Endicott’s Defense Shines In 42-14 Win Over Nichols

DUDLEY, Mass. – Behind a single-game school record 10 sacks and four caused turnovers, the Endicott football team claimed its first victory of the 2015 season with a 42-14 win over NEFC foe Nichols College on Saturday afternoon at Vendetti Field.

The Gulls defense held Nichols to just one score in each half, a season-low 114 yards of total offense – which included negative 60 yards on the ground – and recorded two interceptions and a pair of fumble recoveries en route to the triumph.

Tied 7-7 with 11:58 left to play in the first half, Endicott outscored the Bison 21-0 down the stretch to take a commanding 28-7 advantage at the break and the Gulls never looked back.

Junior wide receiver Conor Crotty (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.) got the offensive outburst going for the Gulls late in the second when he caught a jump ball over his defender down the left sideline and took it to the house for a 49-yard touchdown reception to make it 14-7 (7:40).

After the defense held true on Nichols' next possession, freshman running back Johari Johnson (Rockville, Md.) capitalized on the momentum swing and punched home a 40-yard touchdown run (first career TD) for a 21-7 advantage. 

Nichols looked poised to answer on its next drive, but a sack by junior defensive tackle John Fortes (North Reading, Mass.) on third-and-two at Endicott's 35-yard line forced the Bison to punt and give the Gulls offensive unit 1:15 remaining on the clock to implement its two-minute offense.

Sam Ouellette (Rochester, N.H.) and the rest of the offense didn't disappoint as the sophomore quarterback connected on five passes – all to different receivers – for an eventual nine yard touchdown grab by Jamison Craft (Phillipston, Mass.) in the left corner of the end zone. Craft used a back shoulder fade to escape his defender and Ouellette threw the ball towards the sideline where only Craft was able to make the catch for the score. Senior running back Spencer Walsh (Melrose, Mass.) also picked up a crucial first down on the drive with an 8-yard rush in a third-and-two situation at Endicott's 49-yard line.

The Gulls defense then held Nichols to nine yards of total offense in the second half to lock up the victory.

ENDICOTT OFFENSE

• Ouellette connected on 18 of his 31 pass attempts for three touchdowns, and 216 yards alongside two picks.
• Ouellette also scored two rushing touchdowns in the second half of the contest.
• Ouellette set single-game career-highs today in pass completions, passing touchdowns and rushing touchdowns.
• Johnson finished the contest with 86 yards (7.2 yards per carry) and one touchdown (both single-game career-highs).
• Junior wide receiver Jake Pelletier (Trumbull, Conn.) led all receivers in receptions with six. Pelletier also had 64 yards on the day.
• Craft scored twice in the win as he opened up the scoring contest with an 8-yard touchdown reception at the 11:24 mark of the first quarter.
• Crotty ended his afternoon with a career-high 75 receiving yards. That mark also led all student-athletes in the game.
• Endicott's offensive line did not allow a sack against Nichols. The Bison have not been held to zero sacks in a contest since November 15, 2014 (vs. Western New England).
• The Gulls compiled a season-high 522 yards of total offense. That mark is just six yards shy of tying the No. 10 ranked offensive output in program history.
• Endicott head coach Kevin DeWall earned his first career head coaching victory today (1-3 all-time as a head coach).

NICHOLS OFFENSE

• Sophomore quarterback Jacob Romero (Placentia, Calif.) went 9-for-19 with one touchdown and one interception alongside 165 yards passing. Romero also scored a 2-yard rushing touchdown in the third quarter with 9:02 left to play.
• Sophomore wide receiver Derrick Warren (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) hauled in a 66-yard touchdown connection from Romero at the 11:58 mark of the first quarter (7-7). Warren now has three scores over 40 yards this year.
• Freshman Princewell Iwejuo (Boston, Mass.) caught four passes for 64 yards in the loss.

BE A POSITIVE INFLUENCE

• Junior defensive tackle Craig Anderson (Franklin, Mass.) broke the single-game program record for sacks with four total for 14 yards lost. Anderson also recorded a team-high seven solo tackles.
• Fortes, Drew Jones (Philadelphia, Pa.), Connor McLaughlin (Canton, Mass.), Michael Schuchmann (Oxford, Conn.), and Matthew Dow (Nottingham, N.H.) all registered at least one sack to help break the single-game program record.
• Jones, who led the aforementioned group with two for a game-high 22 yards lost, also had one of two fumble recoveries in the win. Senior Marjan Solomon (Waltham, Mass.) had the other fumble recovery for the Gulls.
• Fortes and William Rivera (Orangeburg, N.Y.) ranked second on the team in tackles with five apiece.
• Mike Romanelli (Lighthouse Point, Fla.) and Rasheed Adigun (Salem, N.H.) tallied one interception, respectively. Adigun's interception, which was brought in on Endicott's 2-yard line with less than nine minutes to play in the game, was the first of his career.

WHAT'S NEXT

Endicott (1-3, 1-0 NEFC) hosts NEFC foe MIT next Saturday at 12 p.m. on Homecoming Weekend. Nichols (1-3, 0-1) travels to Western New England University on October 3 for a conference matchup scheduled to kickoff at 12 p.m. 

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