished with eight tackles and one sack for the Rams’ defense.
RECAP: FORDHAM
 
HOLY CROSS CRUSADERS (1-2, 0-0 PL) 43, AT BRYANT BULLDOGS (1-2, 0-0 CAA) 22
Smithfield, R.I./Beirne Stadium        2 p.m. (FloSports)
BOX SCORE
SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Senior running back Jordan Fuller rushed for a pair of scores during a four-touchdown run between the second and third quarters to lift Holy Cross to a 43-22 victory over Bryant for the first win of the Dan Curran era.
*Fuller finished with 38 yards on 12 carries and one catch for 27 yards, while sophomore running back Jayden Clerveaux rushed for a career-high 104 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries to pace the Crusaders’ offense.
*Senior quarterback Joe Pesansky completed 11-of-14 passes for 200 yards and a 30-yard touchdown pass to junior receiver Max Mosey with 40 seconds left in the second quarter. Pesansky also rushed for an eight-yard score in the fourth quarter.
*Senior safety Curtis Harris-Lopez scored the Crusaders’ first touchdown of the game, returning a kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown to tie the score at seven.
*Holy Cross senior linebacker Frankie Monte registered a team-high nine tackles, and sophomore safety Chisom Onwuzurigbo recorded an interception.
*Sophomore defensive end William Robinson made three tackles and blocked an extra-point attempt.
RECAP: HOLY CROSS
 
MERRIMACK WARRIORS (1-2, 0-0 FCS INDEPENDENT) 31, AT BUCKNELL BISON (1-2, 0-0 PL) 21
Lewisburg, Pa./Christy Mathewson - Memorial Stadium            6 p.m. (ESPN+)
BOX SCORE
LEWISBURG, Pa. – Bucknell fell to Merrimack, 31-21, after the Warriors scored three straight touchdowns between the end of the second and the beginning of the third quarters.
*Bucknell twice took the lead in the first half behind a 10-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Ralph Rucker IV to junior wide receiver Josh Gary in the first quarter and an 11-yard touchdown run midway through the second.
*Rucker IV completed 16-of-27 pass attempts for 141 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions, in addition to rushing for a touchdown.
*The Bison scored just once more after halftime, as senior quarterback Michael Hardyway completed a 23-yard touchdown pass to sophomore receiver Sam Milligan with 46 seconds remaining in the contest.
*Sophomore linebacker Nick Hoying posted a team-high 10 tackles, while junior cornerback Terian Williams II finished with nine tackles.
*Senior safety Alex Smith Jr. posted seven tackles and 2.0 TFLs. Senior linebacker Brad Jamison totaled seven tackles and one sack.
RECAP: BUCKNELL
 
AT AKRON ZIPS (1-2, 0-0 DI FBS MAC) 31, COLGATE RAIDERS (0-3, 0-0 PL) 20
Akron, Ohio/InfoCision Stadium      6 p.m. (ESPN+)
BOX SCORE
AKRON, Ohio – Senior quarterback Michael Brescia threw a touchdown pass and rushed for another score to help the Raiders take an early 17-0 lead, but Akron stormed back to defeat Colgate 31-20.  
*Brescia completed 9-of-16 pass attempts for 95 yards and a touchdown, while rushing for 60 yards and a score on 14 carries.
*Raiders’ junior wide receiver Treyvhon Saunders caught seven passes for 82 yards, including a 33-yard touchdown pass from Brescia to give Colgate an early 7-0 lead.
*Junior linebacker Cole Kozlowski finished with game-highs of 13 tackles, 4.5 TFLs and 2.0 sacks to lead the Raiders’ defense. Senior linebacker Christian Sweeney added nine tackles and 1.0 TFL.
*Sophomore placekicker Luke Vogeler went 2-for-2 on field-goal tries, including a 51-yarder in the first quarter to give Colgate a 17-0 lead.
*Vogeler also hit from 45 yards in the third quarter to snap the Zips’ 28-0 run to end the first half.
RECAP: COLGATE
 
ABOUT THE PATRIOT LEAGUE
The Patriot League is in its fourth decade of academic and athletic achievement, continually demonstrating that student-athletes can excel at both academics and athletics without sacrificing high standards. The Patriot League’s athletic success is achieved while its member institutions remain committed to its founding principle of admitting and graduating student-athletes who are academically representative of their class. Participation in athletics at Patriot League institutions is viewed as an important component of a well-rounded education.