Stonehill Holds Off Mercyhurst 34-28 After a Blocked Field Goal
The first half ended on a 63-yard return of a blocked field goal, and Stonehill took a 13-7 lead into the break because of it. Stonehill beat Mercyhurst 34-28 and moved to 4-3. Mercyhurst is still looking for its first win at 0-5.
Mercyhurst scored first, an 8-yard pass from Alex Gevaudan to Ethen Knox early in the second quarter. Stonehill answered with two Domenic Scalese field goals, then Ma'Hkai Wilson ran the blocked kick back with 0:00 left in the half. Aidan Garrett ran in from three yards in the third and Jack O'Connell from four with 12:56 left in the fourth, and it was 27-7. That looked like the end of it.
It was not. Evan Van Dyke ran one in from a yard out with 5:17 left, and Garrett answered with a 43-yard touchdown run 17 seconds later to make it 34-14. Then Gevaudan hit Sha'lik Hampton from 21 yards and from 12, and with 2:27 left it was 34-28. The Mercyhurst offense scored three touchdowns in the last 5:17 and still lost by six.
Gevaudan threw 54 passes, completing 28 for 344 yards and three touchdowns, and was picked off three times. Mercyhurst ran 19 times for 56 yards. Stonehill ran 37 times for 181 and threw no interceptions, and Garrett had 113 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries. Take away the 7 points from that blocked-kick return and it is 27-28 the other way.
Fantasy-wise, the three best scorers were all Mercyhurst: Gevaudan at 33.2, Knox at 30.4 and Hampton at 29.2.