WEST HAVEN, Conn. – The Chargers scored the game’s final 35 points to lead the nationally ranked No. 3/7 University of New Haven football team to a 48-9 victory over Southern Connecticut State University and retained the Elm City Trophy for the third-straight season. In front of a record 5,407 fans at Ralph F. DellaCamera Stadium, the Chargers homecoming win propelled them to 8-0 overall and 7-0 in the Northeast-10 Conference. The Owls dropped to 2-7 overall and 2-5 in conference play.
New Haven turned a 13-9 lead with just under 10 minutes to go in the first half into a 27-9 halftime lead with back-to-back touchdown strikes from Ryan Osiecki (Seymour, Conn./Seymour / Univ. of Louisville). The Chargers then scored three second half touchdowns and held the Owls scoreless to secure the 39-point victory.
The Chargers won the toss and chose to defer to the second half, putting their defense on the field first. UNH halted the drive after eight plays and 42 yards. Both teams punted against before the Chargers recorded the first of three blocked kicks in the game. Matt Stevko (Shelton, Conn./Shelton ) got his hands on the ball, while Justen Wilson (Hamden, Conn./Hyde Leadership) recovered at SCSU’s 28-yard line. The Chargers then used five plays and 1:38 before Ronnie Nelson (Stuart, Fla./South Fork ) found wide open Kameel Lashley (Boston, Mass./Boston Comm. Leadership Academy) in the endzone. The Chargers extra point was good and UNH led 7-0 with five minutes left in the first quarter.
Southern Connecticut gained possession at its own 22-yard line and went 63 yards on 13 plays, taking nearly six minutes off the clock into the second quarter. Devin Silverman lined up for a 32-yard field goal on fourth-and-six and split the uprights, bringing the scored to 7-3 in favor of New Haven.
Mike DeCaro (Weston, Fla./Cypress Bay ) took the ensuing kickoff 45 yards to the 50-yard line, setting the UNH offense up in great field position yet again. Four plays later, Anthony Tillman (Piscataway, N.J./Piscataway) rumbled 21 yards for another UNH touchdown. New Haven two-point conversion attempt failed and it held on to a 10-point lead with 12:33 left in the first half. The Owls answered with a six-play 73-yard drive, capped by a 17 yard touchdown run by Dequane June with 9:42 left. After calling a timeout, SCSU’s extra point was blocked by J.D. Chalifoux (Mansfield, Mass./Mansfield) and the score remained 13-9.
The Chargers immediately scored again, on the second play of their drive, with a 43-yard pass and catch from Osiecki to Jason Thompson (Indiantown, Fla./South Fork ). The clock just moved under nine minutes and UNH opened a 20-9 advantage. Both teams struggled on their next drives, punting after back-to-back three-and-outs.
With 5:02 left in the first half, Southern Connecticut took over at its own 10-yard line after an Anthony Greenfield (Bloomfield, N.J./Paramus Catholic / Wagner) punt pinned it deep in Owls territory. The Owls again sustained a long 12-play, 42-yard drive with took up 4:28 of game clock. SCSU elected to go for it on fourth-and-eight and Jacob Jablonski was sacked in the backfield by defensive lineman Brent MacLeod (Winchester, Mass./Winchester). The Chargers took over at their own 48-yard line with 35 seconds left in the half. After two-quick completions to Chris Ruffin (New York, N.Y./Phillip Randolph) and one out-of-bounds to Nick Music (West Milford, N.J./West Milford ), Osiecki went 17 yards to Demetrius Washington-Ellison (Rahway, N.J./Rahway / Univ. of Maine) for another touchdown. Chris Scifo (Coral Springs, Fla./St. Thomas Aquinas / Central Connecticut State University) drilled another extra point and the Chargers carried a 27-9 lead into halftime.
For more, check out www.NewHavenChargers.com
